# ‘You can’t train to be chucked in a box full of rats!’ Ade Adepitan on fear, facing down sharks and being I’m a Celeb’s first wheelchair user

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/you-cant-train-to-be-chucked-in-a-box-full-of-rats-ade-adepitan-on-fear-facing-down-sharks-and-being-im-a-celebs-first-wheelchair-user/
- Published: 2026-11-13T13:00:19+00:00
- Updated: 2026-11-13T13:21:17+00:00
- Original publisher: The Guardian (publisher lean: Left)
- Original article: https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2026/nov/13/ade-adepitan-interview-braving-the-jungle-in-im-a-celebrity-get-me-out-of-here
- Topics: Celebrity, Culture, Entertainment, TV

## Key points

- Ade Adepitan will be the first wheelchair user on I’m a Celebrity.
- He advised producers on making the camp accessible.
- He hopes his appearance will prompt discussion about disability.

## Summary

Paralympic medallist and presenter Ade Adepitan is set to become the first wheelchair user on I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here!, prompting both excitement and ableist criticism online. He says taking part matters because seeing disabled people represented in mainstream television can challenge assumptions and help others feel less alone.

Adepitan, 53, contracted polio as an infant and has used a wheelchair for most of his life. He visited the Australian camp to advise producers on access, with different terrain, narrow paths and moving between his chair and other mobility aids among the challenges; he argues these adaptations are not an unfair advantage. He also draws on years of navigating barriers in London, including broken station lifts and taxis refusing to take him.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.