Reality TV and romance tend to go hand in hand and, despite the interruptions of bugs and hungry stomach gurgles, I’m a Celebrity … Get Me Out of Here! is no exception.
Throughout I’m a Celeb Australia’s eight seasons an array of celebrities have served up some seriously steamy on-screen romances.
While some turned out to be nothing more than Jungle flings, other pairings have lasted beyond the confines of camp.
So, grab your mugs (and rice and beans, for good measure) because we have the tea on all the past jungle romances!
Joey Essex and Maria Thattil
The 2022 season of I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here Australia was PACKED with drama, as per usual.
Whilst Beau Ryan’s shock exit deserves an honourable mention, no tea was as piping hot as the ongoing fling between Joey Essex and Maria Thattil.
The British reality star and former Miss Universe Australia had been fan faves since day dot.
During a *casual* camp bed chat, Maria confessed she was looking for someone “adventurous, creative and open.”
Of course, Joey maintained that he’s “pretty much got all them things”.
“If there was a piece of paper with a load of boxes, I reckon every one would be ticked,” he said.
They also shared a rather iconic Titanic moment. Maybe if Jack and Rose had been on a rubber raft in the outback rather than the Titanic, their relationship would’ve fared far better.
The fling was only short lived and Maria was sent home from the jungle before things could really take off.
Following her exit, Maria claimed in her exit interview that her and Joey were just friends.
She told host Dr Chris Brown “We’re flirty friends, and we agreed that in the jungle under the microscope, it was just pushing things a little bit.”
During a radio interview the following day, she pinned the relationship down to being “a little bit bored.”
Abbie Chatfield and Ash Williams
Despite an unlucky run on season seven of The Bachelor Australia, Abbie Chatfield was open to a new reality romance when she appeared on (and won) I’m a Celeb Australia in 2021.
The Bachie alum, podcast host, and all-round Queen of Aussie reality TV hit it off with comedian Ash Williams, sparking dating rumours after sharing an on-screen pash.
However, Abbie later took to her podcast, It’s a Lot, to clear up the confusion around their kiss, reiterating that she had “requested a no-consequence pash”.
The pair were simply bored with a shared desire for affection, she told listeners.
Abbie also joked the pair had “caught up for a coffee” and remained friends following I’m a Celebrity, but nothing more.
These days, Abbie is dating Konrad Bien-Stephens, who appeared on Brooke Blurton’s 2021 season of The Bachelorette Australia.
Meanwhile, Ash has been laying low after he was charged with recording an intimate image without consent in January 2021.
The 39-year-old plead not guilty after police alleged he had taken screenshots of a nude woman whilst the pair were on a FaceTime call.
Charlotte Crosby and Ryan Gallagher
After the I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here UK bosses banned reality stars, Geordie Shore’s Charlotte Crosby finally got a shot at the jungle crown on the Aussie version of the show in 2020.
While our fave Geordie lass may not have been crowned Queen of the Jungle, she did walk away with something even better… a bae!
Charlotte very quickly found a flame with former Married at First Sight groom Ryan Gallagher.
The pair shared plenty of steamy kisses (and raised a few eyebrows in the process) during their brief romance.
However, as the ex-reality stars should’ve known, reality TV romance can be complicated, to say the least.
The pair split shortly after I’m a Celebrity wrapped, with Ryan telling NW Magazine “reality hit pretty quickly.”
“It was clear it was never going to work.”
Charlotte reiterated that the split was mutual.
She told 10Daily “I still wasn’t looking for something serious, he’s at a stage in his life where he is… We came to a mutual decision that we’d just cool it off.”
Barry Hall and Lauren Brant
Okay, buckle up because this may be the most unexpected I’m a Celebrity romance yet!
Retired AFL player Barry Hall met former Hi-5 star Lauren Brant when they appeared on I’m a Celeb in 2015.
The pair were both in separate relationships whilst on the show, however. Barry was married to Sophie Raadschelder and Lauren was engaged to Warren Riley.
In fact, when they first met Loz and Baz didn’t even like each other!
Barry even went as far as to declare “she’s really starting to annoy me,” during a confessional.
However, when you get covered in snakes and eat worms together, you are sure to bond (eventually) and the pair were amicable by the end of the season.
Later that year, Lauren’s affair with footballer (and now fellow I’m a Celeb alum) Beau Ryan was revealed. She and Warren split up in the wake of the scandal.
Not too long after, Barry officially separated from his estranged wife, and the campmates eventually reconnected.
Come November 2016, the pair had made their relationship (Insta) official.
Just months after announcing their recoupling publicly, Lauren took to Instagram to announce they were expecting a child!
“Barry and I are beyond excited to share this news. I just LOVE kids and I have dreamt of the day I will be able to have my own,” she captioned a sweet photo. “We have been blessed with a little miracle. I’M PREGNANT!”
Baby Miller was born in 2017, followed by Houston in 2019 and Samson in November 2021.
Lauren and Barry married in 2021.
Know something that we don’t? Spill the tea here!
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