I’m A Celebrity stars real names: from what AJ stands for to Shane Richie’s given name

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This year’s I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Here! has us hooked.

Set in the chilly Gwrych Castle in North Wales, instead of the Australian Outback, this series is filled with a whole host of new challenges, not least the weather.

Celebrities including Olympian Sir Mo Farah, author Giovanna Fletcher and EastEnders star Shane Richie, have been battling out the elements and undergoing horrific trials all for our entertainment.

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But how much do we really know about the celebrities currently hauled up in the castle?

Well, some of them have rebranded themselves as the years have passed, and have chosen to go by different names.

But what are their real names?

Shane Richie

EastEnders star Shane Richie, is well known for playing Albert Square legend Alfie Moon.

But many people may not know that he once went by the stage name Shane Skywalker.

However the 56-year-old star got the new surname Richie when performing as Neil Diamond tribute act, of all things.

He was welcomed to the stage by someone who got his name wrong and the rest is history.

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Speaking of the change, in an interview for a Robin Hood pantomime back in 2018, the star said: "I was rebelling against my dad as well so I stuck with Richie – it confused the hell out of the taxman as well!"

AJ Pritchard

Former Strictly Come Dancing star AJ Pritchard’s real name is Alex Joseph.

However, by the time that he was 18, auditioning on Britain’s Got Talent, he has shed that name and adopted the moniker AJ.

The star even now has a tattoo of his initials on his arm.

Beverley Callard

Corrie star Beverley was born Beverley Moxon. However, the star has been married four times.

She changed her name to Arkinson, then Sowden, and Callard came along with her third marriage.

Although the 63 year old then married again in 2010 to husband Jon McEwan, she kept the name Callard, perhaps so as not to confuse people now that she had become so famous.

Ruthie Henshall

The 53 year old is a musical theatre legend and her real name is actually Valentine Ruth Henshall.

I'm A Celebrity: Inside their lives

However she chose the moniker Ruthie as her stage name, owing to the fact that it is her middle name.

The star dated the Queen's son Prince Edward for five years on and off, although she is yet to reveal if he had his own nickname for her….

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