Dean McCullough’s rise to I’m a Celeb fame saw him left homeless & ‘annihilated’ by trolls over ‘appalling’ TV disaster

HE’S been dividing viewers with his over-the-top reactions and excitable vigor successful the jungle.

And Dean McCullough volition beryllium taking centre signifier successful tonight’s Bushtucker trial connected I’m A Celebrity, arsenic a result.

The Radio 1 big received the highest nationalist votes to instrumentality connected the Sinister Sarcophagus situation successful a bid to triumph stars for camp.

And helium volition beryllium near screaming his caput disconnected arsenic helium is covered successful creepy crawlies successful tonight's episode.

While the existent proceedings whitethorn beryllium hellhole for Dean, the aerial clip volition beryllium a imagination travel existent for the Belfast boy, who worked hard to get famous.

He has appeared connected assorted world TV shows, including Britain's Got Talent, and was stateless erstwhile helium archetypal moved to London to marque it big.

Dean has besides opened up connected his conflict with booze and however going sober yet bagged him his imagination occupation presenting Radio 1.

We uncover his rocky roadworthy to fame…

Homelessness

Dean’s beingness wasn’t each glitz and glamour erstwhile helium was younger.

In fact, successful his teens, his household were stateless for a twelvemonth aft his parents’ separation.

He told the Big Issue: "We weren't surviving connected the street, we were surviving successful my aunt's location connected a sofa. 

“I was moving betwixt houses connected a regular basis."

When helium archetypal arrived successful London with hopes of being a philharmonic theatre star, Dean was stateless erstwhile again, spending years sofa surfing - and moving immoderate clip helium felt unsafe.

He said: "As soon arsenic I sensed immoderate benignant of danger, I'd beryllium consecutive retired of [where I was staying]... for a agelong clip I had nary fixed address. 

“I would spell retired connected the Thursday and conscionable enactment retired each play due to the fact that I conscionable didn't privation to spell home."

And he’s admitted this play of his beingness has near him with “problems with my possessions and feeling similar I request to instrumentality attraction of perfectly everything astir me”. 

He added: “That comes down to moving from location to location and not ever feeling similar thing was ever genuinely mine."

Reality TV stints

During his quest for fame, Dean was portion of all-male dancing radical called The Glambassadors, who made it to the semi-finals of Britain’s Got Talent successful 2013.

The trio danced and lip-synced to Christina Aguilera’s deed Candyman - and justice David Walliams called the enactment “camper than Christmas”.

At the time, Dean said: "We formed due to the fact that we each cognize each different done moving successful dance. But a week earlier the auditions we mislaid 2 guys who got jobs successful LA. 

“So we recovered 2 different friends and we had 1 rehearsal earlier we got to the stage.

"I choreographed the creation truthful I was nether unit to get it sorted. We were winging it but I deliberation due to the fact that of the unit we were nether it each came unneurotic and present I person made friends for life. 

“We person each been connected this travel together, nary of america person ever done thing similar this before."

Two years later, Dean appeared connected different world TV amusement - Young, Free and Single.

The forgotten E4 dating amusement was hosted by Steve Jones, and progressive six singletons surviving unneurotic successful a house, portion viewers voted connected who they’d spell connected dates with.

Dean got loads of backlash online for however helium treated 1 of his unsighted dates, Dan - unimpressed by his appearance, helium decided to walk the full evening connected his telephone instead.

"I was appalled astatine my behaviour connected my 2nd day but I’m gladsome it happened,” helium told Attitude astatine the time. “It’s sparked monolithic contention and radical gave maine their honorable sentiment – successful abundance. 

“Listen, I privation to marque the mistakes that azygous guys are acrophobic to. 

“I privation to beryllium that assurance doesn’t mean confident. I’ve learnt truthful overmuch from that day and I anticipation you tin spot improvements successful the weeks to come.

“I got annihilated and I deserved it.

“I would’ve tweeted maine and it wouldn’t person been pretty. It’s each portion of the show. 

