Sam Thompson was crowned our jungle king for 2023, giving us human Labrador vibes with his bubbly personality and boundless energy. After being crowned, I'm a Celebrity gave us the sweet scenes of Sam reunited with best mate Pete Wicks, as they were reunited on the I'm A Celeb bridge.
But while the bromance was sweet, fans have been left wondering why Sam's girlfriend Zara McDermott wasn't also in Australia to greet him...
Viewers of the show were left confused after seeing that Sam's girlfriend, Love Island's Zara McDermott, wasn't in Australia to meet her boyfriend - with a teary-eyed Pete arriving on our screens instead. Scenes on her Instagram showed that the Strictly star was at the couple's home, hosting a viewing party instead.
Turns out, there's a very good reason why Zara wasn't in Australia to greet our new Jungle King.
Why wasn't Zara McDermott in Australia to greet Sam Thompson?
Zara recently took to Instagram to address the real reason she wasn't in Australia to greet her boyfriend of four years, telling her followers, 'Pete is going. We've had a few laughs and jokes about this.'
Zara - who was partnered with Graziano Di Prima in this year's Strictly Come Dancing - also shared how the BBC dance competition also played a part. Zara, 26, was one of the celebs taking part in this year's Strictly Come Dancing, being eliminated from the show in week six. During many of her performances, both Sam, 31, and Pete, 35, were spotted sporting some Zara-themed merch to cheer her on.
She added, 'Sam thought I was still going to be in Strictly (bless him, the optimism), so Pete cleared his whole diary for 2/3 weeks to be there.'
'I also have had to rush back to work as soon as Strictly finished to finish two of my documentaries before Xmas, which I am currently abroad filming now, and we also have training for our final Strictly number.'
'It was a bit impossible to clear everything, but Sam was excited by the idea of Pete being there anyway that he was happy for me to be waiting for him back at base.'
After being eliminated in week six from the dance show, many fans wondered whether Zara may swap places with Pete to have the honor of greeting Sam when he left camp.
However, Pete shared, 'He could have flipped me out when Zara left Strictly Come Dancing, but he decided not to! I wouldn't give up my seat! We all thought Zara would still be in, which is why I'm the one going out.'
'To be honest, ITV are more interested in me going out as they need someone to restrain Sam from Ant and Dec when he leaves! I'm more going to be their personal security, to keep them safe.'
And getting Pete on the show could be a tactical move from super fan Sam - who previously told Grazia of his dreams to one day shift Ant and Dec off their jungle thrones...
Who is Pete Wicks?
Pete Wicks first rose to fame on The Only Way Is Essex, starring on the show from 2015 to 2021. Although Essex and Chelsea seem worlds away, Pete struck up a friendship with Sam after meeting on Celebs Go Dating in 2018.
Since then, the two have formed an unlikely duo - landing an E4 show called Pete and Sam's Reality News, before launching their Stay Relevant podcast together.
Opening up on his bromance with King of the Jungle Sam, Pete previously said, 'He's full on and annoys the shit out of me, but that's part and parcel of Sam. The most beautiful thing about Sam is that he's unique.'
'He's a very special man and he's got a genuine heart. He's one of the most genuine people and all he wants to do in entertain and make people smile. That's why I've missed him [during his time on I'm a Celeb], because i am much like a lot of people - quite miserable.'