I’m A Celebrity star Tom Read Wilson has thrown himself into jungle life with a whole host of familiar faces – and he’s certainly made an entrance to remember.
He and Vogue Williams swept in as late arrivals and immediately shook up camp as the new leaders, enjoying plush sleeping arrangements while everyone else battled with hammocks and camp beds.
But once they settled into the rhythm of camp life, Tom quickly became a beloved presence. Fans even watched him share a slow, playful dance with Ruby Wax in the jungle pool – intimacy levels you don’t often see in the outback.
Now, as the TV personality, actor and singer continues his quest for the jungle crown, here’s a closer look at the life, career and relationships that brought him to this moment…
Who is Tom Read Wilson and how did he become famous?
Tom is a TV personality, singer, and actor best known for his role on Celebs Go Dating. The star is the receptionist and client coordinator on the hit E4 show, a role he has held since 2016.
Tom first came into the limelight back in 2016, when he competed on the fifth series of The Voice UK.
Then 28 he auditioned with a performance of Johnny Mercer’s Accentuate the Positive. Unfortunately for Tom, none of the judges – Will.i.am, Boy George, Paloma Faith or Ricky Wilson – turned around for him.
Later that year, he made his debut on Celebs Go Dating.
Since then, Tom has made a number of TV appearances, including stints on Celebrity Juice, Love Island: Aftersun, Strictly: It Takes Two, 8 out of 10 Cats and Tipping Point: Lucky Stars. In 2020, he appeared on Celebrity Mastermind, winning the show thanks to his expert knowledge of My Fair Lady. In 2021, he was a runner-up on BBC One’s Celebrity Best Home Cook.
Last year, Tom presented Channel 5 series, The Taste Test Restaurant, and earlier this year he was a contestant on Richard Osman’s House of Games.
Tom has also performed on stage. In 2015, he played the role of Bill Yorke in Sweet Revenge at the Windsor Repertory Theatre. In 2023, he landed the role of Squidward in the SpongeBob SquarePants musical on the West End.
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.
“Because of my life in the theatre, most of my friends are still in the artistic community, and most of them are thespians, and you know that that struggle. How could one not be so grateful for one’s lot when you see how difficult it is for everybody in the arts at the moment? I just think my goodness, I’m so lucky.”
Tom Read Wilson’s real voice is often a topic of discussion
Well, a lot of people wonder if Tom Read Wilson’s real voice is what we hear on television, because he speaks so eloquently. The short answer? Yes. Yes that’s his real voice – but it’s not the first time people ask.
Celebs Go Dating co-star Anna Williamson, who is close friends with Tom, opened up about the question on Lorraine this week (November 24).
“It is probably the most common question everybody says: ‘Does he really talk like that?'” she laughed. “I can now clarify, absolutely, Tom Read Wilson speaks like that. He’s a trained actor but that is not an act. He’s a lyricist, he’s an author.”
Anna has seen Tom “in every which way” over the years, so she’d know if he was putting it on.
“He speaks because of his dad,” she added, referring to English professor Crispin Read Wilson.
“He said, ‘Daddy never spoke to me like a child, daddy would always talk to me like this,’ and that is just how Tom is.”
Tom’s dad met his mum when he was her teacher
While Tom Read Wilson owes his voice, love of literature and fascination with etymology to his dad, he rarely opens up about his parents.
Tom has previously shared the story of how his parents first crossed paths – and it’s every bit as unconventional as you’d expect from the man himself.
Speaking on an old episode of 8 Out of 10 Cats, he revealed that his dad, Tom Read Wilson Senior, met his mum Juliette while working at Bradfield College in Berkshire. His maternal grandfather also taught at the school, and Tom joked that it wasn’t unusual for “the eldest girls of the faculty” to date the younger teachers.
When Rob Beckett pressed him on the details, Tom clarified that his mum had just turned 18 at the time and his dad was 16 years older. He insisted the age gap never fazed him growing up because he “never really thought about it”.
Although his parents later went their separate ways, his mum has flown all the way to Australia to cheer him on while he braves the jungle – a gesture that shows just how proud she is of him.
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