Tom Read Wilson Breaks Down in Tears in First Interview After Finishing Second on I’m A Celebrity
“I think I gave everything I had… and I’m happy with that.”**
A PEOPLE Magazine Exclusive

By Emily Hartwell – Senior Features Writer, PEOPLE UK Edition

I meet Tom Read Wilson in a quiet, softly lit studio tucked behind the bustling I’m A Celebrity set — a room glowing with warm amber lights, trying its best to soothe the emotional storm still swirling inside him. It has been barely half an hour since Angry Ginge was announced King of the Jungle. The applause has faded, the confetti has settled… but Tom’s heart hasn’t.

When he steps through the door, I notice something the cameras never truly capture:
a tender fragility beneath the poise, a quiet vulnerability that clings to him like a lingering echo of the jungle itself.

He sits, folds his hands gently, and offers a small, trembling smile.

And then — as though the weight of the past three weeks finally lands —
his eyes well up.

“I really tried… I truly did.” — A moment that silenced the entire room

I begin gently.

“Tom… how do you feel, right now?”

A long pause follows — the kind that makes you forget to breathe.

And then, with a voice barely above a whisper, he says:

“I think I gave everything I had… and I’m happy with that.”

The softness of his words, the sincerity of his voice — it strikes the room like a quiet thunder. A single tear escapes despite his efforts to blink it away.

I ask if he wants a moment.
He shakes his head.

“No… I want to speak.
Tonight, more than ever, I need to.”

**Behind the smile the world fell in love with:

“I tried to be strong… but sometimes, I was scared.”**

Tom begins sharing pieces of the jungle life we never saw: the silent nights, the tremors of fear, the unexpected homesickness.

“People saw me calm, composed… but there were nights I lay there wondering if I was strong enough.
Nights I missed home so much it hurt.”

He presses a hand to his chest, right over his heart.

“But every morning I told myself, ‘Get up, Tom.
Someone out there is cheering for you.’”

The cheers he could feel through the screen — “It touched me in a way I can’t explain.”

When he speaks about the public’s support, something shifts inside him — a spark, a warmth.

“I heard it.
Truly heard it.
And it touched me in a way I’ll never forget.”

His voice cracks.
He doesn’t hide it.

“I don’t know what I did to deserve so much love.
But I felt it — every moment.
And I carried it with me.”

On Angry Ginge — and the bittersweet smile of the runner-up

The moment I mention Ginge, Tom’s face softens instantly.
His admiration is genuine, deep, and free of bitterness.

“He deserves it.
He has a heart bigger than any trial we faced in there.”

Then, quieter:

“Does it hurt?
Yes… of course.
But the joy I feel for Ginge is bigger than that hurt.”

In more than a decade of interviewing celebrities, I can say this without hesitation:
I have never heard a more gracious runner-up.

The revelation: “I found myself again.”

When I ask what changed inside him during the experience, he falls silent again — but this time, the silence feels full, not heavy.

“The most beautiful thing?” he says softly.
“I rediscovered myself.”

His gaze drifts, as though replaying moments from the jungle:

“I laughed honestly.
I cried honestly.
I shared fears, hopes, stories… and I received so much love in return.”

Then he looks directly at me with calm certainty:

“And I think the audience saw the real me.
Maybe that’s why they connected.”

His final words — and the moment the room fell silent

As the interview winds down, I ask if he has a message for the people who supported him.

He sits up straighter.
He looks directly into the camera.
His voice is steady — but full of emotion.

“Thank you for loving someone like me.
Thank you for making me feel… enough.”

A tear rolls down his cheek.
No one in the room moves.

No one speaks.

It is one of those rare moments — quiet, delicate, and profoundly human — that will stay with me long after the lights fade.

From the journalist’s view — the truth behind the interview

When Tom leaves the room, the door closes gently behind him.
But the echoes of his vulnerability stay.

I’ve interviewed superstars, legends, people who dominate headlines.

But tonight…
I spoke to someone real.

Someone tender.
Someone brave enough to cry.
Someone unafraid to show grace even in heartbreak.

And perhaps —
that is the greatest victory of all.