Janice Dickinson has reportedly claimed she was on sleep medication given to her by ITV medics when she suffered a nasty fall filming I’m A Celebrity South Africa, as her bombshell £700,000 legal claim takes a new turn.
The US model, 70, was forced to quit the All Stars series of the show in 2023 after suffering head and facial injuries when she tripped in the dark at the jungle camp.
Back in September, Janice filed a personal injury claim against ITV at the High Court, seeking damages, and revealed in an interview at the time that she tripped and fell flat on her face during filming for the pre recorded show in October 2022.
Now, Janice is claiming that she suffered ‘permanent facial deformities and nerve damage’ when she tripped in the dark and is alleging that she had been given sleeping medication by a medic employed by ITV at the time of the fall.
Legal documents state that the medication can cause drowsiness and impaired balance – making her ‘particularly vulnerable’ when moving around at night.
Sources close to the star are also claiming the injuries have had a wider effect on her modelling career.
Janice Dickinson has reportedly claimed she was on sleep medication given to her by ITV medics when she suffered a fall filming I’m A Celebrity, as her £700,000 lawsuit takes a turn
The US model was forced to quit the All Stars series of the show in 2023 after suffering head and facial injuries when she tripped in the dark at the jungle camp
An insider told The Mirror: ‘Janice has been at the forefront of modelling for decades and has been the face of Chanel, Dior and Gianni Versace. The trauma she suffered is a devastating blow.’
Documents obtained by the publication have been filed by the law firm Taylor Hampton at London’s High Court.
Doctors claim that Janice suffered permanent facial scarring, deformity and nerve damage and cannot be corrected by surgery.
Janice is now claiming that ITV are legally liable to pay compensation, with sources adding that the model believes a combination of the sleep medication and the dark camp led to her fall.
The former fashion star had previously appeared on I’m A Celeb back in 2007, and return for the star-studded South African version in 2023.
It is thought that one of the night lights in the camp hadn’t been switched on, which may have contributed to Janice’s tumble, with the star reportedly getting up in early hours to go to the toilet when she tripped in the dark camp.
When contacted by Daily Mail, Janice’s representative Dermot McNamara said: ‘Janice is fully committed to this legal process and seeing it though to its conclusion. She looks forward to unpacking ITV’s response.’
An ITV spokesperson told Daily Mail: ‘Janice Dickinson’s letter of claim has been received and reviewed. IAC operates a high level of safety protocols and the health, safety and welfare of all of our contributors are our number one priority.
Janice is claiming that she suffered ‘permanent facial deformities and nerve damage’ when she tripped in the dark
Janice is now claiming that ITV are legally liable to pay compensation, with sources adding that the model believes a combination of the sleep medication and the dark camp led to her fall
‘We don’t recognise this version of events. However, we looked after Janice at the time, paid her medical expenses, flew her home to LA, and the I’m A Celebrity team were in regular contact with Janice and her representatives on an ongoing basis after she returned home to America until after the programme aired seven months later.
It’s thought that bosses are also concerned this could lead to other injured filing similar lawsuits, and it could force future I’m A Celebrity stars to sign legal waivers.
Janice was also said to be ‘betrayed, humiliated and crushed’ after her former campmates likened her to a ‘witch’ hours after she was stretchered out in the show.
When Helen Flanagan read Janice’s farewell letter at the time of her exit, ex-England cricket captain Phil Tufnell sneered that she had signed it ‘with her broomstick’.
His remark prompted laughter from Joe Swash, Dean Gaffney and Myleene Klass.
After watching the footage back for her legal case, a source close to Janice told Daily Mail: ‘Janice was really shocked to hear the comments Phil made, especially as she publicly praised for helping her when she was injured.
‘People think it was just a simple trip and fall. It wasn’t a scrape, these were deep wounds, bleeding from four different areas on her face and the blood pouring down, it was like something out of a horror film.
‘Phil saw she was frightened and severely injured and as someone older, would be aware of how a fall can dent a person’s confidence. No matter what you think of a person, there was no need for those comments. She was really taken aback seeing Joe and Myleene laughing at the comments, it’s not what you’d expect from them.
‘Janice was gobsmacked at how those comments even made it to air and how there was such a attitude to ageism and misogyny. You never see young women being referred to as witches.’
Following her fall, Janice was forced to take a series of three injections against rabies, which ITV initially refused to cover, according to The Sun.
She also claimed they failed to contact her directly once she had returned home to Los Angeles.
Janice told the publication: ‘ITV need to take some responsibility… I was so f***ed up, my face was bloody, all cut up. Those motherf***s left me there bleeding in the dark for ten minutes. ITV had a duty of care and they let me down big time.’
The model told The Sun’s TV Mag at the time of the accident: ‘I was feeling very insecure because the campfire had gone out and it was as dark as it could be. So I thought: Right, I’ll make it to the dunny from memory.’
‘I walked a couple of steps and tripped, flying flat on my face – hair all over my forehead, my nose was bloody and my whole chin was gashed open.
‘Blood was gushing from all these areas, and there was dirt and stones embedded in my face from the fall.’
She added: ‘All I could feel was an intense head pain – from one to ten it was about a nine – and I was just lying there, moaning. It was a freak accident that happened so quickly.’
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