Month: December 2023

It has been another eventful year in television, from the conclusion of major dramas, including Happy Valley, to the reboots of classic reality shows like Big Brother.

While stalwarts I’m A Celebrity and Strictly Come Dancing continued to grip audiences in the UK, new shows like Squid Game: The Challenge provided global watercooler moments.

Over in drama, many were mourning the ending of one of the best TV shows ever written, Succession, but not before being shocked by twists and turns aplenty as others were delighted by the return of huge shows, including The Crown and Sex Education.

News programming, meanwhile, gave unexpected light relief thanks to some accidental blunders, including the likes of newsreaders they’re not realising they’re still on air.

But how well do remember 2023’s TV? Take our quiz below to find out.

The big TV quiz of the year

1) Who won ITV’s reboot of Big Brother?

2) Who inherited Logan Roy’s (Brian Cox) media empire in the final episode of Succession?

3) In the Beckham documentary, David Beckham hilariously corrected his wife Victoria Beckham over her dad’s car. What did he drive?

4) What was the most-watched show on Netflix at the start of this year according to the streamer’s own data?

5) Name all the campmates who left I’m A Celebrity early in 2023.

6) What was created in Happy Valley’s honour after a widely-acclaimed scene?

7) Who did Love Island’s Ella Thomas recouple with in Casa Amor?

8) How did Holly Willoughby begin her comeback speech on This Morning after Phillip Schofield’s departure?

9) How much was the jackpot on Squid Game: The Challenge?

10) Why was Gary Lineker forced to step down from Match of the Day?

11) Which royal controversially came back as a ghost in The Crown?

12) What was the name of the journalist Laurence Fox disrespected in a vile rant on GB News?

13) Which British film did the BBC turn into a TV series this year?

14)  Gregg Wallace fronted a spoof Channel 4 documentary that sparked backlash. What was it about?

15) What did Sky News controversially interrupt a live broadcast from Jerusalem covering the Israel-Hamas conflict to announce?

16) Which actor from Parks and Recreation had a role in The Last of Us?

17) Who did Carrie Bradshaw reunite with in And Just Like That season 2?

18) BBC presenter Maryam Moshiri apologised after making a blunder live on air. What did she accidentally do?

19) Name the legendary popstar who performed in the Strictly Come Dancing final.

20) What nickname was given to Love Island contestant Mitchel Taylor due to his villa antics?

21) What is Arnold Schwarzenegger’s catchphrase in Netflix action series Fubar?

22) Which British TV presenter gave birth to her second child aged 51?

23) Who was the first couple to score a perfect 40 on Strictly Come Dancing 2023?

24) Which realtor threatened to leave the Oppenheim Group in Selling Sunset and why?

25) North West had an unusual snack on The Kardashians. What was it?

26) Steve Coogan played the late serial sex offender Jimmy Savile in The Reckoning, but what TV show did they appear on together in 1988?

27) How much did Nigel Farage reportedly get paid for I’m A Celebrity?

28) In September, Naga Munchetty admitted she was ‘sweating’ and was struggling to keep her composure. What had happened?

29) Which two actresses were cast as Emily Maitliss in two separate dramas about her Panorama interview with Prince Andrew?

30) What are the remaining five words of Big Brother’s Yinrun’s catchphrase, beginning with ‘Hurry up girls’?

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Josie Gibson is fresh from the I’m A Celebrity 2023 jungle – and so the memories of the hardship are still at the forefront of her mind.

Although the This Morning host is keen to tell us how beautiful the Australian location is, she can’t help recoiling at some of the tougher aspects of the series.

‘I had the best campmates ever and we all said we couldn’t have got through it without each other because our year had so much rain. It rained forever. We were just constantly trying to get dry,’ she told Metro.co.uk. 

‘It just did not stop raining,’ she added again to further illustrate her point.

The constant downpour made it feel like Josie, 38, had always just visited her local leisure centre for a few lengths.

‘You would go down to the creek and do the washing up and it would be like you’ve been swimming in your clothes. Even your underwear was wet.’

