ITV recently confirmed none other than Nigel Farage as the token political figure of this year’s I’m A Celebrity line–up… Just as we’d finally started to recover from the second-hand embarrassment of watching Matt Hancock take on Bushtucker Trials.
Love him or hate him – or love to hate him – the former UKIP and Brexit Party leader is undeniably one of this season’s biggest signings.
So what is Mr Farage up to these days? Who is he married to? Does he have children?
With I’m A Celeb back on our screens, here’s everything you’d rather not know about Nigel Farage.
Is Farage still an MP?
Nigel Farage officially resigned from the Brexit Party (rebranded to Reform UK) in 2021. However he is still the party’s Honorary President and continues to be an outspoken political activist.
What is I’m A Celebrity campmate Nigel Farage doing now?
Away from politics, Nigel has his fingers in many pies. He is a presenter on GB News, where he hosts his own namesake evening show and even horrified viewers with a strip tease earlier this year.
Last September, he also launched his own range of gins!?
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He also makes videos on Cameo, a platform where members of the public can pay for personalised clips from their favourite celebs. However, this has reportedly seen him become the target of several pranks from users.
Is Nigel Farage married?
Farage has been married twice. His first marriage was to Irish nurse Grainne Hayes between 1988 and 1997. Their meeting story is quite an unconventional one: Nigel was actually one of Grainne’s patients after he was hit by a car on a night out. He sustained both a head injury and a leg injury so severe that he was in plaster for a year and almost required amputation.
The pair had two children together: Samuel, born in 1989, and Thomas, born in 1991.
Following their divorce, Farage married German national Kirsten Mehr. The couple also share two children, Victoria, born in 2000, and Isabelle, born in 2005. Both daughters have dual nationality and speak perfect German.
Farage appeared to confirm his split from Kirsten in 2017, describing himself as “53, separated and skint” in an interview with the Daily Mail.
Nigel Farage plane crash
If being hit by a car wasn’t unlucky enough, Nigel Farage was also involved in a plane crash in 2010. He was left with a broken sternum, several broken ribs and a punctured lung after an aircraft he was campaigning in became entangled in the UKIP banner it was towing and crash landed.
He is said to have joked before take-off: “I just hope the plane doesn’t blow up and crash.”
Mid-flight, the pilot issued a mayday call: “Banner’s wrapped around the tail and rudder! This is an emergency. Mayday! Mayday!”
Onlookers then said the plane nose-dived to the ground, with an eyewitness recalling: “It just fell out of the sky and flipped over on its front. It was all over in a couple of seconds. I thought they had both died.”
Opening up in his memoir, Nigel later said that the crash made him reassess his life and decide to devote more time to the things he loved doing. He also recalled that his first move after the accident was to “light a fag”, adding: “Not a great idea close to aviation fuel.”
Nigel’s cancer scare
Back when he was 21, Nigel claims he almost died after his testicular cancer was misdiagnosed.
Eventually, Nigel was forced back to the doctor after he found it difficult to walk, and his testicle was “as large as a lemon and rock hard”.
After a scan, it was discovered that he had testicular cancer. He then went on to have the testicle removed.
“I remember feeling the most profound sense of fury, that my cancer was just so unfair,” he said.
How old is Nigel Farage?
Nigel is now 59. Born on April 3 1964, he will celebrate the big 6-0 next spring.
Where does he live?
Farage currently lives in Single Street, a hamlet in Bromley, London. He has said that his house is “around the corner from his mother”. Lucky her.
Nigel Farage on taking part in I’m A Celebrity
ITV has reportedly had eyes on signing Nigel right back since 2016, but has never been able to seal the deal.
On November 6, the 59-year-old confirmed on GB News that he was still considering an offer for I’m A Celeb.
“I’ve thought about the offer hard, for the last 10 days or so. It’s quite a big decision and quite an unconventional thing for me to do.” He said, before going on to tease: “That’s what tempts me. But I haven’t signed a contract…yet.”
By the sounds of things, it must have been a last-minute decision. But with rumours that ITV bosses offered him close to £1.5 million for taking the gig, it seems a no-brainer.
Beef with Fred Sirieix?
Not only have many Brits threatened to boycott the show due to Farage’s involvement, but it seems he may already have an enemy in camp before the competition has even begun.
A social media post from First Dates star Fred Serieix has recently resurfaced, in which Fred called Farage “a coward who likes money, attention & the sound of his own voice far too much”. Awkward…
ITV bosses already in crisis talks?
The drama doesn’t stop there. There have also been reports that ITV bosses are already in crisis talks with Farage after he raised concerns about I’m A Celeb’s smoking ban.
Reports from the Daily Mail claim that producers are considering changing the rule just for Farage, who is a heavy smoker.
The new series of I’m A Celebrity will begin on ITV on Sunday November 19 at 9pm.
Read More: I’m A Celebrity 2023: Fred Sirieix sparks feud claims after calling Nigel Farage a ‘coward’
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