Mike Tindall, Matt Hancock on I'm A Celeb 2022
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I’m A Celeb 2022: Mike Tindall defended by ex-star after being accused of ‘hurting’ Matt Hancock in jungle

Mike came under fire for tackling Matt in the challenge

I’m A Celeb 2022 star Mike Tindall‘s behaviour during the Cyclone Challenge has been defended.

The former rugby player was accused of “hurting” Matt Hancock during the challenge – however, Edwina Currie has said otherwise.

Matt Hancock and Mike Tindall during cyclone challenge on I'm A Celeb 2022
Mike was accused of trying to hurt Matt (Credit: ITV)

I’m A Celeb 2022 star Mike Tindall accused of ‘hurting’ Matt Hancock

Ahead of yesterday’s final (Sunday, November 27), Mike and his campmates undertook the Cyclone Challenge.

It was during this challenge, which aired on Saturday’s show, that Mike was accused of “hurting” Matt.

When it came to Mike’s turn to tackle the Cyclone, he ran up the slippery slope, before diving on top of Matt.

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Ant and Dec saw the funny side during the trial, commenting: “That must have hurt.”

When quizzed about it, Mike explained that he was using Matt as his “anchor”.

Fans of Matt were not happy with Mike after the challenge, with many accusing the rugby star of intentionally trying to hurt the Tory MP.

“He flattened him during the cyclone – just threw himself on him – not nice,” one person wrote.

Another said: “Mike was clearly out of line the way he dived on top of Matt Hancock in the cyclone challenge! And [it] was clearly deliberate.”

Others saw the funny side, however, as one tweeted: “The way Mike dived on top of Matt [laughing face emoji]. Was one of the best Cyclones in ages.”

Mike Tindall's exit interview on I'm A Celeb 2022
Mike was defended by Edwina Currie (Credit: ITV)

Mike defended by Edwina Currie

Now, however, a former I’m A Celebrity cast member has come to Mike’s defence.

Edwina Currie, who appeared on the show back in 2014, has said that Mike didn’t try to hurt Matt.

Speaking on behalf of Slingo, she said: “I liked Mike. I thought he had to be quite restrained because he’s part of the royal family.”

“I think he had to be more disciplined than some of the others had to be, but criticising Matt Hancock turned out to be not a good move in the end,” she continued.

“On the other hand, there were those on Twitter who thought that Mike crashed into Matt deliberately to try and hurt him during the Celebrity Cyclone. Let me tell you, I’m one of the handful of people in this world who have experienced the Cyclone, and you have no control,” she then said.

“There’s no way you can plan to crash into someone to try and hurt them. You’re more likely to find that you’ve lost your foot or you’re covered in slime. You really have no control, so I think that criticism was particularly ill-founded.”

Mike Tindall rubbing his eye on I'm A Celeb 2022
Mike revealed a secret about letters from home today (Credit: ITV)

Mike drops I’m A Celeb 2022 bombshell

In other Mike-related news, the former rugby star revealed a surprising detail about his letter from home.

Mike received a letter from his wife, Zara Tindall, during his time in the jungle.

However, the 44-year-old has revealed that he didn’t expect her to write him a letter. This was because he’d asked her not to!

Speaking on GMB today, Mike said: “I was trying to get my brother to write the letter, so he would actually take the mickey out of me a bit more and it would be a grounding one, rather than bringing it [emotions] all back to the surface but she [Zara] was sneaky on me.”

“She was a sneaky little one she was there, so it got me a little bit,” he confessed.

Read more: Matt Hancock slammed for ‘immature’ I’m A Celebrity reunion with girlfriend Gina

Celebrity Cyclone 2022! | I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here!

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Robert Emlyn Slater
Senior Writer