TV

I’m A Celebrity viewers ask why reunions with loved ones was cut in final

Different to previous finals

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This year’s I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! is finally over and Jacqueline Jossa crowned Queen of the Jungle.

In emotional scenes last night (09.12.19), the former EastEnders actress beat Coronation Street‘s Andy Whyment and radio DJ Roman Kemp to become the winner.

Jacqueline Jossa
Some key elements of the I’m A Celeb final format were missing (Credit: ITV)

Read more: I’m A Celebrity producers ‘won’t be bringing Holly Willoughby back’, despite viewers’ demands

The episode mostly stuck to the usual I’m A Celebrity final format, putting each of the finalists through a last Bushtucker Trial before revealing who had come in third place.

Once Roman had said his goodbyes and done his exit interview, Jac and Andy were brought in for a chat with hosts Ant McPartlin and Dec Donnelly before the winner was revealed.

Jac couldn’t believe she had won (Credit: ITV)

But viewers noticed that there were several key changes to the format of the final this year.

Most notably, the remaining celebs didn’t get to meet their loved ones in the camp.

Usually, the contestants get to see family members before a winner is crowned and, as it usually makes for emotional viewing, the absence was felt among viewers at home.

Andy doesn’t get his walk off across the bridge?

Similarly, the way the celebrities exited the jungle appeared to have been switched up.

When Jacqueline walked across the bridge holding her wooden sceptre and wearing her laurel crown, she rushed tearfully into the arms of her husband, Dan Osborne.

But when Roman crossed the bridge, viewers didn’t get to see him greeted by a loved one, while the scene of Andy walking across wasn’t shown at all.

Andy Whyment
Andy wasn’t shown walking across the bridge (Credit: ITV)

On Twitter, viewers wondered why the key scenes appeared to have been cut from the final episode.

One said: “No one met Roman at the end of the bridge? I’m sure the majority of lasses in the UK would have #ImACeleb.”

Another wrote: “If I knew no one was going to meet Roman at the end of the bridge, I could have taken their place #ImACeleb.”

A third tweeted, “Andy doesn’t get his walk off across the bridge?” with a sad face emoji.

Someone else said: “This whole experience meant so much to Andy and he doesn’t even get to walk over the bridge because he came second.”

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“Gutted that the families didn’t go into I’m A Celeb this year,” wrote a fifth.

Another said: “Feel like the final’s been quite rushed this year, they didn’t even have their families surprise them in the jungle #ImACeleb.”

“Just realised that none of the celebs got to see their families a few days before they would’ve finished,” said someone else, adding for clarity: “You know, when they get surprised?”

ED! contacted ITV for comment and an I’m A Celebrity spokesperson said: “Families entering the jungle is a show format point that we don’t do every year, unlike letters from home and celebrity cyclone.”

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Read more: Corrie’s Samia Longchambon reveals sweet childhood memory with I’m A Celebrity’s Andy Whyment

There was another key change to the final format that viewers didn’t seem happy about.

After Jacqueline was named Queen of the Jungle, fans of the show were naturally expecting last year’s King, football manager Harry Redknapp, to hand the crown over to the new winner.

But instead, Extra Camp hosts Emily Atack, Joel Dommett and Adam Thomas brought it out.

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Nancy Brown
Associate Editor