Cliff Parisi signed up to I’m A Celebrity to pay the taxman

Cliff Parisi has confessed he said yes to I’m A Celebrity in order to pay the taxman.

Actor Cliff played mechanic Minty Peterson on BBC One’s EastEnders and more recently appeared in Call The Midwife.

He’s one of two latecomers to this year’s I’m A Celebrity line up, set to join camp soon alongside fellow soap star Andrew Whyment.

In an interview with the Daily Mirror, Cliff admitted he originally said no to the show before getting a bill from the taxman.

“I have got a bill I need to pay. Like everyone at this time of year you go, ‘Oh no! Again. I thought I paid that’,” he explained. “I had a meeting about this earlier on in the year and I thought about it long and hard and said no…

“And then as it crept along to September and I got an estimate for my tax I phoned them up and said ‘is it too late to say yes?’ So here I am.”

Cliff continued: “I give myself a bit of a talking to, and then I spoke to the accountant and he made my mind up.

“What is the worst case scenario? A big snake is gonna bite you or the taxman is gonna bite you. What do you want?”

Meanwhile, ahead of joining the camp, Cliff gave himself “no chance” of winning the show instead backing Iain Wright for victory.

“I’ve never won anything in my life. This is one I won’t win. I think the competition is very stiff this year. Really really tough,” he said. “People that are loved are in there. Really loved. That are familiar faces and characters. Rather than me being an actor.

“People don’t really know who I am, they have to learn about me. It’s Ian Wright’s to lose I reckon.”

Cliff will join I’m A Celebrity with Corrie’s Andrew Whyment at the end of the week.

Andrew is one of Coronation Street’s longest-serving stars, having appeared as Kirk Sutherland since 2000.

I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here continues nightly on ITV.

Ant and Dec host.