Soap royalty is trading the Queen Vic for the jungle campfire as Shona McGarty has been confirmed as a contestant on I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here! 2025.
The beloved actress, who became a household name during her 16-year stint on BBC's EastEnders, is set to face bushtucker trials and camp life in the iconic ITV reality show's 25th series, which is filming now.
From Albert Square to the Australian Jungle
Shona McGarty, a London native born in 1991, first found fame in 2008 when she joined the cast of EastEnders as Whitney Dean.
The character was originally introduced as the daughter of Bianca Jackson's (played by Patsy Palmer) deceased partner, and quickly became a fan favourite.
McGarty portrayed Whitney for an impressive 15 years as a regular on the soap, navigating some of the show's most dramatic storylines.
Her departure from the Square was announced in 2023, with her final scenes airing in 2024. This jungle adventure marks her first major television appearance since leaving the iconic soap.
Life Before and Beyond EastEnders
Before her big break, McGarty honed her craft in amateur theatre after studying at Loreto College in St Albans.
Away from the world of acting, she has also showcased her vocal talents. In 2018, she was part of a celebrity group that released the charity single Rock With Rudolph.
The group, known as The Celebs, reunited in 2021, with McGarty performing on a version of the classic Beatles song, Let It Be.
As she enters the jungle, audiences will be eager to see if the resilience she showed as Whitney Dean translates to surviving the Australian outback and winning over the British public.
The full line-up for I'm a Celebrity 2025 has been revealed, with public reaction to the cast already generating significant buzz ahead of the series launch.
