While other I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! contestants were taking the plunge from a helicopter, Ruby Wax was recalling a far riskier kind of fall — not into the jungle, but straight off Donald Trump’s private jet after a very tense encounter.
During Sunday’s debut episode, Wax, 72, recalled a notorious encounter from more than 25 years ago, long before Trump became president. At the time, he was a billionaire businessman with ambitions for the political stage.
Wax, however, found the idea laughable. During an interview on his private jet for her BBC series Ruby’s American Pie, she claims she was shown the door after giggling when Trump discussed the possibility of becoming president.
@imacelebrity
@rubywax got kicked out of President Donald Trump’s plane, so getting yeeted out of the Jungle helicopter should be fine, right? 🚁 #ImACeleb
♬ original sound – I’m A Celebrity… – I’m A Celebrity…
Reflecting on the experience in the first episode of I’m a Celebrity, Wax described it as her “worst ever” interview.
She told viewers: “About 25 years ago, I had a show, so I went on Donald Trump’s plane. He said he wanted to be president of the United States, and I started laughing… and he didn’t think it was funny, so he threw me off his plane. I’ll never forget that!”
In 2016, Wax shared footage of the awkward interview on X (formerly Twitter) while Trump was running against Hillary Clinton, writing: “Here’s my full interview with Trump from 2000. I hope this helps bring him down. Pls share far and wide.”
Here’s my full interview with Trump from 2000. I hope this helps bring him down. Pls share far and wide. https://t.co/1AMnO4PPsx
— Ruby Wax OBE (@Rubywax) November 5, 2016
In the clip, Wax struggles to hide her amusement as Trump talks about his presidential aspirations. After a tense few minutes, Trump abruptly declared the plane was taking off and insisted Wax exit immediately: “We have to take off… I’m going upstairs. That’s enough, I have a headache.”
Wax recalls asking him, “Do you hate me?” — to which Trump responded, “No, I think you’re fine, but that’s enough.” With some careful “schmoozing,” she managed to continue the conversation, but the encounter left a lasting impression.
She spoke about the interview with The Telegraph last year, saying: “It’s awful to be in his eyeline, and for him to be sending hatred towards you is not pleasant. His eyes said, ‘I’m going to rip your throat out,’ and it was very hard to ask questions in that kind of climate. It was awful. It backfired. Who knew he would become president?
“I laughed at him, which is why he threw me out of his aeroplane. I thought he was kidding, but he made his pilot land, and he threw me off. It was an interesting situation — not one I’d ever want to repeat.”
