Jane Moore tells of close friendship with Coleen Rooney and reveals Wag’s secret nickname in I’m A Celeb camp
THE Sun’s columnist Jane Moore last night told of her close friendship with Coleen Rooney — and how she dubbed the Wag “the Queen of Clean”.
Jane was sent packing by the public in Friday’s first eviction from ITV1’s I’m A Celebrity.
But she revealed how she and Coleen unexpectedly bonded over the 15 days they were together in the jungle.
Our columnist also spoke of her medical drama after finding a blood-sucking leech attached to one of her boobs.
In an exclusive interview in Oz, hours after she left the jungle, Jane, 62, said of Coleen, 38: “We ended up being quite close and having a lot of good chats.
“She loves cleaning. She is the Queen of Clean. We were saying she needs her own TV show — Clean With Coleen . . . whatever play on words you can come up with. She’s a real grafter.
“She really got on with the jobs in hand around the camp, without fanfare.”
Jane said Coleen confided in her that she had wanted to become a journalist — and that she’d then urged Coleen to join her on ITV1’s Loose Women panel.
She said: “I have suggested to her that she would make a very good Loose Woman. I said, ‘No pressure, but you could come on with me and GK (Barry) and Christine Lampard and I think you’d have a fantastic time, and I think you’d be very good.’
“I said, ‘So I’m just going to leave that with you.’ She just sort of nodded and smiled, so we’ll see.”
Before Jane was axed, campmates spoke emotionally about their jungle experience and their fellow celebs.
Coleen, wife of football legend Wayne Rooney, said Jane “scared” her when they met at the start of the series — because she is a journalist.
But in a heartwarming moment, she added: “I feel like we’ve bonded more and more as time’s gone on.”
Jane said she “totally gets” why Coleen was “nervous to be in the jungle for 15 days, 24/7 with a journalist”.
She said she was “very mindful” of it — so much so that she opted not to choose Coleen as her partner for the race into camp on the launch show. But their friendship eventually began to develop in camp and they formed a connection.
Ironically, despite trepidation towards journalists, Coleen told Jane she actually fancied it as a career at one point.
Jane said: “I said to her, ‘What would you have done if you hadn’t ended up marrying Wayne?’
“And she said, ‘I think I would’ve liked to have been a journalist.’
“I said to her, ‘You would have made a very, very good journalist’ — because she has great observational skills.
I liked her enormously, and I think, as she said at the very end, she bonded with me
Jane Moore
“She sits back, she watches everybody, and every so often she’ll chip in with something and it’s a really good point.
“So I liked her enormously, and I think, as she said at the very end, she bonded with me.
“There’s something that we had, weirdly, as probably the two people in camp that had the most to play for.”
Asked if they will remain pals when the celebs go their separate ways, Jane added: “I hope so, but I think I’m going to leave that ball in her court.”
Jane had been left angry last week after being put on washing up duty, the task she hates most.
She jokingly accused boxer Barry McGuigan and McFly singer Danny Jones of being “sexist” for giving her the chore — despite her pleading for them not to.
Jane had already spent nine days cleaning out the dunny and was annoyed with the new camp leaders.
She also revealed she’d been battered with bruises she doesn’t know the cause of. But the culprit of one injury she sustained was clear — two marks on her breast after being latched on to by a leech in the night.
She’d noticed her bra was blood-soaked after a freezing cold camp shower. Jane said: “It honestly looked like I had been shot in the chest.
“I had two puncture marks and then it started to bruise. But I just went, ‘Oh, look, everyone, I’ve been breastfeeding a leech all night’.
‘Absolutely delightful’
“And they all went, ‘How are you so calm?’ So I said, ‘Well, it’s dead now and it’s done, so there’s no point fretting about it. Anyway, it’s on the fire now. Little bugger.”
After being evicted, she had an emotional reunion with daughters Grace, 20, and Ellie, 32, before heading off to enjoy her first hot shower in weeks.
She then cracked a bottle of champagne and her blonde hair had its bounce back after a blow-dry from Danny’s mum, Kathy.
She heaped praise on Danny — who she described as “absolutely delightful” – and the rest of her campmates.
Barry, she said, is a “fighter from the top of his head to the tip of his toes”.
And she insisted screaming Dean McCullough definitely acts “himself” and is an “absolute powerhouse of positivity”.
Asked about a winner, she said she hopes radio DJ Melvin Odoom, 44, or Coleen can power on to victory.
Jane's Jungle verdicts
MELVIN
SOMETIMES you don’t notice that Melvin is there because he’s not begging for your attention. He’s an absolute grafter.
He is the loveliest guy, very respectful, kind and considerate.
TULISA
TULISA, the Female Boss. That is a title well-earned. Tulisa is a tough cookie.
We’re alike in that we don’t let people in very easily. But when we do, you’re in for life. I’m hoping I’m in.
RICHARD
HE was in The Communards and he joined a monastery — you couldn’t get two more extreme things in life.
He travels a lot, he loves being around people, but he also likes his own space.
COLEEN
I’VE got a new title for her — Col-Umbo. She’s quiet, quite reserved, but underestimate her at your peril.
She’s the absolute hub of the Rooney household. She runs it like a machine.
BARRY
IF you are a friend of Barry’s you’re sorted because Barry will always be on your side.
