Nigel Farage in talks to appear on I’m a Celebrity after Big Brother bosses refused his demand for £750,000 fee
Former UKIP leader is demanding the high sum for appearances on telly's favourite shows
NIGEL Farage is cashing in on his political fame by touting himself around the UK’s reality TV shows for big money, The Sun can reveal.
The former UKIP leader, 52, was in advanced talks to appear on the upcoming series of Celebrity Big Brother but was turned down by bosses after he demanded a fee of £750,000.
He is now holding out to become a contestant on ITV’s I’m A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! later this year — but jungle execs are also unlikely to cough up his six-figure asking price.
A TV insider revealed: “Farage is keen to appear on reality TV but he is asking for far too much money.
“He has been in talks with CBB but insisted he wanted £750,000 to take part.
“His demands were way out of this year’s budget. The highest paid contestant this year is Christopher Biggins but even he is earning less than half of that.
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“Farage is definitely in the market for reality TV but he is being too greedy.
“The BBC won’t touch him for Strictly Come Dancing as he is too much of a political hot potato, so he is setting his sights on I’m A Celeb instead.
“However, until he gets a reality check on money he has no chance.”
In recent years reality TV has become a staple for MPs whose political careers have washed up.
Former Labour and Respect Party MP George Galloway caused a huge stir during his stint on CBB in 2006 by pretending to be a cat licking milk from the hands of fellow housemate, actress Rula Lenska.
Ex-Conservative Ministers Edwina Currie and Ann Widdecombe have both starred as contestants on Strictly Come Dancing, as did Lib Dem politician Vince Cable.
MEP Farage, who co-led the Brexit campaign with Boris Johnson, once confessed he wanted to star in an
EU Committee version of Big Brother, saying: “Now that would be very tempting. I would like to torture them, mentally, slowly, for all the bad things they’ve done.”
Last night a spokesman for Nigel Farage told The Sun: "Nigel has been offered a series of ridiculous offers by all sorts of programmes and people.
"And to those that are ridiculous he responds in kind. Rather charming that a program desperate for publicity wants to do so on his reputation. The price of success I suppose."
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