‘Oh my god, the wet socks on my trotters,’ she recalled. ‘They’re still not the best. I think I need one of those scrapers.’

This is not exactly what Josie believed she was going to face when she signed her contract to take part.

‘Well, I thought in my little head that on I’m A Celebrity you would get up in the morning, you go to the wardrobe department, and get ready for the day,’ she shared.

Instead, Josie was faced with a grim reality, that viewers don’t get to see: ‘What happens is every day they give you like a bar of soap which is like 21 in 1. You have to wash your hair with it. You wash your face with it. You clean your clothes with it. You clean the floors with it. You just clean everything with a bar of soap.’

Despite perhaps not feeling her most glamorous, there were reports that she still managed to engage in some flirting with the cameramen, but she is keen to clear her name.

‘I don’t want to sleep with everybody,’ she tells us and we’re already imagining how this soundbite could be a TikTok success story in the right hands.

‘You don’t see the cameramen. I can’t think who I would have been flirting with.’

It’s at this moment Josie has a sudden flashback. 

‘Oh actually… there was a cameraman and he was built! I said to him, “Oh you are built” but that was about it.’

She continued: ‘Honestly, I get pictured with someone and everybody thinks I’m having my wicked way with them.

‘I’m not like that at all. I can dish out compliments but it doesn’t mean I want to sleep with them. If you’re nice and complimentary, people take it as flirting.’

If Josie likes you then what you’ll hear is, well, nothing. A first date with Josie could be confused with filming of a third The Quiet Place movie.

‘When I’m flirting with you, and I’m really into you, you will know as I can’t talk to you. I can’t say anything. I go really, really quiet when I really love somebody.’

Luckily, that hasn’t happened on This Morning, but there was a close call: ‘There was one celebrity where I thought “Oh my God, he’s so sweet.” He touched my heartstrings. But I’m a professional on This Morning. I don’t think “Oh, you’re a bit of alright”.’

While Josie is hoping King of the Jungle Sam Thompson could join her on This Morning as a host, she’d also be happy to see fellow campmate Fred Sirieix in the studio kitchen despite their bickers over food prep on the series.

‘Fred’s lovely. He’s alright. We were just having a bit of banter and everything that I’ve said about Fred, I would say to his face, and everything Fred said about me he would say to me.

‘We felt like we knew each other that well that we could be like that, but I suppose when people are watching it, they’re probably thinking “oh, they’re maybe not being very nice about each other”. We would forever laugh and wink at each other.’

Rather than give Fred a taste of his own medicine by also giving him cooking tips, if he came on the ITV daytime show Josie would simply ask for a very specific segment.

‘I’d just like him to teach me how to make a proper bean fritter. I love butter beans,’ she shared.

While most people complain about the food offerings on I’m A Celebrity, Josie was quite pleased with the rationed beans and wants more!

The food shortage and tough bushtucker trials never made her feel close to quitting: ‘I was always gonna see it through to the end. I’m not a quitter, even if I’ve got all the elements against me. I have one thing, I do not quit. I will not be beaten.’

However, Josie did face tests but it wasn’t the countless cockroaches and rats, instead, it was simply missing her five-year-old son Reggie.

‘There were moments where I thought “I’ve just got to see my little boy now. I can’t do this anymore.”

‘So there was a lot of time in there when I wasn’t myself. I’m very happy-go-lucky but when you haven’t got your right arm it is very difficult. I just missed Reg like mad and I was properly pining for him. I didn’t think I’d be like that.’

Although, Josie had experienced being cut off from the outside world when she won Big Brother in 2010 the arrival of Reggie, and her successful TV career made I’m A Celebrity a unique experience.

‘Even though I’ve done something like it before, it was nothing the same. I didn’t have anything to lose on Big Brother. I didn’t have my little boy. I was just free, totally single, on my own. This time I had my little boy, I’m a mother. I’ve got my career.

‘I can’t get cancelled, no way.’

She continued: ‘When you’re in Big Brother if you got a bit of work off the back of it you were so lucky. Now I’ve built a career.

