Many people were surprised when Olympic boxer Amir Khan signed up for I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!
Especially when the 30-year-old sheepishly admitted he’d never actually seen the show before and had NO IDEA what he was getting himself into when it came to Bushtucker Trials.
And now a close friend of the athlete has come forward to explain just why Amir chose to jet to Oz and go back to basics in the jungle.
Saj Mohamed told The Mirror that Amir simply wanted a “break” from the grind of daily life, which has included very public rows with wife Faryal Makhdoom.
Read more: I’m A Celeb campmates open up about the darkest of subjects
“Everyone was shocked he decided to go in,” said Saj.
“But he needed a break. He’s had a really horrible year.
“He just wanted to get away. The only space he could get away without getting into any more dramas or trouble is there.
“He’ll have no mobile, no friends and no family.”
We wonder if the rumoured £400,000 pay cheque Amir is pocketing also helped?!
Amir and Faryal married in 2013 and have one daughter together, but temporarily parted ways earlier this year after an explosive Twitter spat.
It was all quite messy between them for a while until Amir announced at the start of November he was back with Faryal, who is four months pregnant with their second child.
She’s been tweeting her support for him in the jungle.
Amir admitted at the start of the show he’d never seen it before – which was clear when he confessed to Ant & Dec he thought they’d go easy on him during the first Bushtucker Trial.
They replied by saying clearly he’d never watched I’m A Celeb!
It was also revealed on Extra Camp this week that Amir only clocked after a week that he was being filmed in the Bush Telegraph, believing it to be a place where he could have a quiet, private chat with crew members.
Oops.
In his introductory interview for I’m A Celebrity, Amir said doing the show was worse than getting in the boxing ring.
Read more: Ant & Dec announce another person has left the jungle
“My job is getting punched in the face and punching someone back. But this is a totally different fear. Going into the jungle, which I’m not used to and I’m very uncomfortable with, so I think this is worse.
“I would be lying if I said I wasn’t scared. I am scared and I know it will be tough for me but I just have to get through it.”
I’m A Celeb airs nightly on ITV.