“You could get 10 amazingly affirmative tweets but it takes 1 antagonistic to marque an interaction and yes – I had a outcry but I’m learning and I convey each azygous idiosyncratic that gets successful touch. I work them all."

'Dark place'

After a batch of partying and dating, booze yet became a occupation for Dean.

Speaking connected Scott Thomas’ Learning As I Go podcast, helium said: "Alcoholism runs successful my household and I've got a batch of friends that person been intoxicant babelike truthful I conscionable thought it was my turn.”

It was during the Covid-19 pandemic, portion Dean was presenting the meal amusement connected Gaydio, that helium realised helium was successful a “dark place”.

He added to iNews: "What was similar a solid of vino of an evening aft enactment turned into a vessel which turned into 2 bottles and then, immoderate weekends, I was drinking similar a vessel of vodka too.

“I looked astatine my bins successful my flat and it was like, 3 bottles of red, a vessel of vodka, a vessel of prosecco, I was similar 'Who drank that?  Oh, it was me.’

“I conscionable got myself into a atrocious mode and I was benignant of reasoning immoderate really, truly acheronian thoughts to myself. 

“Anybody who's benignant of struggled with intelligence wellness volition cognize what it's like.

 "I conscionable saw the way successful beforehand of maine and it wasn't nice. It was truly acheronian and it was precise destructive and I thought, if I privation to get to Radio 1, which was ever my dream, if I privation to bash that, I request to marque immoderate changes."

4 years sober

Dean decided to halt drinking for a period connected the archetypal time of September successful 2020 - and a period aboriginal helium bagged a occupation astatine Radio 1.

He has been sober ever since and, successful September this year, helium shared this representation of himself successful Ibiza celebrating 4 years of sobriety.

He wrote: “4 years sober contiguous & the beingness wanted maine to walk it connected my favourite land reflecting connected the astir unthinkable journey.

“I wanted to halt boozing for a period to refocus my caput and instrumentality backmost power of what was a spiralling problem. 

“I wanted to spell for my imagination occupation astatine Radio 1 but had perfectly nary thought however that was going to hap but what would hap adjacent would beryllium remarkable. 

“Everything aligned, I stayed sober for different period and past Radio 1 happened, my caput opened up and I felt similar me.

“The archetypal twelvemonth was the easiest, I stayed sober & the haze lifting, bully sleep and nary anxiety.”

However, helium besides opened up astir however it’s not ever been casual to enactment sober.

He continued: “1 twelvemonth successful everything that was bubbling nether the aboveground started to rise its disfigured head. Trauma that I hadn’t processed, symptom that I was moving distant from and parts of myself that I hadn’t fixed emotion began to look maine successful the face. I had obscurity to run.

“I reached retired and was sent to a psychotherapist. I had to excavation heavy and process years of trauma. It was truthful so hard astatine times but really inspired maine to enactment sober and consciousness each feeling. Anxiety, sadness, pain, regret, neglect, abandonment & the rest. I had to consciousness it each successful bid to determination on.

“At the aforesaid time, my vocation is going from spot to strength, I’m present astatine Radio 1 afloat time, with my ain play show, I’ve got an astonishing squad astir maine taking attraction of my vocation with maine for the archetypal time. Everything is coming unneurotic aft 13 years of graft. My beingness yet felt similar mine.

“In the past 18 months I’ve had a whirlwind of experiences. I’ve bought my ain location & felt each spot of accent astir that. I’ve fallen successful emotion with the incorrect idiosyncratic and had to navigate the breakdown of that. I’ve had a displacement astatine enactment and navigate each of that. 

“Sadly I’ve had household members walk distant and we’ve each had to process the heavy symptom of that.

“During each of this, I haven’t wanted to portion oregon usage drugs to fell the symptom and successful these infinitesimal that’s erstwhile I’m truthful grateful for sobriety. 

“It’s not casual but arsenic I beryllium present successful Ibiza reflecting connected the past 4 years, I’d alternatively person periods of symptom and heartache and truly consciousness it than support moving from my problems. That is life, this is sober magic and here’s to the adjacent 4 years.”