Wayne Rooney’s planning on ‘smuggling’ banned item into I’m A Celebrity camp, says friend

| Senior Film & Entertainment Reporter Published November 10, 2026 9:11am Updated November 10, 2026 9:12am I’m A Celebrity star Wayne Rooney reportedly has tactics planned to cope on the reality show (Picture: James Gourley/Shutterstock) Wayne Rooney’s football pals have revealed the one item he’s trying to sneak into the camp on I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! as they predicted he could ‘snap’ as soon as he gets hungry. The former England forward is among the famous faces heading to Australia to take part in the ITV reality series this month, in which they will be seen surviving in a jungle camp with limited rations. Discussing his upcoming stint on the show on The Good, The Bad and The Football podcast, host Paddy McGuinness noted that Wayne had been ‘hammering the training to be on the telly’, adding: ‘When he [was] playing, he never went to that level really, did he? He was never that ripped up when he was playing.’ Wayne’s fellow former Manchester United player Nicky Butt then dubbed him ‘a natural beast’ and confessed: ‘I just want to see him flip. I want to see him snap on the jungle.’ Guest James Nelson-Joyce, the This City is Ours actor who is also friends with Wayne, revealed that the former sports star has already cut out items from his diet to avoid withdrawal on the show, explaining: ‘Well he’s cut the coffee out hasn’t he? He phoned me and said: “I’ve not had caffeine for weeks”.’ Get personalised updates on I'm A Celeb Wake up to find news on your TV shows in your inbox every morning with Metro’s TV Newsletter. Sign up to our newsletter and then select your show in the link we’ll send you so we can get TV news tailored to you. Nicky said he’d also spoken to Wayne ahead of his trip to Australia and the star confessed to him that he was going to attempt to smuggle some pepper into the camp to improve the taste of meals. The footballer-turned-pundit, pictured here on November 3, has been training hard and cut out coffee ahead of the show – but apparently he’s desperate to have seasoning (Picture: Richard Sellers/Sportsphoto/Allstar via Getty Images) ‘I said, “What are you going to take in?” He said, “White pepper. I’m gonna put it in my band here [in my trousers] and I’m gonna tip it out like that”. And I thought, “You’ll get caught!”’ The fact that Nicky has shared this publicly ahead of the campmates heading into the jungle has, of course, made his failure even more likely now… With Paul Scholes then slightly perplexed by that choice, Paddy explained that the bland food they eat in there is one of the things that really gets campmates down, seemingly drawing on his experience of talking to fellow celebrities. Paul, another Man U alumnus, then agreed, ‘I think that’s what gets people the most angry isn’t it, having no food’, before predicting of Wayne: ‘He’s either going to be hilarious or he’s going to flip his lid. He could bang [hit] someone.’ ‘No food, no sleep. Mosquito bites. He’s going to snap. He’s ready to snap, isn’t he?’ added Nicky. ‘Either way it will be great. Either way he will be funny.’ The presenting trio then went on to back Wayne going all the way, with Nicky saying he thinks the former Derby County manager ‘could win it’, while Paddy described him as ‘one of the best bookings they’ve had for a while’. Paul also agreed that he has a good chance of winning the showmbut pointed to stiff competition from any social media stars in the line-up who may bring in big numbers in the public vote, saying: ‘I think he will win it. The only trouble you get those YouTubers and streamers, and they get millions of votes.’ YouTube content creator Angry Ginge was crowned the last King of the Jungle by I’m A Celeb presenters Ant and Dec in December 2025, while Lioness Jill Scott won the show in 2022. Wayne’s wife Coleen previously took part on I’m A Celeb, finishing as runner-up in 2024 (Picture: Ken McKay/ITV/Shutterstock) He’s already arrived in Brisbane, ready to enter the jungle next week (Picture: James Gourley/Shutterstock) Wayne – whose wife Coleen Rooney competed on the show in 2024, finishing as runner-up to McFly singer Danny Jones – will reportedly be in the jungle with stars including Gavin and Stacey actress Joanna Page, YouTuber Sharky, Kaiser Chiefs frontman Ricky Wilson, TV presenter AJ Odudu and comedian Leigh Francis. He was pictured at Manchester airport on Sunday morning, set to head for Australia via Singapore, while TV presenter and wheelchair basketball player Ade Adeptian has already now landed in Oz too. Deals of the Day The Orlando holiday deal Disney fans shouldn't miss We're adding this discounted NEOM gift set straight to basket Want an LED face mask for less? This Black Friday deal could save you hundreds This teeth whitening sale could save you up to 64% before Black Friday The best Black Friday sleep deals to upgrade your bedroom with Simba’s 33% off sale I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! starts on Monday, November 16, at 9pm on ITV1 and ITVX. Arrow MORE: Stephen Mulhern ‘buzzing’ for new TV role after worrying health scare Arrow MORE: Take Me Out ‘set to return’ – with one clear favourite to replace Paddy McGuinness Arrow MORE: Wayne Rooney names Man Utd star who Michael Carrick must drop for Shea Lacey TV Newsletter Sign up and tell us which TV shows you love to watch to get personalised updates every morning.