‘Not that I would have done anything to lose it but you’ve always got that on your brain. You don’t want to upset anybody now that you’ve got people that follow you. It is at the back of my mind.’

Josie made it through and has now happily returned to her day job, and family life but upon reflection was she truly pleased with her fourth position behind Sam, Tony Bellew, and Nigel Farage?

‘I was very, very happy about that. With the campmates that I had, I was lucky to even be fourth,’ she humbly shared.

She thinks if Grace Dent and Jamie Lynn-Spears didn’t quit, she would have placed lower.

‘I don’t even think it would have been fourth if the two women didn’t quit. I think I’m very, very happy where I came. I was in there with such legends. I just thought to come forth with those people was great.’

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‘I’m still here,’ Josie Gibson announced as she arrived at Metro.co.uk’s office before making a joke about how she thought she’d have been cancelled a long time ago.

The I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! star has the same enthusiasm as an ITV daytime competition winner who just bagged the campervan and £100,000 for her incredible career that’s entering a new era 13 years after winning Big Brother.

Her unwavering excitement for the world of showbiz is something some celebrities may have lost by this point, but having met Josie at various points in her career I can attest to her still bringing the exact same energy, which makes me believe she won’t be going anywhere. However, now she just knows how to attach the microphone pack herself without any assistance.

‘You don’t mind that I went ahead, do you?’ she asked our video team before taking her seat and telling us about her recent bout of Tonsilitis that ended with a hospital trip, her day at This Morning, and insisting I have a twin (I don’t) all before we click record. 

Fresh from the jungle Josie is keen to recount her experience on the popular reality show. ‘What an adventure,’ she enthused to Metro.co.uk.

Her favourite part of the month-long stint which saw her finish in fourth place was meeting her campmates, and she grew particularly fond of Sam Thompson.

‘I would tell Sam that I thought he’d be the winner all the time,’ she revealed.

‘He has just got a lovely energy about himself and he was entertaining morning, noon, and night. I asked him what his down days had been, and he just didn’t have any. He’s like a puppy you just can’t help but love him.’

Josie may have been channelling Psychic Sally and correctly predicting his victory, but Sam wasn’t having any of it: ‘He would never let himself think that he was going to win. He’s not like that.’

The pair could be spending a lot more time together, if the latest rumours are true – Sam, 31, is tipped to be a future host on This Morning.

‘I have seen the rumours that he might be doing something with This Morning and I was like “Can we please keep him?” 

‘I would love for him to come over to This Morning and be part of the family. He would make such a lovely addition.’

She added that when he appeared on a recent episode ‘everyone just fell in love with him.’ 

‘I fell in love with him all over again,’ she added. 

‘I’m hoping that the rumours are true, but I don’t know anything.’

Josie sees big things on the horizon for Sam no matter what.

‘When Sam was in a jungle, he said he would love to be on Ant [McPartlin] and Dec [Donnelly]’s level. I said “I think you can get there, you really can do it.” He’s got the magic about him.’

However, Josie is keen to point out that This Morning – which has experienced a lot of change in 2023 following the departures of both Phillip Scofield and Holly Willoughby – is not really about the hosts.

‘On This Morning, it’s not my time to shine. I’m just a host introducing you to all these magical people that we have on the show. I talk to all these different interesting people and you want to do the best by them because this is their time,’ she shared.

This means she deems it to be of the utmost importance that she stays focused for two and a half hours while they’re on the air, which can have a negative effect. 

‘When I get off I’m absolutely frazzled because I have to concentrate for the whole time. You can’t shut off on live TV.’

Of course, some episodes are harder than others and when asked which interviewee has posed the biggest challenge, Josie paused before looking at her agent and stating: ‘I’m going to say it.’

Turning back to us, she began: ‘I love him, but it was a very challenging interview. I don’t think he’ll mind me saying it. Michael Barrymore.’

Back in August, the 71-year-old comedian appeared on the series and was critical of Josie and co-host Craig Doyle. He told the duo that their chat wasn’t quite natural enough for his liking and criticised them for using an autocue.

