Oti Mabuse has spoken frankly about her decision to do I’m A Celebrity and what it might mean for her young family

Oti Mabuse has spoken frankly about her decision to do I’m A Celebrity and what it might mean for her young family.

It was a big decision to fly to Australia and be away from her baby for a whole month but she and husband Marius are keen to take it in their stride, with Oti also pointing out that mums also have goals.

Strictly Come Dancing star Oti, 34, says: “I’ve always wanted to be a part of the show in some capacity, and I felt like right now, this year is the only year for me to do it, because I’ll probably never do it again.

“I’ll never get another opportunity to do it again. I’d love to grow my family. I’d like to do other things. And so this was the year for me to do it, and it just felt right.

“I would love to grow my family so let’s see what happens. But in terms of being away from family, I probably won’t be able to do that much longer.”

Referring to being apart for a few weeks, she adds: “My daughter won’t remember it. It’s just a couple of days. She’s with a lot of family, and she’s with my husband who is amazing, and she’s in more than capable hands.

Oti joins the likes of Coleen Rooney and GK Barry on this year’s I’m A Celeb ( 
Image:
ITV/REX/Shutterstock)

“I think it’s nice for her to see that mum is fully committed and loves her so much. But also, mum wants to do what she wants to do.

“You know, mum has goals as well, and I think it’s something as mums, we can all kind of be proud of, that we can be these incredible human beings as well as accomplish things that we want or reach our goals or do things that are fun for us. And when she grows up, and she’ll Google me, and she’ll probably see it and be like, Yeah, my mum did that.”

Former Strictly Come Dancing winning pro and Dancing On Ice judge Oti gave birth at the end of last year but the baby was born prematurely with an infection and spent six weeks in intensive care after Oti developed sepsis during pregnancy.

After the birth of her daughter – whose name they have never revealed – the baby wouldn’t eat at times and so leaving her in the UK to head to Australia less than a year after her recovery is a big move.

On her husband Marius, who she married in 2014, Oti adds: “My husband is amazing. He’s hands on dad, full on dad. He literally is everything I am to her, and they have such a beautiful connection. He’s amazing at cooking. He knows her schedule. He knows her menus. He knows everything about her.

“You know, he is a parent, and he’s a very, very good parent, and he’s a hands-on Dad, which is so beautiful to see them, especially when they’re together. They’ve gone traveling just the two of them, and they enjoy each other’s company, and so I don’t even think about having to trust or not trust or worry. I know he’s a capable father, and he’s brilliant.”

Oti has been one of ITV’s most wanted campmates for many years, with bosses trying for years to land her as a campmate.

She added: “It’s maybe six years now they’ve been asking me, I’ve always said that I will do the show, because it’s just always seemed like a fun show.

“Everyone that I’ve spoken to, every single person that I’ve spoken to, has nothing horrible to say. They just say, this is a once in a lifetime experience. I know I’ll never get to do this again. I’ll never be in this place with these type of people, ever, ever again.”

Her daughter will be too young to come into camp when she leaves but she says she knows it will be a “magical moment” to be reunited with her husband on the drawbridge with the baby waiting for them nearby with family who will also make the trip Down Under next month.

On a lighter note Oti also says she wants to get the camp dancing in there.

She says: “I hope I bring the entertainer. I hope that when we’re bored, we can learn a few things, play a few games, dance, a few dances. You know, every day we could learn a different dance. We could have chats.

“I also enjoyed just sitting and talking to people and just getting to know them. Not everybody likes to dance, not everybody likes to be full on all the time, and I know people will be tired and starving, so I hope that I can help the time pass by a little faster by bringing myself and my personality and my dancing.

“I literally just want to get in there and get to know people and just show who I really am authentically.”