I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here! and Emmerdale star Lisa Riley has become the latest female contestant to leave the Australian jungle, following Martin Kemp’s departure
Samantha Masters Content Editor
16:30, 04 Dec 2025
Lisa Riley hasn’t shied away from discussing her personal struggles (Image: ITV)
Emmerdale’s Mandy Dingle actress, Lisa Riley, has been candid about her personal challenges over the years, including her struggles with fertility alongside her fiancé Al.
During her time in the Australian outback, she has maintained this transparency, often initiating profound and heartfelt discussions with her fellow I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here! campmates.
As she prepares to reunite with her husband-to-be, we delve into some of the difficulties Lisa has bravely discussed in recent times.
Fertility struggles
In a recent jungle conversation about parenthood, Lisa expressed her belief that 33 was the ideal age to become a parent. However, due to fertility issues, the actress has yet to experience motherhood.
Previously speaking to Hello! Magazine about her struggles, Lisa described fertility treatment as “emotionally draining” and has since reconciled with the fact that she may not have children of her own.
“My body was being pumped full of hormones to get my egg readings, and in the end they weren’t good, it messes with your head and I just couldn’t do that to myself anymore,” she revealed.
“The past few months have been really hard, emotionally draining, and we just decided that enough was enough.”
Lisa and Al have been together for 11 years(Image: Instagram/@lisajaneriley)
She continued: “Finding out that I was unlikely to get pregnant was a blow. But I refuse to be defined by that.”
When asked if she’d consider adoption in a separate interview, Lisa confessed she “wouldn’t be able to cope” with the idea of them wanting to return to their biological parents.
“There are enough lovely people in this world who would like to adopt, but no, we are past that now,” she disclosed to The Sun. “I am 48 and I feel like an unfinished jigsaw – that is the truth of a woman who doesn’t have children but who is okay with it.” Instead, Lisa takes great pride in being an auntie.
Prior to entering the jungle, she said of her stint: “Forget the NTAs and BAFTAs, the fact I am going into the jungle means I am hopefully the best auntie in the world to my nephews Jakey and Joshua, and niece, Everlyn.
“I can forever say to them I tackled the jungle head-on. It is going to be ace!”
Challenges with fame
Lisa is most recognised for her role as Mandy Dingle in the ITV soap Emmerdale. The actress first joined the Dales in 1995 before making her initial departure in 2001.
At the time, Lisa admitted she found dealing with fame challenging, which included frequently appearing on the cover of magazines. She told Woman Magazine: “I remember being in the supermarket, and I was on the cover of every magazine with the Mandy and Dave Glover storyline.
“There are enough lovely people in this world that would like to adopt, but no, we are past that now,”I felt claustrophobic and started to have panic attacks.
Lisa Riley plays Mandy Dingle on Emmerdale
“Me, [and EastEnders stars] Patsy Palmer and Martine McCutcheon were the tabloid ‘faces of soap’ and were followed everywhere like pop stars. Initially, it was hard. “
Lisa explained she didn’t believe therapy was necessary at the time, instead relying on her late mother for support during that difficult period.
Following a hiatus from the Dales to pursue different opportunities, she made her comeback in 2019 with renewed self-assurance.
“I pride myself on being grounded and haven’t had a panic attack for years,” she continued. “Now the young’uns at Emmerdale come to me for advice.”
Coping with loss
Lisa’s world was shattered in 2012 when her mother Cath died after fighting cancer. The disease began as breast cancer before spreading to her ovaries and pelvis. In a 2022 interview with Express, Lisa acknowledged the enduring nature of her heartache. “I always say that mum was the oxygen in the room. mum made me look timid and that’s not an exaggeration.
In the same chat, she revealed that she was facing more grief following the death of her mother-in-law. On how she’s dealt with losing a loved one, Lisa credited her supportive family and claimed talking to those in the same situation had also helped.
“Mum loved the colour yellow and whenever I see it, I think of her and feel her with me,” she shared.
Lisa Riley with her mum Cath
Lisa continued to explain that playing Mandy had also been beneficial during her time of grief.
“Some days I can put Mandy’s wig on and put the lashes on, the full makeup and the fabulous clothes, and I can kind of live vicariously through Mandy and that helps me get though the days when, you know, I’m really struggling,” she added.
Weight loss transformation
The actress recently discussed her weight loss journey during a conversation with her campmates in the jungle. As part of the chat, she confessed to having a breast uplift after losing weight, stating: “I’m now a size 16-18, but at my biggest I was a size 28.”
She further explained: “My absolute guilt for years and years was blindness to portion control… I’ve completely cut out nibbling.
“I’m never lazy, I think it’s hereditary, I really do.” It is reported that the actress has lost 12 stone over the past decade through a combination of diet and gym workouts. This lifestyle change came after many years of trying various fad diets that “didn’t work” for her.
One of the most significant changes she made was giving up alcohol, which she has successfully abstained from for the past 10 years. Previously discussing her dietary adjustments on This Morning, she confessed: “My vice is crisps – that’s the one thing I find it hard to say no to.
Lisa Riley is the latest I’m A Celebrity star to leave the jungle (Image: ITV/Shutterstock)
“Alcohol was my comfort blanket. The Malbec I love would be accompanied by feel-good food the next day – bread that was swimming in butter.”
Since then, Lisa has become more mindful of her portion sizes and swapped junk food for healthier, nutrient-rich alternatives. In terms of physical activity, she is also thought to enjoy yoga, cardio and HIIT workouts. However, Lisa’s weight loss journey wasn’t always smooth sailing.
In her ITV documentary, Lisa Riley’s Baggy Body Club, she revealed she had undergone surgery to remove excess skin from weight loss. Speaking about the procedure in her programme, she expressed that she “couldn’t be happier about my body now if [she] tried”.
