George Takei Competes Down Under
George Takei has flown Down Under to become the oldest contestant on the British edition of I’m A Celebrity . . . Get Me Out Of Here. “I’m physically fit. I used to run marathons, now I work out every day,” he told the Daily Mirror.
Of the grueling challenges awaiting him in the Outback, he noted, “I’m Japanese and love sushi. I’ve even eaten live fish. It was delicious.”
His arrival got off to a shaky start when no one from the show was present to meet him at the airport. “I’ve been left wandering the airport for 30 minutes. They assured me there would be someone to meet me,” Takei said. A gaggle of reporters, on hand for the celebrity’s arrival, guided him to his destination.
His fellow contestants include local politician Robert Kilroy-Silk., ex Met deputy Brian Paddick, former tennis champ Martina Navratilova, Carly Zucker, fiancée to soccer’s Joe Cole, former EastEnder actor Joe Swash, former Blue singer Simon Webbe, TV host Dani Behr, Esther Rantzen, and glamor girl Nicola McLean.
Takei, 71, recently wed his partner Brand Anderson and has been a vocal critic of California’s Proposition 8 which has now outlawed gay marriage. He will be one of three gay contestants on the show’s eighth season..
The series begins airing Sunday night on ITV at 9 p.m..