I'm A Celebrity: Viewers praise Iain Lee for crying after Bushtucker trial failure
Iain Lee has won praise and support from I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! viewers after he broke down in tears following a Bushtucker Trial failure.
The comic and radio presenter was forced to give up the underwater ‘Temple of Gloom’ challenge, which was made up of a series of tunnels and chambers.
Iain didn’t make it out of the first chamber, meaning that he and his fellow campmates would be eating basic rations that evening.
Speaking after the trial, Iain said: “I feel gutted. It was really traumatic. I’m not a very strong swimmer. The camp are going to be you know, they’ll be gutted. It was on my head. Terrible terrible. Literally the best I could do was that.”
He told hosts Ant and Dec: “I’m not a strong swimmer. That should have been ok. That box was tiny. I couldn’t catch my breath. I just started panicking and yeah, I ballsed up. Sorry guys.”
He added: “Sorry kids, my kids would have loved that. You boys would have done that easy.”
When Iain returned to the camp he burst into tears, apologising to his fellow contestants as he told them that he “couldn’t do it”.
The star was supported by his campmates, including boxer Amir Khan who told Iain: “Don’t be upset. We are the team. We’re going to come back stronger from this.
“Don’t be upset. Go and have a shower, go and relax and we’ll have a proper chat later.”
However, later in the show Amir and contestant Rebekah Vardy appeared to slam Iain for crying, with Becky saying: “I hate crying, I feel like it shows weakness.”
Amir added: “That’s why I don’t do it as well, show weakness and people walk all over you.”
However, fellow campmate Jamie Lomas defended Iain’s emotion in the Bush Telegraph, saying: “It’s not a weakness, it’s a strength sharing your emotions and there is nothing wrong with that, real men cry.”
A sentiment that viewers at home agree with, as fans took to Twitter to praise Iain for breaking down stereotypes that men don’t cry:
anyone calling iain a pussy or saying he’s weak has clearly never experienced any anxiety in their life, my breathing got messed up just watching that, that is utterly fair play from him #imaceleb
— Ibrahim Banks (@TheShowOff85) November 26, 2017
#ImACeleb watched, like many, as Iain came apart tonight and I have to say, respect. It was like listening to myself speaking, I am that man. My partner hugged me because she knew it was affecting me. @iainlee you get my vote
— Graeme (@G_M_Houston) November 26, 2017
Honestly, I applaud Iain for attempting the trail. That looked bloody difficult! At least he got into the pool.
And, crying is perfectly normal regardless of gender. As Jamie said, "real men cry," #imaceleb— Rebecca (@Gebeccah) November 25, 2017
I actually wanna cry seeing Iain break down like that wanna give him a big cuddle & tell him it’s ok ❤️ #ImACeleb
— martha may (@marthawithspecs) November 25, 2017
For real though, the fact that there was even mention of men suffering from depression/anxiety and that it's okay for men to cry, after Iain's trial tonight has made me happy. Too often things are brushed away and to include that clip could help many viewers. #imaceleb
— Tia (@Quinzxl) November 25, 2017
Iain had a panic attack and he wasn’t ashamed to say it. So good to see mental illness being talked about openly on #ImACeleb #beatthestigma
— Emma Leahy (@leahy_emma) November 25, 2017
I’m A Celebrity continues tonight at 9pm.
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