I’M A Celebrity fans are urging show bosses to move the series to the summertime in the future and want the current series extended after it was forced off air for three nights due to Storm Arwen.
The show was thrown into chaos over the weekend as the vicious storm battered and damaged the set, prompting campmates to be evacuated and production shut down.
Now viewers think changes need to be made to prevent similar scenarios happening in the future, especially if the show remains in Wales’s Gwrych Castle instead of Australia.
One wrote on Twitter: “Maybe a good idea would be to have the UK I’m a Celebrity during the summer months?!”
Another posted: “I don’t understand why they just don’t postpone I’m A Celeb and air it in the summer time instead. Wales this time of year is freezing and the weather changes so dramatically here.”
When the programme announced it was returning tonight, one commented: “Ok. But you better extend the series and let Richard back in.”
Richard Madeley was forced to quit after an early morning hospital dash following a funny turn meant he had to break the Covid-secure bubble of the castle.
There was widespread disappointment when his exit was announced and many want him back in.
Yesterday we revealed how show bosses said the on-set destruction caused by Storm Arwen is a £1milion disaster.
Insiders said lost advertising revenue, damaged gear and the cost of staff working around the clock to fix the problems have run up the seven-figure bill.
Read our I’m A Celeb 2021 live blog for the latest updates
Relieved ITV bosses confirmed that Ant and Dec would return with a new episode — barring more extreme weather.
The launch show was watched by 11.1million viewers, according to figures released yesterday. But a compilation episode which aired to fill the gap of Saturday’s missed live show drew an average of just 1.9million.
A show source said: “It’s been a complete nightmare of a weekend.
“This show is ITV’s cash cow and to lose three days of episodes is just the worst case scenario.
“But even advertising revenue aside, it’s the physical damage on site that has also racked up costs.
“Some really expensive equipment was damaged in the storm, not just a few marquees going over here and there. It’s delicate gear and the slightest bang can damage it irreparably — let alone a roof falling in on it.”
The source said contractors have been working round the clock to get the site back into shape and get the production hub up and running again.
They said: “Everyone is working every hour under the sun — and with hired help that also means extra pay. It’s been described on site as the £1million disaster. It’s been an expensive few days to say the least.”
The 11 remaining celebrities were evacuated from Grade I-listed Gwrych Castle on Saturday after Storm Arwen battered Abergele, in Conwy. They were returned to quarantine, where they had spent two weeks before they entered the show last weekend.
