It goes without saying that Samantha Jones (played by the fabulous Kim Cattrall) was our favourite character in HBO’s Sex and the City – not least of all because she exemplified what it means to be a badass independent 50-something woman, who doesn’t need a long-term relationship to make her happy.

In her 2016 stint on ITV’s I’m a Celebrity – Get Me Out of Here, however, Carol Vorderman has revealed that she is, essentially, the real-life Samantha we’ve all been desperate to find and make friends with.

Sitting down with her jungle companions at the time, the television star explained that she definitely isn’t looking to settle any time soon – least of all before all the Christmas festivities kick off.

In fact, she prefers to be single during the most wonderful time of the year, because it leaves her more time for (to coin her own term) “occasionals”.  

Vorderman said: “One of my boyfriends, I’d gone off him a bit, and I decided to dump him before Christmas. They always get dumped before Christmas anyway.

“Christmas time is party time, I don’t think I should say anymore. I prefer to have a few occasionals…”

When pressed for further details by her younger campmate, Gogglebox’s Scarlett Moffatt, the former Countdown host went on to add: “Anyway the boyfriend said he was going to leave my Christmas present anyway.

“In the box was two tickets for a weekend on the Orient Express, which I’d never done but I’d like to. I know who I would like to take, someone who is very nice for a few little days here and there.”

Vorderman, as fans will no doubt already know, is a keen traveller; in fact, she enrolled on a flying course, with plans to unleash her inner Amelia Earhart and become the ninth woman to ever complete a solo flight around the world.

However, due to issues with her aircraft, she was recently forced to postpone her big journey – and, as such, found a bit of time in her diary for a two-week stint on I’m a Celeb.”

It is this fierce streak of independence, and her free spirit, that makes Vorderman so loath to tie herself down to just one man.

“Generally I’m a rubbish girlfriend because I’m too independent and not romantic,” she said.

Her campmates, however, were bewildered, and failed to understand that a woman might prefer to stay single. It wasn’t long before they were pressing Vorderman for more details as to why she finds it so difficult to find a long-term boyfriend – and her answer was absolutely spot-on.

“It is because if you are a bloke they tend to be high maintenance and they like a lot of attention and I don’t have the time for it so I prefer to have a few.

“A few occasionals suits me fine!”

All hail Carol Vorderman – we love that she’s flying the banner for independent women.

Images: Getty

This article was originally published in November 2016.