Ashley Roberts has said she thinks David Haye went “a bit too far” during his confrontation with Adam Thomas on I’m A Celebrity… South Africa.
The Pussycat Dolls singer, who was a runner-up during her original series of the show in 2012, also said the boxer kept “pushing and pushing” and called the interaction “uncomfortable”.
Haye, 45, has faced controversy since appearing on the ITV reality show, and on Friday night viewers were in uproar after he criticised Thomas for opting out of a bushtucker trial because he was “dehydrated” and “not feeling well”.
Despite fellow campmate Beverley Callard urging him to “have a little bit of sympathy”, Haye called actor Thomas “useless”, adding: “Who gives a s*** if he doesn’t feel well. He’s a grown-ass man.”
Appearing on ITV’s This Morning, US pop star Roberts addressed the altercation and said: “Adam was not feeling well in there.
“He’s feeling quite ill, and David Haye just kept pushing and pushing.
“At first, you think it’s lads’ banter, but then it just went a bit too far. It was uncomfortable at times.
“Some of us girls actually went out outside of camp and just took a moment to just breathe together.
“But you know, bless them, it was tough in there.”
Waterloo Road star Thomas has since admitted that Haye “pushed me to my limits” while on the show, but said that the boxer has since apologised and the pair have moved on, adding: “I’m not one to hold a grudge.”
He also explained that he did not feel well due to having psoriatic arthritis, which is a long-term condition that causes joint pain, swelling and stiffness, according to the NHS.
It is not the first time Haye has faced controversy for his actions on the spin-off show, having caused a stir last week for his remarks on “ugly birds” while discussing his girlfriend Sian Osborne.
Roberts, known for hits including Don’t Cha, said: “I think my face pretty much said it all.
“There were points where I did confront him because I thought some of his language was quite shocking.
“But I don’t know if that’s going to make the edit or not.
“We all tried to plant seeds of different ways of thinking and trying to understand where he’s coming from.
“But it was shocking.”
Roberts also called the spin-off show “worse” than the original, and said: “It was tough. I keep saying that, but it’s true. It was so tough in there.”
She praised her campmate Gemma Collins, who quit her original series after three days because she struggled with the environment in Australia, but has called her appearance on the South African version a “redemption”.
Roberts said: “She really went in there wanting to try and give it her all, and I think she did.”
I’m A Celebrity… South Africa will return on Friday at 9pm on ITV, ITVX, STV and STV Player.