‘He said that he didn’t read autocues in his time. Well, of course when he was doing all his showbiz stuff, they probably wouldn’t have used the autocue. He used to do everything freestyle but there’s no way you could present two and a half hours of live telly not using an autocue.’

She diplomatically concluded: ‘The thing is, I’ve always loved Michael Barrymore. I’ve always loved him and I do not dislike him but out of all everybody we’ve had on I would say, yeah, he was the most challenging.’

Although Josie found it hard work, many viewers praised her for how she handled the awkward interview. These skills are something she’s learned since working her up on This Morning.

She joined in 2018 as a competition announcer, before hosting the whole show for the first time in 2021. Her rise to the top of her game isn’t something Josie thinks would have been possible in recent history due to one of her defining features.

‘Years ago, I wouldn’t have been on TV. You didn’t hear people who sounded like me.’

However, there was no way Josie was going to change, the world simply had to catch up!

‘I am so proud of my accent. Having a Bristolian accent on mainstream television is incredible. It’s lovely to be able to showcase lots of regional accents, so we can identify with lots of different people at home. It’s really important and I’m glad the times have changed.

‘Now, I’m glad I got this accent because even though it probably gets on a lot of people’s nerves I don’t know if people would ever remember me if I just spoke without an accent.’

The only time she ever changes it is when she’s speaking to American interviewees, who struggle to understand her.

‘I’ll use my phone voice then,’ she told us with a smile.

We soon could be hearing that famous accent on another TV juggernaut – Dancing On Ice. Josie is reportedly favourite to replace Holly, 42, on the skating show if she decides not to return.

Taking on more responsibility at ITV, and more exposure means bigger pay cheques but modest Josie insists she’s not a big spender. 

‘I don’t really like designer things. I’ll tell you what I do love a bit of skincare. I treat myself to Space NK products. They’re quite high-end.’

As well as £16 hand soaps, Josie is also planning to make quite a big purchase with her son Reggie, five, at the forefront of her mind. 

‘I have got to get a new house to be closer to Reggie’s school. I’ve been quite honest about spending my I’m A Celebrity money on that. That’s what I’m going to be doing with that.’

Before we say goodbye to Josie, we can’t resist asking her about the clip from Big Brother that still regularly finds its way onto our social media timelines.

‘You know what I do whenever I’m feeling low, I always think about that woman that got her face ripped off by a chimpanzee,’ she told her housemates in the resurfaced video.

‘I feel so guilty about that comment because you don’t realise what you’re coming out with on TV, especially on reality TV. You forget the cameras are there. I felt so guilty when Channel 5 showed the documentary about the woman again. It’s awful. So I take that comment back. I’m very, very apologetic about that comment.’

In case you’re wondering, Josie now thinks about ‘Tony Bellew putting his size 12 feet in our chicken fried rice’ when she’s feeling down. 

Got a story?

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Josie Gibson has revealed she fell seriously unwell while on her recent flight home from Australia after appearing on I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here!

The This Morning star, 38, was the last woman standing on the most recent season of the long-running reality series, with the title eventually won by Made in Chelsea’s Sam Thompson.

Although Josie had plenty to contend with during her time in the jungle – her spider phobia, clashes with Fred Sirieix over cooking and seeing Nigel Farage’s bottom one too many times – she’s now spoken about how her trip back to the UK was anything but smooth sailing.

On Thursday the presenter appeared on Loose Women to speak about her time on the reality show and was asked by panellist Kaye Adams about her health scare, which was dubbed a ‘medical emergency’.

‘I will just say the jungle was an adventure and I was glad I did it, but when I was on the flight coming home, I started to feel really unwell and shivering,’ she explained.

‘When I got back, I had severe tonsillitis and I couldn’t breathe and got taken to hospital on Friday and they put me on a drip and gave me lots of steroids to bring the swelling down so I could breathe again.’

She went on to say she was close to having to pull out of her scheduled return to This Morning as she was so unwell.

‘It was a bit touch and go on whether I could make This Morning, so I just want to thank everybody that works at the RUH in Bath.

