Some eagle-eyed I’m A Celebrity fans are convinced Malique has managed to sneak a phone into the jungle.
In among Sair’s incredible bushtucker performance in the rat-infested sewer, and #chilligate, some viewers of Saturday night’s show (December 1), believe they spotted the Hollyoaks star with the device.
Malique joined fellow campmates Fleur East and Rita Simons after presenters Dec and Holly broke the news Noel Edmonds was the first celebrity to be leaving the jungle, and the 20-year-old appeared to take a phone-like object out of his pocket.
Take a look at the scene in question here:
Viewers were quick to question what they saw, with many taking to Twitter to say Malique should be punished for having the contraband.
One confused fan wrote:
Hey guys did Malique really just pull a mobile phone out of his pocket? Disqualification if this is the case?
Another tweeted the show’s presenters asking for some clarification, writing:
can you please clear something up for everyone please? Had malique got his phone in the jungle? [sic]
I’m convinced it is not a phone can you please clarify what it was please as this p*ssing everyone off not knowing what it is thanks [sic]
While I admit he did handle the object like he was looking at a phone, I’d just like to point out some flaws with this theory.
First off, where exactly is Malique supposed to be charging this phone of his? Unless he’s smuggled a classic Nokia in there, the battery would have definitely died by now.
Secondly, how good is the 4G out there in the depths of the Australian bush? I can’t imagine he’s going to be getting quality signal.
Also, the celebrities there have cameras on them 24 hours a day. While we get an edited view of camp life, someone has to scroll through that footage to find all the good parts, so I’m pretty confident the phone would’ve been spotted and the producers would’ve had a word about the forbidden technology.
According to the Mail Online, an I’m A Celebrity source has dismissed the rumours, saying:
Malique doesn’t have a phone, it’s clearly a cigarette packet.
I mean, I wouldn’t say it’s clearly a cigarette packet, or else this debate wouldn’t have started in the first place, but it’s a reasonable explanation.
The claim the object is actually cigarettes doesn’t seem to have convinced everyone though, with some still speculating on social media.
One Twitter user wrote:
Very slimline cigarettes then??? And the way he handled the “object”, is the same way you would hold a mobile. [sic]
Not a packet of cigarettes. Just my opinion. What do you think?
We’ll probably never know the truth, but I actually think it’d be quite entertaining for the celebrities to have access to social media while in the jungle.
I’d certainly be interested to see the methods they’d use to make a meal of sheep penis and pig anus look appetising on Instagram.
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Emily Brown first began delivering important news stories aged just 13, when she launched her career with a paper round. She graduated with a BA Hons in English Language in the Media from Lancaster University, and went on to become a freelance writer and blogger. Emily contributed to The Sunday Times Travel Magazine and Student Problems before becoming a journalist at UNILAD, where she works on breaking news as well as longer form features.