“Honestly, I’m pretty fearful of a lot of things,” the 39-year-old admits to WHO with a laugh on the eve of her jetting off to South Africa.
“I don’t like snakes, I don’t like bugs and I’ve never tried to go camping. If I’m honest, my fears probably do hold me back from trying a lot of new things.”
Her time on SAS Australia in 2020 saw her dig deep and fight some of her demons, and she no longer feels she has anything to prove to herself or the public.
But there are still some critics whose opinions hold plenty of sway; her three daughters with husband, cricketer David – Ivy, 9, Indi, 8, and little Isla, 4.
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“My girls see [my fears] and I think them seeing their mother be afraid and not try things means a lot of the time they don’t either,” Candice says.
“So I want to go on and prove to my girls that with a change of mindset, I can overcome my fears and have some great experiences and show them they can do anything.”
For the busy working mum who lives life constantly on the go, jungle life offers more than just creepy crawlies that will push her out of her comfort zone.
“There is so much idle downtime in the camp, that might be the hardest part because if I’m just sitting around, I’m going to be thinking about David and the girls a lot,” she says.
“Physical stuff, keeping busy and the challenges are great for me, but the rest could be really draining and tiring. It is nothing I can really train and prepare for.”
Another test, she admits, could be the other competitors. Not a stranger to the odd public feud – she had a falling out with once-close friend Roxy Jacenko on SAS and has had a war of words with former cricketer Mitchell Johnson – Candice admits there are a few people she wouldn’t want to be forced to “spend 24 hours a day with”.
“I think I’m the type of person who, if there was someone there I’ve had a disagreement with, I’d just approach them head on and try to clear the air,” she says.
After David, 37, announced his retirement from One Day International and Test cricket in 2023, he may have been thinking this year held an opportunity to spend a lot more quality time with his wife and family.
But when it comes to her packing her bags to head off to the other side of the world for a bit, Candice says he is totally supportive of her finally “doing something just for me”.
“He’s really excited,” she says. “At first, David and the kids were shocked and then they laughed and thought it was hilarious… this is the last show that I would ever sign up for but now they are really happy and can’t wait to see what I do.”
With the retired sportsman having a bit of extra time on his hands right now, could David be a little jealous that Candice is the one jetting off to have the adventure of a lifetime?
“I think he’s just ready to sit back and have a laugh at how I do,” she says. “But if David ever did go, I think he’d be great. He’s not scared of anything and would really throw himself into challenges, and he’d be great for lifting camp morale too.”
Apart from her hubby and kids, there are a few other things that Candice admits she will miss in the jungle as she is forced to cut down to basics.
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“I don’t know how I’ll live without my phone,” she says.
“I’m always on it – they’re just so handy for doing everything. And I have a real sweet tooth, so I will miss a sweet treat.
“And I have a skincare routine which I’m not going to be able to do anymore, so we’ll have to see how that goes.”
I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! airs Sun. to Thu. at 7.30pm on Ten and 10 play
