If you were watching Tiger King closely, then you were probably just as shocked as we were to see Celebrity Big Brother's Chantelle Houghton make an appearance as a PETA protester. Now, in a new interview with Closer, the reality star has finally spoken out about her part in the smash Netflix documentary, saying that she hopes the show raises awareness about animal abuse.
'The documentary is absolutely nuts,' Chantelle told the magazine. 'No wild animal should be locked up in a cage and paraded around for people to gawp at. But I’m really glad it’s opened up the conversation about animals in captivity, and I hope it helps change the world and how people feel.'
Explaining how footage of her ended up in the show, she added, 'I feel privileged to have been featured. I did that campaign with PETA in 2011, where I stood outside the Houses Of Parliament dressed as a tiger to raise awareness of the cruelty of keeping tigers in zoos or circuses.'
As well as campaigning, Chantelle has also been vegan for the past five years - but has been a vegetarian since the age of 11. 'I watched a documentary about animal cruelty at school, and it stuck with me,' she added. 'I’ve not eaten meat since that day, and I’ve been vegan for the last five years. Animal cruelty is something that I genuinely think about every day and it horrifies me.'
If you haven't been watching Tiger King to get through lockdown, the show details the rivalry between Joe Exotic, a zoo owner, and Carole Baskin of Big Cat Rescue - which eventually sees Joe imprisoned for 22 years after being found guilty for a murder-for-hire plot and illegally euthanising tigers.
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