Former I’m A Celebrity contestant Iain Lee has spoken candidly about relapsing into drug use shortly after leaving the ITV jungle — despite having been clean for 13 years. The comedian and broadcaster, now 52, finished third on the 2017 series alongside Rebekah Vardy, Georgia Toffolo, Jamie Lomas and Stanley Johnson, but says the experience pushed him into one of the darkest spirals of his life.
He explained that his recovery through Narcotics Anonymous had been stable for over a decade, but he had stopped attending meetings after 11 years, which he admits “had already set the wheels in motion.” According to Iain, the pressure cooker environment of the jungle — combined with tension among campmates — became overwhelming.
“I went in 13 years clean, but not long after coming out, the stress of the show got to me,” he said, adding that dealing with several “toxic” personalities in camp only made things worse. He recalled bluntly: “I was in there with a bunch of a*******s. I’m not blaming them — it was my fault. I picked up again, it was totally on me.”
While discussing the series, he reportedly referenced challenging interactions with Amir Khan, Rebekah Vardy, Dennis Wise and Jamie Lomas. Still, Iain emphasised taking full responsibility for his relapse and his recovery, revealing he will hit five years clean on December 20.
Iain has called on ITV to consider employing specialists who understand addiction and the psychological impact of reality TV, saying it could offer vital support to campmates who struggle after leaving the show.
This isn’t the first time the presenter has opened up about his addiction. In a recent interview, he reflected on his past with striking honesty, admitting he had been “incredibly obnoxious” during his darkest periods and had “fed up” his TV career through drug abuse. “I’m making peace with my past,” he said. “I was never very proud of my TV career. I thought it was st. If anyone was fing up my career, it was me. I was taking loads and loads of drugs and becoming incredibly unreliable and obnoxious to work with — an ahole.”
He added that cocaine once gave him “false bravado” that masked deep terror, and even now he struggles to accept compliments because he internalised the belief that he “wasn’t very good” and was “a terrible human being.”
Iain also previously revealed that he relapsed again in 2020 after more than two years sober, telling listeners of his radio show that the drug wasn’t his “substance of choice,” left him feeling “buzzy,” and eventually made him vomit. Days later, he marked 30 days clean on social media, reaffirming his commitment to long-term sobriety.
