Emmerdale star reveals why Lisa Riley kept I’m A Celeb appearance secret from cast – and he couldn’t even tell his WIFE
LISA Riley only told one person on the Emmerdale set that she was going to be on I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here!
The Mandy Dingle actress is currently in the Aussie jungle competing for the top spot on ITV reality series, but chose to keep her appearance under wraps until the last moment.
But before heading Down Under, Lisa confessed to two people, her fiancé Al Benkovic, and Emmerdale co-star Dominic Brunt, who plays Paddy Kirk on the soap.
Dominic and Lisa have worked together on the ITV soap for decades, and he felt it was a privilege to be told the good news.
But the pressure was huge to keep it under wraps, that Dominic even kept it from his wife.
“I thought, right, if you’re telling me, I’m not even going to tell my wife,” he told the Mirror.
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“I don’t keep any secrets from my wife, so it was very strange. But it was great. It was really exciting as well.”
Lisa even reached out to Dominic to ask his thoughts about whether or not to do I’m A Celeb.
“She called me on set one day. She said that she’d been asked to do the jungle, and she wasn’t sure, what did I think? And I was going, ‘you’d be brilliant. You should do it’,” he explained.
“And then later she said, ‘I’m actually doing it’. I was really flattered that she told me.”
He added: “We have a very, very close relationship, and we have since 1997, but I was really flattered by the fact that it’s only me and her fella, who knew, and to be trusted like that.”
Dominic also shared that he thought she might get grouchy when she’s tired or hungry, but admitted that he’s not really seen a negative side to her.
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“I’ve very rarely seen that side of her, I have to say,” he said.
“She’s not a moody person. She’s a very upbeat person, and I think even when she’s tired, that’s the only time that you’ll really see her quite quiet.”
Dominic observed that Lisa is “getting better and better and better” on I’m A Celeb.
“She’s a very, very honest person, and she’s always herself, and she wears her heart on her sleeve,” he said.
Who is left on I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! 2025?
Here is the full list of campmates surviving the Australian jungle in I’m A Celeb 2025:
- Alex Scott: VOTED OFF
- Eddie Kadi: VOTED OFF
- Shona McGarty: The Sun revealed in May that the star, 34, was in advanced talks for the jungle, a year after leaving BBC soap Eastenders.
- Kelly Brook: After saying she would never appear on the show, the model, actress and presenter, 46, has been wooed with a big-money ITV deal.
- Martin Kemp: The Spandau Ballet icon and ‘eighties heartthrob, 64, is following in his son Roman’s footsteps and taking on the challenge of camp life.
- Ruby Wax: The comedy and chat show icon, 72, will hopefully be steering the conversations in the right direction during her time in camp.
- Jack Osbourne: Jack, 40, is the youngest of Sharon Osbourne and the late great Black Sabbath singer Ozzy’s kids.
- Lisa Riley: Lisa, 49, aka Emmerdale’s Mary Dingle, is swapping life in the Dales to sleep in a hammock Down Under.
- Aitch: The 25-year-old Brit Award winner is the first rapper on the show since Tinchy Stryder in 2014.
- Vogue Williams: The Sun revealed back in October that the Irish model and presenter, 40, was joining the line-up, a decade after her husband Spencer Matthews took part in the ITV show.
- Angry Ginge: The popular football influencer and social media sensation, 23, is set to become a household name.
- Tom Read Wilson: Celebs Go Dating favourite, 38, was a late entrant to head down under in the 2025 series.
“And I could see she wasn’t pretending to be anybody else but herself, and she wasn’t prepared to show off or start dancing on the first day. She sat there and waited and listened.”
