What Ashley Roberts said about ‘fling’ with Declan Donnelly after I’m A Celeb stint
ITV's veteran jungle-based reality format, I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!, has certainly served up some memorable romances over the years.
There's the Katie Price and Peter Andre story of course, plus Cerys Matthews and Marc Bannerman, and Vicky Pattison and Spencer Matthews, but many forget the time co-host Declan Donnelly hooked up with Ashley Roberts.
14 years on from their short-lived fling, they're sharing the same set again on All Stars spin-off I'm A Celebrity... South Africa, which is currently airing on weeknights.
According to a source for The Sun, the Pussycat Dolls member was assured that their history would be swept under the carpet in front of the cameras.
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"As with any campmate, relevant stories are discussed in preliminary chats with the celeb and the team," began the insight.
"Ashley would've been assured anything relating to her link with Dec will be totally off the table. And not alluded to in any jokes or references"
So what actually happened between Roberts and Donnelly?
Donnelly, who was stunned to find himself being snogged by contestant Ruby Wax live on air last Christmas, was said to have fallen for the American when she kept referring to her sexual cravings in the rainforest.
On the programme, she revealed to him and co-star Ant McPartlin: "You're deprived of everything here in the jungle. I can't stop thinking about it. I'm excited to get out of here and be able to just stimulate all the senses... if you know what I mean."
Her future fling exclaimed: "Oh my gosh. Everything I want to say is unbroadcastable or illegal – or career-ending. Let's calm down!"
While Dec's apparent crush on Ashley was a running joke on that season of I'm a Celeb, but he initially denied anything was actually going on between them.
He said two months after I'm a Celeb aired: "She is so lovely and I felt sorry for her. She came to the country and all she was asked about was me.
"I felt a bit guilty about that. I didn't get a chance to see her afterwards. If I had, I would probably have apologised."
But people started to suspect the pair were more than just friends during a flirty appearance together at the Television and Radio Industries Club (TRIC) Awards the following year.
"We're trying to keep it out of the public eye," Roberts said at the time. "We're just getting to know each other. We're having fun, but I'm single."
By this point, Roberts had landed a regular role on Ant and Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway - on which Dec's apparent crush on her was constantly joked about.
But if there ever was a genuine spark between them, it didn't last long.
Roberts later said: "I know everyone was hoping we were together, but he is just a friend. I love both those boys so much. We have so much fun together."
And just to make really sure everyone knew things definitely were never romantic between the pair, Roberts said at a later date: "I have never snogged Dec. We're friends."
In August 2013, Dec started dating his manager Ali Astall, and the pair married in 2015.
They share two children: Isla, seven, and Jack, three.
Roberts, meanwhile, is now dating an artist named George Rollinson.
Topics: Declan Donnelly, Im A Celebrity, TV, Sex and Relationships, Celebrity
Dan Seddon