I’m A Celeb star Sam Thompson ‘shouldn’t be defined by his ADHD and autism’ and viewers need to ’embrace’ his excitable personality, says his best friend Pete Wicks

I’m A Celeb star Sam Thompson ‘should not be defined by his ADHD and autism’, says his best pal Pete Wicks.

The TV personality, 35, told MailOnline that fans need to ’embrace’ Sam’s excitable personality after he was branded ‘attention seeking’ and ‘annoying’ by viewers following the show’s launch on Sunday night.

And while Pete, who is flying to Australia next week to support Sam ahead of the eliminations, admits that although the Made In Chelsea favourite can be ‘aggravating’ and is a ‘bit full on’ when you first meet him, he has urged the I’m A Celeb audience to enjoy his positivity.

Earlier this year, Sam, 31, was diagnosed with ADHD and autism after undergoing tests in his Channel 4 documentary Is This ADHD? and said the realisation was a ‘weight lifted off his shoulders.’

Former TOWIE star Pete says his friend’s diagnosis means he will struggle with life in the jungle, but it shouldn’t stop ITV viewers from getting to know the real Sam on a more personal level. 

Pete said: ‘Sam is a grower, not a shower, let’s put it that way.

‘I know he got a bit of grief on the first night for being over the top but that is him and that’s the reason that everyone loves him. I think he’s a superstar just the way he is. It just takes a bit of time if you’re not used to it.

‘It’s like having a big child… that’s how he sees me, I like to think it’s brotherly, but I think he sees me as his dad.

‘He is quite obviously aggravating, however, that is the Sam that we know, and love and I specifically love. I’m hoping that he can continue being the happy puppy that he is.

‘Sam struggles with boredom and a lot of things because of his ADHD and autism but that shouldn’t be seen as a bad thing. I have read a lot of comments and it’s something that I believe shouldn’t define him.

‘People should embrace that because he’s entertaining and that’s what the show is about. He should be defined by the fact that he’s a really fun, positive guy and that’s his personality aside from having ADHD and autism.’

On Wednesday night’s episode, the camp, including the likes of Jamie Lynn Spears, Nella Rose, Nigel Farage and Marvin Humes, were told by hosts Ant and Dec that the entire cast will face the next Bushtucker Trial together.  

Pete predicts that Sam will ‘scream like a little girl’ when faced with maggots, spiders, and cockroaches but says his competitive nature will hold him in good stead for winning stars. 

He said: ‘Sam is scared of a lot of things, and he will scream like a little girl, but he will get the trials done because he’s very competitive.

‘The only thing that will get to Sam is that he’s a massive worrier and sometimes he can try too hard, which is what he’s been doing already.

‘He wants everyone to like him, and he will want the audience to like him and because he has no idea what people are saying in the outside world, if he starts to overthink that then it will get to him if he has a bad day.’ 

Sam and Pete’s friendship started in 2018 when they both starred on E4 show Celebs Go Dating and now they co-host their podcast Staying Relevant together.

Their closeness will see Pete meet Sam instead of the Chelsea star’s long term girlfriend Zara McDermott when he crosses the famous I’m A Celeb bridge as his jungle stint comes to a close. 

Zara hoped she would still be competing for the Strictly Glitterball trophy and therefore unable to journey to Australia, but she lost her place on the BBC show during Halloween week.

Pete said: ‘Zara is very much like me on this… we both miss him, and I do know she misses him but she’s excited for him. ‘She’s so proud of him and as the weeks go on it is going to be tough.

‘She is a bit gutted that she’s not going out there, but we thought she would still be in Strictly.

‘He believed in her so much that he thought she would still be on the show but unfortunately, he’s going to have to see my face when he crosses the bridge!’

As well as their podcast, the pair’s working relationship sees them prank each other in viral social media videos often based around Sam’s enthusiasm and eagerness to please juxtaposed with Pete’s moodiness. 

But Pete doesn’t believe that the pair have any chance at competing as a TV double act with Ant and Dec, though he suspects that meeting the duo was the main reason for Sam signing up to the jungle series.

He said: ‘I absolutely do not think that we could rival Ant and Dec, but Sam does!

‘I would say I’m probably like the late-night Ant and Dec, but Sam loves them. To be honest I think one of the main reasons he agreed to do the show was to see Ant and Dec. Every time they sort of appear he’s very giddy. I’ve never seen anything like it!’

MailOnline revealed in January that Pete had quit TOWIE after seven years to pursue new TV opportunities, with the star teasing that 2024 is set to be a big year.

He will be stripping off to raise money for cancer on ITV’s The Real Full Monty, which airs next month, and says unlike the majority of the cast, he was more than happy to bare all but it was the dancing that made him nervous.

Pete said: ‘I’m not really part of the Essex lot anymore. I’m long gone now. I have retired. Weirdly enough since leaving TOWIE, it has gone wild, which is great… it won’t just be Sam that you’ll see in some prime time shows next year. People are going to see a lot more of me.

‘I filmed The Real Full Monty that will be on in December. Didn’t want to do it, don’t like dancing, can’t dance but for an amazing cause.

‘It was full c*** out in front of 1,000 people and on the hottest day of the year as well, it was an experience. I have no problem getting naked, but the dancing was the bit that terrified me. I was like ‘sweet, I’ll whack it out now’, but don’t make me dance!’