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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Entertainment
Amy Denman

Celeb SAS star Shannon Courtenay says she had to lie to producers to get on the show

Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins star Shannon Courtenay has admitted she had to lie to producers in order to get on the show.

Professional boxer Shannon, 29, has joined Ferne McCann, Callum Best, Jennifer Ellison and a number of other stars on the latest series of the challenge show.

The gruelling nature of some of the tasks on the Channel 4 programme mean the stars must be in tip-top condition to take part, but Shannon revealed to the Mirror she hid her ligament injury from the producers to take part.

Shannon had suffered a ruptured ACL (anterior cruciate ligament) in her knee, which could require reconstructive surgery to treat, but told the show bosses she only had a "little niggle" in her knee.

Shannon Courtenay admitted she lied to get on Celeb SAS (Pete Dadds / Channel 4)
Boxer Shannon had a ruptured ACL, which later required surgery (Pete Dadds / Channel 4)

Speaking to the Mirror, boxer Shannon explained: "I told the producer that I had like a little niggle in my knee, which was a complete lie to be honest, because I had a ruptured ACL.

"I knew if I told him the truth, I would never be allowed to do the show. So, I kept it to myself and I just grinned and bared it.

"I had a strap around my leg underneath my trousers – if you watch the show, you'll see my leg looks a little bit bulkier."

The boxer added: "But then one of the DS [directing staff], you'll see it as the show unfolds, they realise there's a lot more wrong with my leg, because there's certain things I just cannot do."

Shannon strapped up her leg to appear on the show (Instagram)

Shannon revealed that after one task she was left "crying her eyes out in agony" but refused to quit.

"There's no quit in me," Shannon revealed. "I'm a boxer. Our job is the hardest job in the world so I'm not gonna let a TV show break me.

"And I feel like if I did quit, that would have that would have haunted me for life. And I just thought: 'No, I'm not gonna let this get the better of me'. My job involves putting up with pain, so I just knew I could get through it."

Soon after finishing filming she had "two massive operations".

Shannon joined 11 celebrities to take part in the show (Pete Dadds / Channel 4)

When asked how she's feeling now, Shannon revealed: "It's bee a long rehab but I've been training for my next fight – it's going to get announced soon.

"Now, my leg is stronger than ever. So I'm firing all cylinders ready to go again."

Despite the physical challenges and agony in the series, Shannon revealed it was the emotional Mirror Room task that she struggled with the most. But, pushing herself to open up has been "life changing" for her.

In the Mirror Room interviews, directing staff grill the stars on their lives – namely challenges they may have faced in one of the gruelling selection stages.

Shannon Courtenay said the show was a 'life changing' experience for her (Pete Dadds / Channel 4)

When asked which is the most challenging part of the show, Shannon revealed: "Definitely the Mirror Rooms where they make you open up tell why you're the way you are, why you come here to be fixed, almost.

"And saying out loud some of the the things – like the pain and stuff that I've carried around [for] 20 years... To say it out loud, especially on national television, was such a big thing to me.

"It was like a weight was lifted off my shoulders and I thought: 'Right, now I really have to fix these things so I can actually be happy again'. Because I was just miserable. I was miserable."

Boxer Shannon revealed people have noticed a change in her since the series (Dave Thompson/Matchroom Boxing)

Speaking about how she felt before the show, Shannon added: "It got to the point that I was walking around wearing huge sunglasses just to hide my face, I couldn't bed even look at myself towards the end."

However, now after going on Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins, the boxer is "so much happier".

Shannon revealed: "It was a life changing experience for me.

"I've just dealt with the issues that I had and everyone around me says I'm so much happier constantly smiling.

"After the show you have to work on yourself.

"But, it gave me the confidence to go on and be able to work on the stuff that I wasn't happy with. But now I'm just going to a really good place."

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