It was one of the most watched TV broadcasts of the year so far with an average of 10.4million viewers in the UK: the I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! finale that saw ex-footballer Jill Scott nab the crown for Queen of the jungle. A worthy winner for more reasons than one, few could say it wasn’t emotional seeing her reunite with fiancé Shelly Unitt as the show ended.
‘I love you and miss you so much,’ Shelly wrote in an emotional letter to Jill while she was still in the jungle. ‘There isn’t a minute that goes by where you’re not on my mind. I love you so much and now the rest of the world does too. This is because you’re such a great person with your positive, kind and encouraging self.’
Shelly and Jill have been together six years, caring for Shelly’s two daughters, Evie, 19 and Hattie, 15 whom Shelly says both missed Jill ‘bouncing around the house’. The adorable family are now the subject of intense Googling too, with ‘Jill Scott fiancée’ a breakout search term on Google. That’s alongside questions like ‘Is Jill Scott married?’, ‘Who is Jill Scott dating?’ and phrases such as ‘Jill Scott girlfriend’ and ‘Jill Scott and Shelly Unitt’. The number one question though? ‘Is Jill Scott gay?’ – that has a 4,800% increase in searches alone.
It's unsurprising really, Jill was often talking about her fiancé Shelly in the jungle and perhaps some aren’t used to seeing two women in love on prime-time TV. But at a time like this, it also feels incredibly pertinent that they do.
The Men’s 2022 World Cup has been darkened with controversy since its opening game, homophobia legalised in Qatar as same-sex couples face imprisonment and even the death penalty. With FIFA banning squads from wearing OneLove armbands – which promote gay rights - and Qatari security forces reportedly confiscating rainbow merchandise in the stadiums, the tournament meant to unite countries has instead created intense division. Where the decision to have Qatar host the World Cup already felt like a slap in the face to the queer community, to then not even let footballers protest Qatar's barbaric laws only adds to the feelings of exclusion countless queer people are currently experiencing - and ultimately, legitimises homophobia at a time when homophobic hate crimes are reaching record highs in the UK.
For queer people watching this all play out, we're not just deflated that we can't celebrate a World Cup, we're terrified of the message this sends that homophobia is acceptable and isn't worth fighting against.
Now more than ever, we need queer role models in football proudly embracing their sexuality.
That's why seeing queer love celebrated on I’m A Celebrity then, queer love between a fellow footballer and her fiancee no less, feels so important right now. The Women’s England team have been vocal supporters of the queer community throughout this World Cup, numerous players saying they can’t bring themselves to watch it, including England centre-back Lotte Wubben-Moy, forward Beth Mead, and captain Leah Williamson. Some of the Lionesses are in same-sex relationships themselves, Jill herself speaking of the double-standard between men's and women's football while she was in the jungle.
‘I think in the men’s game, it’s so difficult,’ she told campmates. ‘If you think about how much stick they get from the chants, it’s just not a safe environment where they feel safe enough to [come out] and that’s so sad… in women’s football it’s just never an issue.’
Now more than ever then, we need queer role models in football proudly embracing their sexuality and relationships to show the rest of the world, love truly does win. Jill then, won in more ways than one last night.