He’s a grafter. And he really struggled with being a leader because he wasn’t allowed to do anything.
OTI
SHE is a fabulous woman. The first week she was switched on the whole time.
But week two was different. She wants more children and said: “If I don’t do it [the show] now, I probably won’t.”
DANNY
I THINK he’s going to take a lot out of being in the jungle.
He said: “I need to be in the moment more with my family and just in life.” He added: ‘I’m always working and fretting about work.’”
G.K. BARRY
SHE has absolutely no filter. She’s hilarious. But again, the first few days she was very GK Barry.
Then there was this segue where she became Grace and had hilarious moments.
ALAN
HE is just so resourceful and practical. He’s a great guy and he’s a hard worker. He helped me a lot.
When allowed he was there helping me lug the washing-up up and down steps.
MAURA
SHE’S hilarious and swears like a trooper.
Maura is 100 per cent herself, which I really, really like. The guys doing the filming were laughing because she’s so funny.
DEAN
DEAN is an absolute powerhouse of positivity.
He’s funny, he’s entertaining, he’s caring. But most of all, he is himself.
In a quiet moment he said he got badly bullied at school.
I'm A Celebrity 2024
i'm A Celebrity is back for its 24th series, with a batch of famous faces living in the Aussie jungle. The Sun's Jake Penkethman takes a look at the stars on the show this year..
Coleen Rooney – Arguably the most famous name in the camp, the leading WAG, known for her marriage to Wayne Rooney, has made a grand return to TV as she looks to put the Wagatha Christie scandal behind her. The Sun revealed the mum-of-four had bagged an eye-watering deal worth over £1.5million to be on the show this year making her the highest-paid contestant ever.
Tulisa – The popstar and former X Factor judge has made her triumphant TV comeback by signing up to this year’s I’m A Celeb after shunning TV shows for many years. Known for being a member of the trio, N-Dubz, Tulisa became a household name back in 2011 when she signed on to replace Cheryl on ITV show The X Factor in a multi-million pound deal.
Alan Halsall – The actor, known for playing the long-running role of Tyrone Dobbs on ITV soap opera Coronation Street, was originally signed up to head Down Under last year but an operation threw his scheduled appearance off-course. Now he has become the latest Corrie star to win over both the viewers and his fellow celebrities.
Melvin Odoom – The Radio DJ has become a regular face on TV screens after rising to fame with presenting roles on Kiss FM, BBC Radio 1 and 4Music. Melvin has already been for a spin on the Strictly dancefloor and co-hosted The Xtra Factor with Rochelle Humes in 2015 but now he is facing up to his biggest challenge yet – the Aussie jungle.
GK Barry – The UK’s biggest social media personality, GK, whose real name is Grace Keeling, has transformed her TikTok stardom into a lucrative career. Aside from her popular social media channels, she hosts the weekly podcast, Saving Grace, and regularly appears on ITV talk show, Loose Women. She has even gone on to endorse popular brands such as PrettyLittleThing, KFC and Ann Summers.
Dean McCullough – A rising star amongst this year’s bunch of celebs, Dean first achieved notability through his radio appearances on Gaydio and BBC Radio 1. He was chosen to join the BBC station permanently in 2021 and has featured prominently ever since. He has enjoyed a crossover to ITV over the past year thanks to his guest slots on Big Brother spin-off show, Late & Live.
Oti Mabuse – The pro dancer has signed up to her latest TV show after making her way through the biggest programmes on the box. She originally found fame on Strictly Come Dancing but has since branched out into the world of TV judging with appearances on former BBC show The Greatest Dancer as well as her current role on ITV’s Dancing On Ice.
Danny Jones – The McFly star was drafted into the programme last minute as a replacement for Tommy Fury. Danny is the second member of McFly to enter the jungle, after Dougie Poynter won the show in 2011. He is also considered a rising star on ITV as he’s now one of the mentors on their Saturday night talent show, The Voice, along with bandmate Tom Fletcher.
Jane Moore – The Loose Women star and The Sun columnist is braving the creepy crawlies this year. The star is ready for a new challenge – having recently split from her husband. It will be Jane’s first foray into reality TV with the telly favourite having always said no to reality shows in the past.
Barry McGuigan – Former pro boxer Barry is the latest fighting champ to head Down Under following in the footsteps of Tony Bellew and Amir Khan. It comes after a tough few years for Irish star Barry, who lost his daughter Danika to bowel cancer. He told The Late Late Show in 2021: “She was such an intrinsic part of the family that every day we ache.”
Maura Higgins – The Irish TV beauty first found fame on Love Island where she found a brief connection with dancer Curtis Pritchard. Since then, she has competed on Dancing On Ice as well as hosting the Irish version of the beauty contest, Glow Up. Since last year, she has been working on building up her career in the US by being the social media correspondent and host of Aftersun to accompany Love Island USA. She even guest hosted an episode of the spin-off, Love Island Games, in place of Maya Jama last year.
Rev. Richard Coles – Former BBC radio host the Rev Richard Coles is a late arrival on I’m A Celebrity, and he’s ready to spill the beans on his former employer. The former Communards and Strictly star, said the BBC did not know its a**e from its elbow last year. An insider said: “Rev Coles will have a variety of tales to tell from his wild days as a pop star in the Eighties, through to performing on Strictly and his later life as a man of the cloth.”