Reverend Richard Coles has landed in the jungle after he joined the official line-up for I’m A Celebrity 2024.
The vicar isn’t new to television having featured in numerous shows, including Strictly Come Dancing. Rev Richard Coles wears multiple hats: he’s a musician, and radio and TV presenter. And he’s also a late entrant on I’m A Celebrity 2024.
But what was his life like before he became a pop star? What controversy was he embroiled in during the AIDS crisis of the 1980s? And what happened to his late partner Reverend David Oldham?
Richard is heading into camp (Credit: BBC)
I’m A Celebrity 2024 star Reverend Richard Coles didn’t get his start in showbiz
Richard is a Church of England vicar. He was born in Northamptonshire on March 26, 1962. He studied theology at King’s College and obtained his M.A. from the University of Leeds.
According to The Sun, the 62-year-old star was a Roman Catholic for 10 years, after which he returned to Anglicanism in 2001. In 2005, he was ordained into the Anglican priesthood.
He was later appointed vicar at St Mary the Virgin in Finedon, Northamptonshire in 2011 and retired before Easter 2022. Richard currently resides in Friston, East Sussex.
Rev Richard Coles was in music band The Communards
In 1984, Richard joined forces with Scottish singer and songwriter Jimmy Somerville to form The Communards.
The band had three UK Top 10 hits, including Never Can Say Goodbye. Their biggest-selling single was 1986’s Don’t Leave Me This Way.
His musical career was short-lived. But the vicar didn’t shy away from talking about the rather controversial life he led at the peak of his stardom.
The Sun reports that he allegedly admitted to engaging in questionable behaviour while in the band. “How much have I spent on drugs in my life? Well, more than a clergyman should,” said Richard.
However, his musical stint came to an end when he was “suddenly inspired with a newfound faith”. Rev Richard Coles quit The Communards after attending a mass at St Albans church in central London in 1990.
Richard and Dianne Buswell were partnered on Strictly in 2017 (Credit: BBC)
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