Paul Gascoigne has been crowned the winner of Scared of the Dark after the former England football player conquered his fear of claustrophobia on the show.
The Channel 4 reality series sees the star-studded line up – which also includes Chloe Burrows, Donna Preston, Chris Eubank, Chris MacCausland, Scarlett Moffatt, Max George and Nicola Adams – cooped up in a house in complete darkness for eight days straight.
Over the course of the challenge, the celebrities completed a series of nail-biting challenges which pushed them to their limits with the help of loveable host Danny Dyer.
READ MORE: Chris Eubank quits Channel 4’s Scared of the Dark after explosive bust up with castmates
Now, after living in complete darkness for an impressive 180 hours, the former EastEnders star has crowned the series winner during Thursday night’s (April 20) final instalment of the five-part series.
(Image: PA)
Danny revealed: “It’s time to announce the winner. The person you have chosen as the winner of Scared of the Dark is … Paul ‘Gazza’ Gascoigne.”
The sportsman was elated at the news, as he gushed over how much it meant to him to walk away as the winner of the first series.
He said: “People always question my mental strength but my success on this series proves that I am strong.
(Image: Jonathan Ford / Channel 4)
“I was nervous going in there but having got this far on the series made me the happiest man around. I’m so happy, it’s unbelievable.”
Reflecting on the final challenge, he added: “I’ve got my smile back, I’m a better person. I got electrocuted and got shot with a cannonball in the b*****ks. I f***ing fell backwards. I thought I was 50 foot up in the air and I went through all that.
“So to come out the other side and to be back smiling, is such an amazing achievement and to win it is like the most unbelievable feeling, it’s just fantastic.”
(Image: Channel 4)
The dad-of-three went on to thank his fellow celebrities for their help and support throughout the series.
Paul went on: “I’m really honoured to have won but in my eyes, all my fellow Scared of the Dark celebrities are winners.
“They all did really well and I really enjoyed spending those eight days getting to know them in the dark. We worked so well as a team.”
(Image: Ken McKay/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)
It comes after the footballer revealed how he had finally overcome his “claustrophobia and being scared of the dark.”
Speaking to Richard Madeley and Ranvir Singh on Good Morning Britain earlier this month, Paul admitted he didn’t know if he could cope on the gruelling show.
He explained: “I said to Danny Dyer at my interview, ‘Are we going to be alright in there?’ and he replied, ‘Well I will be because I’m not going in there’.
(Image: Channel 4)
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“I thought, ‘I’ve got 8 days in here, can I cope?’ I didn’t know if I could do it. After a while I got used to it.
“I’m claustrophobic and scared of the dark but I’ve conquered them now. It was a bunch of great guys.”
Scared of the Dark continues on Channel 4 tonight at 9pm.
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
