After a few shaky years, it seems like ITV has nailed its casting for I'm a Celebrity in 2024, with a handful of iconic moments already making it to our screens after just one episode.
We'd name-check GK Barry and Tulisa Contostavlos as two personalities who are shaping up to go down in the reality-television history books as class-act signings.
But among all of the praise from happy viewers on social media, there are already too many comments being made about Tulisa's face. Predictable? Sadly, yes. Acceptable? Absolutely not.
The singer and former X Factor judge previously removed herself from the spotlight, following an onslaught of media scrutiny and sexist public backlash. Tulisa has now decided the time is right to take on another television role, but has been vocal about how much of a "big deal" it is to her.
Related: The response to I'm a Celebrity's Oti Mabuse highlights an issue
Picking apart a person's appearance is never okay, and while it can happen to anyone in the public eye, it's a trend that seems to disproportionally get thrown at women. Beauty standards are narrow and unrealistic. There's an expectation to look "good", whatever that means, as well as to defy the aging process – while we're at it, we're told we also shouldn't 'play about' with our faces either…
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For Tulisa, there's actually even more to the story. The N-Dubz star has previously opened up about her private health battles, including a flare up of Bell's palsy, which the NHS website describes as a "temporary weakness or lack of movement that usually affects one side of the face".
During an appearance on Loose Women in 2020 (via BBC News), Tulisa discussed her diagnosis and explained that her condition can cause "facial paralysis" and "swelling", adding that she carried emergency steroids around with her to manage it.
Related: GK Barry admits I'm a Celebrity jungle looks "like absolute hell"
"There have actually been times when people have criticised me for the way I look and my face, not knowing I'm actually going through a Bell's palsy attack," she explained.
In a recent podcast interview with Olivia Attwood, Tulisa reflected on her first experience of a flare-up before her diagnosis.
"I had this huge burst of inflammation on my cheek, as if I had an abscess in there or something. I went straight to a doctor, they gave me antibiotics, steroid injections, [I] don't know what caused it," she explained. "And then it went down to a certain extent, left with some mild swelling, and then my whole face just dropped..."
Tulisa went on to say that this went on for months, and that she hid away in her house.
During her chat on the podcast, the singer also opened up about facial fillers, explaining that for a while she would use those to try and 'balance out' the Bell's palsy swelling.
Tulisa revealed that, after consulting with a number of doctors and having an explorative operation, she also discovered that she had "three chronically infected cysts" in her face.
"I have no idea what [the cysts] were caused by, they weren't filler, they were just self-occurring," she explained on Olivia Attwood's So Wrong It's Right podcast, which was released right before Tulisa's jungle stint.
"I came out of the operation, and then instantly my face just went [down], it was less swollen after the op... so I still have the same inflammation but it's way less than it was," she added.
At the time of the podcast recording, Tulisa explained that there were still some cysts there, and that she's also planning to have those removed.
Fellow television star Rylan has spoken out to defend Tulisa, as the first episode of I'm a Celebrity arrived on our screens.
"Before people start going for appearance, Tulisa has been through a lot health wise the last few years so let's not make s**t jokes about her on twitter yeah," he said.
Just about sums it up, don't you think?
I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here! airs every day on ITV1, STV and ITVX, followed each night by I'm A Celebrity…Unpacked on ITV2 and ITVX.
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TV Editor, Digital Spy Laura has been watching television for over 30 years and professionally writing about entertainment for almost 10 of those. Previously at LOOK and now heading up the TV desk at the UK's biggest TV and movies site Digital Spy, Laura has helped steer conversations around some of the most popular shows on the box. Laura has appeared on Channel 5 News and radio to talk viewing habits and TV recommendations. As well as putting her nerd-level Buffy knowledge to good use during an IRL meet with Sarah Michelle Gellar, Laura also once had afternoon tea with One Direction, has sat around the fire pit of the Love Island villa, spoken to Sir David Attenborough about the world's oceans and even interviewed Rylan from inside the Big Brother house (housemate status, forever pending).
