Russell Kane Grateful to I'm a Celebrity

17 June 2013

Russell Kane taking part in the Barclaycard Unwind Smile Experiment

Russell Kane is grateful to 'I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! Now!' for kick-starting his TV career.

The 32-year-old comedian co-hosted the show alongside Caroline Flack and then Laura Whitmore from 2009 to 2011 and while he feels he owes ITV2 "a lot", he insists it was time to move on because he didn't want to only be thought of as a "spin-off presenter".

He exclusively told BANG Showbiz: "I did it for three years but then I thought, 'What I really want to do is what I'm doing here but on my own show.' Bit greedy. But sometimes you've got to have your own name above the door.

"You've got to keep going onwards and upwards and I think three is a nice number. Three series of something is about right. Otherwise before you know it you're in a spin-off show and you're a spin-off presenter and you've been there for 10 years.

"But that show was a big launch pad for me, definitely. I owe ITV2 a lot."

Russell has since gone on to host BBC Three's 'Live at the Electric' - a programme which showcases a collection of the hottest talent emerging from the comedy scene - and he is looking forward to seeing how his new Shakespeare meets 'The Only Way is Essex' sketches go down in the upcoming third series.

He added: "I managed to persuade the BBC to let me do sketches as well as host it.

"I'm doing these Shakespearean sketches set in Essex. They are called 'The Only Way is Shakespeare'.

"I said it would work as sketches but everyone said it wouldn't. During one part of the night I got up and did one of the sketches and it destroyed the room. Then everyone went, 'OK, yes it does.' "

Russell has also been making people laugh on the streets of London after getting involved in the 'Barclaycard Unwind Smile Experiment', in which he attempted to find out what makes the British public smile in everyday unexpected locations.

To see how he got on, head to the Barclaycard YouTube channel to check out the video: www.youtube.com/Barclaycard