Jack Maynard is appearing in the new Channel 4 series starting Monday 20 April 2020 at 9pm.
“I definitely thought it was time for me to come back to TV, and I wanted to come back in a really good and positive way by setting myself a huge challenge,” Jack explains. “So when this show came knocking at the door, it’s something you can’t really turn down. I was really interested to see how far, more mentally than physically, that I could push myself.”
Known for its tough challenges, Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins sees contestants competing in the challenging terrain of the Scotland’s rugged West Coast. “It was possibly the most intense thing I have ever done in my entire life,” Jack admits. “I’ve never been in a situation where my adrenaline was running so high. They basically put us in a battle scenario, it was so scary. They throw you into this scenario and all hell breaks loose. You honestly feel like you have no idea what’s going on. You’re trying to calm yourself down, which is next to impossible.”
MONDAY @ 9PM @SAS_WDW pic.twitter.com/oyjq671l3i
— Jack Maynard (@Jack_Maynard23) April 17, 2020
Other celebrity contestants include TV personalities Katie Price and Joey Essex; TV presenters, Anthea Turner and Helen Skelton; ballroom dancer, Brendan Cole; former Premiership Footballer, John Fashanu; Hollyoaks actress, Nikki Sanderson; Paralympic Athlete, Lauren Steadman; Rudimental DJ, Locksmith; Radio 1Xtra DJ, Yasmin Evans and former boxing champion, Tony Bellew.
“We had a really good bunch of people. Joey and Tony are hilarious!”, Jack shares. “There was one point when Joey was giving us the Joey Essex dictionary. All these words he has made up but uses in every day life. He was telling us what they are and what they mean, it was unbelievable what he was coming out with! Katie was great because she had so many funny stories from things that she had got up to in her life. Everyone was so interesting, we had a lot of fun together.”
“The celebrity recruits will leave their glamourous lives behind and live together in a derelict farmstead on the remote island of Raasay where they will be exposed to Scotland’s unforgiving weather, harsh landscape and volatile seas”, the programme synopsis says.
Chief Instructor, Ant Middleton and a team of Directing Staff, Foxy, Billy, Ollie and newest member Jay will be overseeing the celebrities as they take on each challenge.
“They get a handle on you very quickly and they know how far they can push you, all they want from you is your absolute best”, he admits. “I might think that I am giving it my all but they know that I’m not, so they pushed me even harder. They knew that I was struggling mentally, and Foxy in particular was really good at helping me through it. If he saw that I was having a terrible half hour then he would talk to me to get me through it, to get me in the right headspace to carry on. So although it felt like they were trying to break you 24 seven they were also really encouraging, which is so weird!”
When asked if he enjoyed being able to share a different side to his personality than viewers had seen on TV before, Jack confessed that he’s excited by the idea of not being in control of what is shown compared to starring in content on his YouTube channel. “That’s one of my favourite things about doing TV because as much as I love being in control with what I do, when I’m put in these positions on TV, especially when I’m out of my comfort zone, I lose a bit of that control which it’s nerve wracking but it’s also exciting. I actually really like being able to show the audience a version of me that I can’t control, if that makes sense?”
Jack understands the show is just as much a mental challenge as it is physical. “I have obviously been on a similar show to this before and it wasn’t kind to me, so it was a big decision for me to take on the show,” he explains. “It was probably the best thing I could have done for myself. Going into something where I knew I was going to have to push myself and just concentrate on what I was doing that day, almost hour by hour, was a big decision for me at the time but it was absolutely the right decision. I very much felt like if I could put myself through this and come out the other side, then I could do anything. I think this is probably the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life.”
Guys I don’t think you realise how F’d up I get on @SAS_WDW 😅 that show was NO JOKE! I can’t wait for you to see it!! Monday 20th April, 9PM! 🔥
Not sure why I’m smiling here pic.twitter.com/00d0gLxAKC— Jack Maynard (@Jack_Maynard23) April 10, 2020
This series features a weapons challenge, which Jacks says he found exciting. “I have never held an assault rifle before – the closest I’ve ever come is paint-balling! I didn’t think it would be too much of a physical task because I assumed it would be all about the weapons. I thought it was brilliant just to learn something new and maybe pick up a new skill of being able to shoot. But then they took us to the real challenge and that’s when it kicked off!”
“They pull the hood over your head and suddenly you’re surrounded by people in a battle scenario. They’re screaming, shouting and there are explosions. It was a massive wake-up call to what real soldiers must experience and how quickly they have to make a decision that is life or death. It really shows how calm, well trained and focused they are in the SAS and it just made me realise how a split second could define your life.”
Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins starts at 9pm on Monday 20 April 2020 on Channel 4.
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