Shane Richie has said he is “skint” after all his work was cancelled due to the coronavirus crisis and he has been forced to borrow money.
The EastEnders actor, best known for his role as Alfie Moon on the BBC soap, is one of the 10 stars braving the cold in a Welsh castle for the new series of I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here, because they are unable to film in Australia as a result of the pandemic.
He said he has been asked to take part many times before but finally agreed because it is the show’s 20th anniversary.
He said: “We got the call in January and I agreed to do it because it was the 20th one.
“My kids were old enough to travel to Australia and they wanted to meet Ant and Dec!
“We were all really excited.
“We were going to fit it around my other work projects as I was going on tour, doing a TV series and panto but that all got cancelled in March.
“And now I am literally skint!
“You save money for a rainy day but you don’t expect the rainy day to last six months.
“Thankfully I’ve been able to borrow money from mates, my family and the bank and my wife is now very happy we can finally pay off the
credit card!
“But what an honour to be asked before lockdown.
“I am so grateful and I am really looking forward to being around adults again instead of my wife and three children!”
I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here! begins on ITV on November 15.