I’m A Celebrity’s Tom Read Wilson is gearing up to swap red carpets for red ants as he heads into the Aussie jungle as one of this year’s two late arrivals.
As the charming TV favourite – who’s also an actor and singer – makes his way into camp, here’s a look back at the life, career and relationships that have shaped him so far…
Who is Tom Read Wilson?
Tom is a TV personality, singer and actor. Many viewers will know him best as the ever-charming receptionist and client coordinator on Celebs Go Dating. It’s a gig he’s held since 2016.
He first popped up on our screens that same year on The Voice UK. He took on Johnny Mercer’s Accentuate the Positive, and was just 28 years old. But despite his best efforts, not one of the judges – Will.i.am, Boy George, Paloma Faith or Ricky Wilson – spun their chair.
Still, it didn’t take long for the spotlight to find him. Later in 2016, he made his debut on Celebs Go Dating, and the rest is history. Since then, Tom has clocked up a long list of TV credits. This includes Celebrity Juice, Love Island: Aftersun, Strictly: It Takes Two, 8 Out of 10 Cats and Tipping Point: Lucky Stars. In 2020, he even won Celebrity Mastermind with his impressive knowledge of My Fair Lady, and a year later he was runner-up on BBC One’s Celebrity Best Home Cook.
More recently, Tom fronted Channel 5’s The Taste Test Restaurant. He took on Richard Osman’s House of Games earlier this year.
He’s no stranger to the stage, either. Back in 2015, he appeared as Bill Yorke in Sweet Revenge at the Windsor Repertory Theatre, and in 2023 he stepped into the role of Squidward in the West End production of the SpongeBob SquarePants musical.
How old is Tom Read Wilson?
Tom was born on November 12, 1986, in Berkshire, England.
This makes him 38 years old.
Speaking about his childhood in an interview with OK! in 2023, Tom said: “I had a happy childhood. It was quite a curious one because I grew up on a college campus, so when the school holidays came around and the kids went home, I could skinny dip in the pool and play on the tennis courts. It was a lovely place to grow up in.
“I’m very close to my parents, but sadly, they are now separated, and my dad has remarried. My mum is a French teacher and a wonderful, zesty, rather naughty character.”
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Is Tom Read Wilson currently in a relationship? Does he have a partner?
No, Tom does not appear to be in a relationship at the moment. Or, if he is, he has yet to announce it publicly.
In 2021, the star admitted that he likes to date himself, after being something of a serial dater in the past.
Speaking to Kate Thornton on her White Wine Question Time podcast, he said: “I really advocate things like what I call ‘dating myself’ where I kind of take myself out for a really lovely meal or to the BFI or to the National Theatre.”
He went on to say that enjoying your own company is a major part of finding love.
“I think that if you really do – and it’s not just a kind of metaphysical thing, it’s actually a science of getting to like your own company – then you’re very well placed for somebody to enter your life because they’re not anything more to you. They’re not your counsellor or your crutch – they’re just your paramour, which is heaven,” he said.
Tom on finding love
In another interview, this time with Pink News in 2018, Tom admitted that it took him a while to realise that the best thing he could do to find love was to be himself.
“I realised what I was attracted to in other people were often the curiosities and idiosyncrasies and the nuances. I thought, why on earth am I trying to censor myself or edit myself to get rid of those? Those should be the bits I’m celebrating. That’s the most liberating notion. The person that’s going to fall for you is going to fall for all of those delicious curiosities,” he said.
In 2023, Tom admitted that he would like children one day.
“I’m so lucky I’ve got three godchildren, three nephews… but what I really crave is to have children of my own one day,” he told New! at the time.
However, he has said that he’s quite happy with his own company.
“I tend to find that I have a very spiky grasp on my professional life. But when I get a break, I love to date – even if after three minutes of meeting, you know it’s not going to lead to romance. I just love meeting people. I’m very happy in my own company, but if someone came into my life, it would be a beloved addition. Most days I feel like a moist madeira sponge that doesn’t really require icing,” he said.
“But if there were icing, it wouldn’t go amiss.”
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Tom Read Wilson on his dreams changing as he gets older
In his interview with Pink News, Tom also opened up about how his dreams have changed as he’s got older.
“I think as a teenager, my great dream was to be clutching a Tony at 20 – not a boy, the Tony Award! I think one just becomes much more grateful for what one has as opposed to the kind of grand design. I think I’ve recognised it is just that and I think I’ve never felt it more than now,” he said.
On taking part in I’m A Celebrity 2025
Speaking to The Mirror ahead of his entrance into the jungle this week, Tom shared that he’s “terrified” of camp life.
“I shan’t sugar the pill. I am terrified. I do not think I have ever been quite so frightened. But it is a funny thing with fear historically for me because it is one of those things that swells and swells and swells in my mind. And as soon as I start something, I am actually much better,” he said.
He added that he can’t wait to buddy up with Ruby Wax.
He said things haven’t ‘gone well’ when he’s been with a famous face he’s a massive fan of. So let’s pray that he doesn’t rub Ruby up the wrong way Down Under!
I’m A Celebrity is on every night at 9pm on ITV1 and ITVX.
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