‘Without them I wouldn’t have been able to do This Morning and they really took care of me so thank you. Thank you to all the doctors and nurses.’

Josie also told Metro.co.uk that she was trying her best to recover from her tonsillitis as soon as possible as her return to This Morning had already been teased.

In the Loose Women chat, Josie also joked about how other patients in A&E had been taken aback when hearing her name called out.

‘They called my name, and I heard a load of people go “that’s that girl from the jungle”,’ she shared.

Reflecting on her time in camp, Josie said she believed she hadn’t given ‘the best’ of herself as she was ‘pining over and heartbroken’ to be separated from her son Reggie, 5.

However, she joked that he wasn’t fussed at all and was ‘living life in a rockstar’ while visiting the Gold Coast.

‘He was having the time of his life,’ she joked.

In a video posted on the I’m A Celeb social channels after being eliminated, Josie was asked about all of the ‘firsts’ she’d like to do now that she’s out of the jungle, with Reggie providing the entertaining answers.

As for what food she would like to eat first, her son suggested that she go for broccoli, whispering in her ear with a cheeky smile on his face.

Next, Reggie said that his mum should have a glass of ‘orange’, before adding that he wanted to play a game of catch.

Loose Women airs weekdays from 12.30pm on ITV1.

Got a story?

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EastEnders star Danielle Harold has poked fun at her rumoured romance with Pete Wicks after her I’m A Celebrity stint.

The Lola Pearce actress, 31, was put on the spot about her romance with the former Towie star, 35, after pictures showed them looking close in Australia.

During Tuesday’s Loose Women, Danielle – who was the fifth eliminated – told the Loose Women panel: ‘We’ve been laughing so much.

‘No, we’ve been laughing so much bless him. We come out and you go out with all the friends and family, but me and Pete are just good friends. Have been for years, but we’ve been having a good giggle about it.’

I’m A Celebrity winner Sam Thompson also poked fun at the situation on his Staying Relevant podcast.

‘Pete got linked to every single person out there,’ he said.

He got linked to Sarah (Nick Pickard’s girlfriend), he got linked to Danielle [Harold], he got linked to my girlfriend Zara [McDermott], he got linked to Rochelle [Humes] at one point. I don’t think there were anymore women out there to get linked to.’

Danielle’s character Lola died earlier this year after being diagnosed with a brain tumour. The powerful storyline was emotional and focused on how Lola’s illness impacted her close friends and family, as well as the Walford community.

In the aftermath, while the likes of Ben (Max Bowden) and Billy (Perry Fenwick) struggled with their grief, there was a strong focus on Jay, who even turned to drugs to try and numb his emotions.

During the plot, Jay started paying a sex worker called Nadine (Jazzy Phoenix) to sleep in the same bed as him.

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I’m A Celebrity campmate Danielle Harold has revealed she was denied treatment when her hair started falling out on the ITV show.

The EastEnders star, 31, was the fifth campmate to be eliminated from the jungle, with Made In Chelsea star Sam Thompson, also 31, eventually crowned champion.

However, while she made firm friends with the likes of Josie Gibson, the soap actor’s time Down Under wasn’t plain sailing as the conditions unexpectedly caused hair loss.

And when she asked producers for some treatment to assist with her thinning locks, she was politely turned down.

Danielle regaled this story on Wednesday’s Loose Women when she asked by panellist Jane Moore, 51, what the ‘worst’ part of reality show was.

The Pointless Celebrities star replied: ‘My hair was falling out! It was just so bad.

Giggling, Danielle continued: ‘Then I was like, “Can I get a treatment?” but they were like, “No sorry Danielle” so just being in the jungle is the biggest shock.’

Danielle previously revealed she almost had to bow out of I’m A Celebrity before the final as she was struck down with a worrying infection.

She nearly lost a stone as she fell ill but ‘powered through’ and refused to leave the jungle.

According to The Sun, Danielle told a friend: ‘I felt wiped out, so rough and unwell, but I was determined to stay in there, I hadn’t gone all that way for it to end like that.’

The Eastenders actress was told by medics she may have to go to hospital but opted to be monitored instead, until they saw an improvement in her health.

