ITV has confirmed that I'm A Celebrity… South Africa will return for a second series in 2026, with Ant and Dec resuming their roles as hosts and a refreshed line-up of past contestants set to face tougher trials in the South African wilderness.
The broadcaster said the 2026 run will introduce a major change to the format: for the first time a live public vote during a grand final broadcast from the U.K. will determine the winner, who will be crowned an "I'm A Celebrity Legend." Ant and Dec announced the return in a social media video and teased "trials, challenges and surprises" among the South African landscape.
Ant said in the clip: "It's us with some big news. Coming to ITV in 2026 is the return of I'm A Celebrity South Africa!" Dec added: "Having a live final is an exciting addition to the new series with the viewers choosing their IAC Legend," later quipping, "Hang on a minute, so the viewers will pick the winner? Where do we get these mad ideas from?"
ITV's entertainment director Katie Rawcliffe said the first South Africa series in 2023 "was a true celebration of the show's history" and that producers were "blown away by the love for the first series." Tom Gould of Lifted Entertainment, the production company behind the show, said the tougher South African setting will test returning campmates "to their limits" and that the live final will let viewers decide who deserves the title.
The initial I'm A Celebrity… South Africa spin-off in 2023 reunited memorable contestants from previous editions of the long-running British reality series. The first series featured participants including Amir Khan, Gillian McKeith, Joe Swash and Carol Vorderman, and concluded with Myleene Klass being crowned the show's first "I'm A Celebrity… Legend." ITV said the new run will bring "a whole new cohort" of returning campmates.
Producers have promised "bigger trials" than in the inaugural South Africa run and said some challenges will be "truly epic, even by I'm A Celeb… standards." The format change to a live, public final marks a departure from the traditional studio or pre-recorded finales used in earlier editions.
I'm A Celebrity… South Africa is scheduled to air in 2026 on ITV1, STV and the streaming service ITVX. ITV did not announce casting details or exact broadcast dates; further information is expected nearer to transmission.