I'm A Celebrity's ITV takeover 'confirmed' as schedule cleared for hit show's return

The new series of I'm A Celebrity Get Me Out of Here might still be a week away, but it's already been 'leaked' that the show will completely dominate schedules in the run up to Christmas.

It's been 22 years since hosts Ant and Dec, fresh from presenting the first series of Pop Idol for OTV, headed Down Under for a bunch of celebs, as the stars swapped their luxury lifestyles for life in the jungle. After millions were instantly hooked on series one, Tony Blackburn was voted the first ever winner of I'm a Celebrity and, since then, many others have followed in his footsteps.

Champions in the last decade have included Vicky Pattison, Scarlett Moffatt, Harry Redknapp, Jill Scott and last year's King of the Jungle, Sam Thompson. While the I'm A Celebrity 2024 line-up is still to be made official, stars like Coleen Rooney, GK Barry, Barry McGuigan and Danny Jones are all set to be on it; with Danny the early favourite as he was seen landing in Australia over the weekend.

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The I'm A Celebrity 2024 start date was confirmed last month as Sunday, November 17 and, as well as viewers being treated to a bumper launch show, which will run from 9-10.45pm that night, they can look forward to three weeks worth of action from the jungle; with I'm A Celebrity airing in the 9pm primetime slot six nights a week.

In years gone by, there has been some adjustment to the schedule for football, with either internationals or Champions League taking priority. However, that won't be an issue tis year, meaning devoted viewers should cancel all social plans for 9pm Sunday-Friday for the foreseeable future. Some nightly episodes will be 90 minutes long, others 75 minutes and others just over an hour in length.