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Tempting Fortune in bulling row as controversial contestant reveals ‘real reason’ she quit Channel 4 show

Published on March 30, 2025 at 11:00 AM

A TEMPTING Fortune contestant has broken her silence after appearing on Channel 4's gruelling survival show.

Businesswoman, Vicki, 37, branded the experience “horrific” and revealed what really went down behind the scenes.

Illustration of the cast of Tempting Fortune in a tropical setting.
A Tempting Fortune contestant has broken her silence after appearing on Channel 4's gruelling survival show
Woman holding several birthday cards.
The greeting cards entrepreneur exclusively told Flying Eze that she was ostracised and didn't feel safe
Two women sitting at a table, one looking at a menu while the other has a basket of food.
Vicki explained why she gave into temptations like cheesy chips on the show

The greeting cards entrepreneur exclusively told Flying Eze Online: “The level of aggression in my opinion wasn't really shown on TV and wasn't representative of what was truly going on.

“I only ever intended to take temptations that would help me get to the end of the experience but I felt bullied and ostracised by some of my camp mates.

“I'm a strong woman, I was a prison officer for 10 years but the level of aggression off camera from Sam in camp was worrying at times.

“She even threw a bag that skimmed past my head one day and I went to the producers and told them I don't feel safe and that it wasn't ok.

“I felt so bullied but I was determined not to lower myself and be aggressive back.”

Vicki explained that she felt she was being kicked when she was feeling down and that there was a real lack of empathy from some of the other contestants.

“My mental health completely plummeted as you can probably see on the show during my last episode.”

Vicki added that she took the temptations – like a bowl of cheesy chips – because she was continually vomiting when she forced herself to eat the rice on offer and therefore hadn't eaten.

“There's some people that are really naïve, that are thinking ‘Oh, Vicky took all these temptations – she’s so greedy and selfish' but that’s not true.

“I said from day one I would only take what would get me to the end.

Furious Tempting Fortune contestant xx slams 'lazy' co-star Vicki for quitting and costing team £34k

“I would not do anything just for the sake of having a laugh, it was purely to get me to the end, to show my daughter that you can push yourself out your limit.

“And on the second climb I only took the temptation because I was advised that it wasn't safe for me to continue due to the difficulty of the trek – even though I said would.

“Honestly what you didn't see on that one where I took the water taxi, I was actually projectile vomiting at the top of that hill and they cut it out – they didn't show it to make me look weaker, I think.”

But Vicky was completely oblivious to the fact that some campmates wanted her to leave.

I vomited every time I tried to eat, so I stopped trying.”

“Now I realise that people who were supporting me and smiling to my face were actually stabbing me in the back and it wasn't a butter knife it was a machete.”

She continued: “After I ate the chips I was called selfish and shameless and being screamed at from every angle.

“The shock for me was that before that they’d been telling me to take food if it was offered and then turned on me.

“I know it looks bad that I had three temptations in a row and had the cheesy chips but before but they had said ‘Vicky you haven't eaten if there is a temptation take it.'

Paddy McGuinness' TV Timeline

2000-2001 – Phoenix Nights

2004 – Max & Paddy's Road To Nowhere

2005 – Max & Paddy's The Power of Two

2008-2010 – Rory and Paddy's Great British Adventure

2010-2019 – Take Me Out

2011 – 71 Degrees North

2013 – Your Face Sounds Familiar

2015 – Benchmark

2017-2018 – The Keith & Paddy Picture Show

2019 – Celebrity Juice

2019-2022 – Top Gear

2019-2022 – Catchpoint

2021-2022 – I Can See Your Voice

2021-2023 – A Question of Sport

2024 – Paddy and Chris: Road Tripping

2024-2025 – Inside The Factory

2023-2025 – Tempting Fortune

“But, I completely underestimated how I would struggle with the rice and beans because what you can't tell is that the kidney beans literally stank.

“I vomited every time I tried to eat, so I stopped trying.”

“At home I am genuinely such a bubbly person. I walk into a room and I talk to everybody, but by the end I I didn't even want to talk to anyone because I felt so bullied.”

Vicki said she eventually left the show after one of her cast mates secretly revealed the reason they were there was to pay for private health care for a sick family member.

“I had to leave the show because alongside the bullying, I couldn't handle the guilt when Nathanial covered his microphone and told me why he wasn't taking temptations.

Had I not been told that, I would've stayed but the thought of taking money away from people who needed it for such heart breaking reasons, was just too much for me.”

Vicki said she “couldn't bare to take any more of the prize pot away” after that, and decided to quit.

But she added: “After I quit the cast mates were sat down and told they were not allowed to talk about the reasons they needed the money, as it amounts to emotional blackmail and is against the rules.

“Had I not been told that, I would've stayed but the thought of taking money away from people who needed it for such heart breaking reasons, was just too much for me.”

A spokesperson for Channel 4 told Flying Eze Online: “The safety and duty of care of contributors on our shows is of paramount importance, cast are chaperoned by crew at all times and have the ability to leave filming at any point.

“All broadcast scenes are a fair and accurate depiction of events that unfolded during filming.”

Woman eating with a fork.
Vicki was branded ‘selfish' for her actions
Woman in black dress and tights standing by window.

Tempting Fortune airs tonight at 9pm on Channel 4 and is available to stream.

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