The insider continued: ‘Danielle fell ill at the start of the show and developed a really nasty infection which made her very unwell.

‘It was all kept off camera and she just kept powering through, Danielle was seen by the camp doctor several times.’

She fought through the mystery infection off-screen, with no hint to viewers she might be unwell, spending 20 days in camp.

Metro.co.uk has contacted ITV for comment.

Loose Women airs weekdays from 12.30pm on ITV.

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There are only days to go until 2023 draws to a close, and we prepare to welcome the New Year of 2024.

So it’s no surprise that people are already feeling very reflective over the past 12 months, looking back on their favourite and most memorable TV moments – as well as those that sparked the most Ofcom complaints.

From the King’s Coronation to The Great British Bake Off, Strictly Come Dancing and I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!, there were plenty of fan-favourite shows that had viewers glued to their screens and on the edges of their seats.

However, diehard fans of Happy Valley – which came to an end with its critically acclaimed third and final series earlier this year – might be surprised to learn that it didn’t top the rankings of the most-watched TV show of 2023.

That is, especially considering the programme that topped the list sparked more than 8,000 complaints at media watchdog Ofcom.

In a new report published by the BBC of the top 10 most-watched programmes this year across all broadcasters and streamers, seven of the entries were released by the company, including the Eurovision Song Contest and Planet Earth III.

The top spot went to the coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla, which garnered an average audience of 12.8million people.

The coronation was broadcast on several channels, including ITV, where Bridgerton star Adjoa Andoh appeared as a commentator.

While discussing the festivities, the actress described the Buckingham Palace balcony as ‘terribly white’, which resulted in thousands of people submiting complaints to Ofcom.

The watchdog later confirmed that it was not going to take any further action following an assessment, while Adjoa stressed: ‘I didn’t mean to upset anybody.’

Next on the list of top TV shows of 2023 was Happy Valley, which brought in 11.9m viewers on the BBC.

Fans of the crime drama lapped up Sarah Lancashire’s stellar return as Sergeant Catherine Cawood in the drama created by Sally Wainwright.

In third place came the Eurovision Song Contest, which took place in Liverpool this year after Sam Ryder came in second for the UK in 2022 behind Ukraine’s Kalush Orchestra.

The UK’s 2023 entry Mae Muller finished second to last, while Loreen soared to victory for Sweden for a second time with her powerful track Tattoo.

This year, The Great British Bake Off fans were delighted by the arrival of Alison Hammond as one of the presenters, taking over from Matt Lucas after he decided to leave the Channel 4 series.

Her debut likely contributed to the viewership of the season, as it brought in an average viewership of 9.7m people, although the report explained this referred to 28-day data, but later episodes are not included because it hasn’t been 28 days yet since they aired.

Next up was I’m A Celebrity, which sparked controversy when it was revealed that former Ukip leader Nigel Farage had been cast for a reported fee of £1.5m.

Despite many calling to boycott the ITV show, it still had an average audience of 9m people, according to seven-day data, as the BBC outlined that the 28-day data is not yet available.

Planet Earth III came in sixth place with an average of 8.9m viewers, although just like Bake Off, the full series of 28-day data is not yet available.

The same can be said of Strictly, which according to the report as of now had an average of 8.5m viewers, with Death in Paradise reaching the eighth spot with an average audience of 8.3m.

Finally, Unforgotten and Wild Isles both had averages of 8.2m viewers by the end of the year.

The report also stipulated that the Women’s World Cup brought in a peak of 12m viewers this year, while Ghosts was named the biggest comedy of the year with an average audience of 4.9m.

Speaking of the results, BBC Chief Content Officer Charlotte Moore said: ‘Only the BBC can offer such scale, distinctiveness and ambition.

‘Our range of world-class programmes is unrivalled, we’ve delivered value to audiences and they’ve chosen the BBC in every genre.

‘We are facing tough financial challenges, and while we are not unique in this, what’s impressive is that despite all the millions being spent on global platforms, we’ve had an extraordinary year creatively.’

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