I’m A Celebrity’s Oti Mabuse has won the hearts of fans who are now rooting for her to win.
The 34-year-old former Strictly dancer and current Dancing on Ice judge appears to be the new favourite to win this year’s series. This comes after she secured a golden ticket to the Celebrity Cyclone in the latest challenge, ensuring her immunity from Friday and Saturday night’s vote.
With Maura Higgins and Barry McGuigan being the latest celebs to exit the ITV show, the remaining campmates include Oti, Coleen Rooney, GK Barry, Danny Jones, Alan Halsall and Reverend Richard Coles.
In addition to winning challenges and tackling some of the toughest Bushtucker Trials the public has ever seen, Oti has been charming viewers with her caring nature – with some fans affectionately referring to her as the ‘camp mum’, while others have dubbed her the ‘camp counsellor’.
This follows several heartfelt conversations Oti had with her campmates during tonight’s episode, as well as revealing personal struggles she has faced, particularly recently, after giving birth to her one-year-old daughter, who was born prematurely at just 28 weeks in November 2023, reports the Mirror.
Oti opened up about her difficult birth experience, admitting: “I was having to still be my usual, bubbly self. But I wasn’t feeling bubbly inside. I just remember going to the shower and I was crying. I was just devastated, but nothing was wrong. I had a new baby, the midwives were amazing, my husband was there. It was like nothing was wrong, but everything was wrong.”
Connecting with Danny Jones over shared experiences, Oti revealed her struggles with emotional support from her spouse Marius, saying: “He needed to learn to be there for me emotionally. Instead of just trying to fix it [the situation]. Sometimes I just needed him to hold me while I cried.”
Danny empathised, sharing his own challenges as a partner, commenting: “I wanted to try and fix it and say, ‘Come on, you can do this’, but that’s not what she needed.”
Later, McFly’s Danny Jones confided in Oti about his estranged relationship with his father who left when he was 19. Despite sharing his middle name, Alan, with his dad, Danny expressed a desire to change it, revealing at age 38: “My dad doesn’t speak to me. I had a good relationship with my dad. He was my best mate, until he left. I got on with him. I loved him to bits. It’s just weird, because I don’t feel I’ve really healed with it. You can go to therapy, but you still crave your dad and that’s hard.”
Fans are heaping praise on Oti for her empathetic nature and positive vibes, with many suggesting she should get her own chat show post-jungle due to her knack for conversation.
One viewer said: “I didn’t really know Oti before this, I didn’t watch strictly. God damnit I am a firm Oti fan now. I absolutely love her! #ImACeleb.”
Another shared: “She seems like the most sweet and genuine person on earth.” One more remarked: “Oti Mabuse to be crowned queen of the jungle immediately now #imaceleb.”
Someone else noted: “I adore the way Oti is so sincere with her camp mates and she’s somehow turned into their unofficial therapist who listens because she’s actually cares. I can’t cope with it man.”
Another fan expressed: “I’m loving how we’re really getting to see the real Oti. We get glimpses but we don’t really get to see enough of the dancers real personality in Strictly. She’s so lovely. She’s like the camp Mam”.
Yet another said: “The reason we know so much about this group is because Oti has been that person who takes the time to ask them about their lives. She’s so selfless and obviously makes them all feel comfortable enough to open up and she doesn’t make anything about herself.”
Meanwhile, one viewer remarked: “Oti unknowingly auditioning to be a chat show host; she’s really good at empathetically getting people to open up, isn’t she? #ImACeleb.”
I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! is available on ITV1 and for catch-up on ITVX.