New-look Peter Helliar tells all after I'm a Celeb exit
Peter Helliar, the latest I’m A Celebrity … Get Me Out Of Here! evictee, has opened up about his final months before quitting The Project and his dramatic weight loss, in one of his first interviews since leaving the jungle.
Speaking to B105’s Stav, Abby and Matt on Wednesday morning, Peter revealed that he had lost 7.5kgs, after spending three weeks in the jungle surviving on rationed rice and beans.
“[I lost] 7.5kg - it's what I've registered, so I'm not sure if I have caught up with Nick,” he said.
The comedian also explained that leaving the camp wasn’t as easy as he expected, with all the rigorous health examinations he’s had to do.
“You come out and you have this idea that you will go to a nice hotel and have a beer, but you come out and meet with a psych and a medical team to make sure everything is okay” he said.
“So there's a series of meetings that you have to go through, so I haven't really stopped since I've come out. I had some dinner and rang home and that's about it,” he added.
Peter also shared that the first meal he ate after leaving the jungle was a bowl of spaghetti bolognese with a beer.
The comedian was one of the few contestants who had been asked to appear on I’m A Celebrity since the first season. He’d always refused, using his role as a panellist on The Project as an excuse.
“Whenever they did ask, I was a bit concerned they were trying to get me off The Project. I was wary of leaving the desk for too long,” he said.
After leaving The Project late last year, Peter was approached again and this time thought "’Why not?’ I haven't got the excuse of the other job so I jumped at it and I had a great time”.
Peter revealed that he decided to quit as he was “getting a little sick of being associated with the news cycle,” but didn’t blame it on the show.
“That’s got nothing to do with the show, but just the way commentary goes these days. News has become pretty toxic, as far as the debate around news … I’m pretty happy to be going into some sillier, fun areas in the future,” he added.