I’m A Celebrity favourite Angry Ginge had one final moment of comfort before heading into the Jungle — a brief, unexpected birthday phone call to his mum, Michelle, that left her so overwhelmed she said her “throat just went.”
The rising social-media star, real name Morgan, was granted special permission to call home after landing in Australia. Michelle told the Mirror that the 24-year-old “sounded absolutely buzzing” as he updated her on how he’d been prepping for the jungle by binge-watching old episodes of SAS: Who Dares Wins to toughen up mentally — something she said was “so him.”
Michelle recalled her son laughing as he told her the new rule changes — which force every celebrity to take part in Bushtucker Trials — were the “best birthday present” he could have asked for.
Ginge and his mum have always been close. Michelle raised him and his sister alone on a council estate in Salford on just £12.5k a year. She remembers the moment he began live-streaming football games from his bedroom for up to ten hours a day, something she admits “completely baffled” her at first. But she watched in astonishment as he grew a fanbase of more than five million followers and struck up friendships with major stars like Wayne Rooney, Coleen Rooney, Luke Littler and James Maddison.
During their birthday call, Ginge’s first question was about his nan and his sister. Michelle made sure he knew “everyone back home is right behind him,” saying he sounded grounded and genuinely excited.
But the goodbye was the moment that broke her. She said that despite trying to stay strong, “I did well up when I said goodbye on the phone. I told him ‘I love you’ and he said ‘love you too,’ and honestly, my throat just went. It was one of those proper lump-in-the-throat moments.”
The pair joked about Michelle flying to Australia for the post-jungle reunion. Ginge teased that she “wouldn’t hack the 5am starts” the families do during evictions, laughing in the way she calls “typical Morgan humour.”
Before heading into camp, Ginge was making the most of his last bit of comfort. He told his mum he’d discovered an indoor pool and a sauna in his hotel, calling them a “hidden bonus” before jungle life stripped him of luxury. He also grinned through the phone describing his trip to a koala sanctuary, saying it felt “unbelievable” to get so close to the animals.
Ginge often credits his upbringing for helping people relate to him. He still lives in Manchester and only last year bought his own home after spending months in what he described as a “s***hole flat with no shower” to save for a deposit.
Despite being tipped as the bookies’ favourite to win, he admitted he was nervous meeting his castmates. “I’ve never classed myself as a celebrity,” he said, adding that he feared “a bit of imposter syndrome” before settling in.
