Relations have been frosty between the pair for some years

Rebekah Vardy has some unsolicited praise for Coleen Rooney following the WAG’s performance on her first I’m A Celebrity Bushtucker trial.

Her comments mark a shift in gear. Since The Sun appointed her its I’m A Celebrity columnist, Rebekah has described Coleen as “dull” and told the paper she’d like to see her eat bull penis, or chomp on “humble pie”.

It comes years on from their court case battle, when Rebekah sued Coleen for libel. Coleen had accused Rebekah’s Instagram account of selling stories about her to the press. Coleen won the case in 2022.

Relations are frosty. At least, that’s the performance that’s playing out for the British public. But what is real in the world of celebrity?

Coleen Rooney managed to collect nine stars with her partner Dean McCullough (Credit: I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!/YouTube)

Rebekah Vardy and Coleen Rooney

Wayne Rooney had been looking forward to Coleen’s first swing of the hammer, it seems. He posted on his official social media channels that he and the boys “would love to see her doing a trial”.

They “know she’d want to put herself to the test,” he added, before encouraging everyone to “get voting”. When the votes came in and her name was called, he joked on X that he thought he “could be in trouble here”.

She really held her nerve as the mealworms, cockroaches and rats crawled all over her.

This is reportedly the longest Coleen and Wayne have have been apart since they were kids.

Coleen went in for her first Bushtucker trial on Sunday’s show alongside campmate Dean McCullough.

Gearing up for it, she said she was “excited” for her boys back home to “see me do something”.

“Hopefully, I’m gonna do well,” she said. “I’m gonna try my best.”

Rebekah Vardy broke with tradition and complimented Coleen for her performance yesterday (Credit: I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!/YouTube)

The Sun quotes an anonymous source as saying that Coleen “wants to get stuck into the trials and show what she’s made of”. She’s had “plenty of airtime to chat all things Wayne and Wagatha,” they added, but playtime’s over. Time to get down to it.

“Wayne knows that,” they went on, which is “why he encouraged all his followers to vote for her”.

And try she did! Coleen and Dean picked up nine stars in their trial, leading Rebekah Vardy to say a rare nice thing about Coleen.

“I’m applauding Coleen,” she told The Sun. “She really held her nerve as the mealworms, cockroaches and rats crawled all over her.”

Ant and Dec couldn’t help but crack up listening to Dean’s histrionics (Credit: I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!/YouTube)

Rebekah Vardy on I’m A Celebrity

“It’s blowing a gale at home but there’s definitely a rumble in the jungle,” Rebekah added.

She’s been writing I’m A Celeb columns for the paper since this season of ITV’s flagship reality TV show started on November 17.

Rebekah has been playing up to the media in recent days with her remarks in The Sun, leading to a re-emergence of interest in their legal trial.