I’m A Celebrity’s Adam Thomas breaks down in tears reflecting on tense final. Picture: ITV & YouTube

The I’m A Celebrity South Africa live final was unforgettable (and not for the right reasons) as the fallout has continued for winner Adam Thomas, who has now opened up for the first time about his experience.

Things took a turn for the worse in the first part of the show, when David Haye relentlessly heckled Adam after fellow campmate Gemma Collins said that Adam was a deserving winner in her eyes.

Then, in the second part, Jimmy Bullard argued that Adam had been “aggressive” and “intimidating” towards him when he chose to leave the show mid-trial.

While the cast argued over the severity of Adam’s behaviour, things got so bad that Sinitta stormed off set—a moment she’s since addressed.

Nearly a week after it all unfolded and now in therapy, Adam has broken down in tears as he recalled the tense live final publicly for the first time.

David heckled Adam during the live final. Picture: ITV

Speaking on the ‘At Home With The Thomas Bros’ podcast, hosted by Adam alongside brothers Ryan Thomas and former Love Island star Scott Thomas, he reflected on his experience since leaving the show.

Adam said: “It’s so difficult because even when I got out and I explained what I went through, and you know I just realised that you guys, my friends, you won’t get it. You won’t understand what I’ve been through.

He added: “Even now, me explaining it, you’ll never understand. I’ll never understand, like it’s so hard to process everything I’ve been through. And the fact that it’s been turned into entertainment for live television, for a show, for a family show that I loved.”

Although Adam said he was forever grateful to the show for putting him on the map, he’s since struggled to deal with the aftermath of his appearance and now feels it’s “tarnished” for him.

He tearfully shared: “Even after the live show and everything that happened, I still can’t escape it. I’m on Instagram and TikTok, the algorithm and everyone talking about it, everyone saying their bit and how they saw it.

“I’m just tired, I want it all to go away and just be forgotten about.”

Adam got emotional speaking his experience on I’m A Celebrity. Picture: YouTube

Reflecting on his experience, Adam shared that it was part of his DNA now, saying: “This will be in me for the rest of my life. Do you know what I mean? Like, I will live with everything that’s happened from the very start to the very finish.

“Like this is part of my DNA now. This has made me the person I am.”

The actor sadly added that at the moment he couldn’t “see any light” and was struggling to find any positives from the experience.

Despite Adam’s feelings, his brother Scott praised him for speaking with “pure honesty and integrity” on the podcast.