Emmerdale Mandy Dingle star Lisa Riley will be hoping to be crowned queen of the jungle next month as she ditches the ITV soap for I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here!
Angie Quinn Screen Time Reporter
15:00, 16 Nov 2025
Lisa Riley is one of the stars heading into the jungle(Image: ITV)
Lisa Riley is taking a break from Emmerdale and has landed in the jungle for this year’s I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out of Here!.
Since making her debut as Mandy Dingle on Emmerdale in 1995, Lisa has become a beloved part of the ITV show.
Known for her lively character, contagious joy, and big heart, Mandy has been at the heart of some of soap’s most captivating storylines over the past three decades.
These include her tumultuous love affair with Paddy Kirk (Dominic Brunt) and the shocking disclosure that she adopted her son Vinny Dingle (Bradley Johnson) while involved with Vinny’s abusive father, Paul Ashdale ( Reece Dinsdale).
Mandy Dingle married Paddy Kirk in Emmerdale READ MORE: Emmerdale star says ‘that’s a wrap’ and confirms exit as fans rush to supportREAD MORE: ITV Emmerdale star reveals past abuse as she sobs ‘I don’t know how I survived’
Away from the bright lights of Emmerdale, the 49-year-old has also faced her own share of drama, making the life-changing decision to overhaul her lifestyle by shedding an impressive 12 stone in just 18 months.
Rather than opting for a quick fix to shed weight, Lisa chose a healthier lifestyle, which included ditching unhealthy food for healthier options and working out at the gym.
During this 18-month period, Lisa, originally from Bury, slimmed down from a size 28 to a sleek size 12.
However, the grueling weight loss journey wasn’t without its difficulties, as the star found herself dealing with painful folds of excess skin, weighing more than 1.5 stone, according to The Mirror.
Lisa Riley gave her lifestyle an overhaul to help loose weight (Image: WireImage)
Describing the discomfort, she said: “When you are on this weight loss journey, food becomes the enemy, and you have to go to the gym, you have to move.
“But the movement was becoming a severe problem. It really hurt, it rubbed and it would get red, and it was hard to clean between the folds.”
In her 2017 documentary, Lisa Riley’s Baggy Body Club, Lisa tearfully admitted that her new body had left her feeling “revolted” by her own image following her weight loss.
The ITV programme followed Lisa as she bravely chose to undergo surgery to remove her loose skin, a step taken by many individuals yearly.
Opening up about her fears surrounding the surgery, Lisa revealed how terror almost stopped her from proceeding.
Lisa underwent surgery to remove excess skin which was documented for an ITV show (Image: No credit)
“The night before the surgery, I was so petrified that everybody thought I wasn’t going to go through with it. I was thinking that in 11 hours, I could be dead. I might not wake up,” she confessed.
The star added, “Could I have lived with the loose skin for the rest of my life? Yes, but I wouldn’t have been happy.”
Interestingly, while often considered a cosmetic procedure, Lisa felt that her skin removal was actually something very different.
“I don’t feel like I have had cosmetic surgery, I have corrected what I had done to myself”, she explained.
Mandy Dingle has been a staple on the ITV soap for three decades
Earlier this year, Lisa opened up about losing her beloved mother, Cath, to secondary breast cancer in 2012, at just 58.
She bravely told the Mirror: “Mum went way before her time. I had to grow up really quickly. When I lost her, it blew my mind, because I had to do everything on my own and in this industry, it’s hard.
“I realised she was more than my backbone with my career, she was more than my mother, my best friend. All whoosh, gone overnight. All of a sudden, I had to swim on my own. But she taught me to be strong. She gave me that fire.”
Emmerdale star Lisa Riley has been with her partner Al for 11 years (Image: Instagram)
Losing her mum has also discouraged Lisa from marrying her long-term partner, Al, with whom she has been in a relationship for 11 years.
She said: “We’re already married, but not married. And honestly, I truly couldn’t cope with the big day without my mum by my side. Why would I want to put myself through that?
“Al lost his mum not long ago, and he’s got no parents. Thank God I’ve got Dad. But you know, we’re not kids – if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. We’re 11 years together in June.”
Emmerdale airs weekdays on ITV and ITVX
