Profiles of the contestants

by NEIL ARMSTRONG and KATIE HAMPSON, Femail.co.uk

Name: Chris Bisson

Age: 27

Claim to fame: He played gambling addict Vikram Desai in Coronation Street for four years and starred in the hit film East is East.

Jungle skills: None per se, but he is enthusiastic and his good looks could endear him to viewers. He is the youngest of the contestants so should be able to roll with the punches more easily than some of the older celebs.

Drawback: Could be the Darren Day of the new series - and we all know what happened to him.

Name: John Fashanu

Age: 40

Claim to fame: Used to be a professional footballer and presented the television show Gladiators.

Jungle skills: For much of his footballing career he played for Wimbledon when the team had a reputation for being as hard as nails - indeed his nickname was 'Fash the Bash'. He's also a martial artist and mates with the likes of Vinnie Jones and Dennis Wise.

Drawback: Undoubtedly able to handle the physical rigours of the jungle, will he be too confrontational when it comes to relations with the other contestants?

Name: Linda Barker

Age: 40

Claim to fame: She is a designer on Changing Rooms, working alongside Laurence Lwellyn Bowen and interior décor correspondent for a newspaper. Barker has also written books on design.

Jungle skills: She should be able to keep the camp looking nice.

Drawback: An eye for colour co-ordination and a way with fabrics won't necessarily be much use when it comes to poisonous trees and giant cockroaches.

Name: Wayne Sleep

Age: 54

Claim to fame: One-time principal dancer for the Royal Ballet. He also choreographs and acts but he's been doing a lot of panto recently. He's an OBE and was a friend of Diana, Princess of Wales.

Jungle skills: Nimble on his feet. In 1973 he established a world record by doing an entrechat douze - a jump with six beats - so he should be able to dodge those nasty snakes and creepy-crawlies. In the past he has said he needs a hard bed and that he spends half his time sleeping on a mattress on the floor so the jungle sleeping arrangements should suit him, quite literally, down to the ground.

Drawbacks: Dancing's for girls innit? He's also a bit of a luvvie.

Name: Phil Tufnell

Age: 36

Claim to fame: Former England and Middlesex cricketer with a hell-raising, hard living, 'fun loving' reputation.

Jungle skills: If newspaper reports are to be believed, he will be able to er - 'comfort' any of the ladies who get lonely. Preferably several at the same time. He may also be able to boost morale in other ways - he can be very funny.

Drawbacks: May be a bit too laddish for some viewers' tastes.

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