Good Morning Britain presenter Ranvir Singh has revealed she overcame a long-standing phobia of water while filming ITV's new gameshow The Box. The 49-year-old broadcaster said taking part in the celebrity competition pushed her out of her comfort zone and brought a life-changing personal breakthrough.
Singh explained that conquering her fear allowed her to bond more deeply with her 14-year-old son, Tushaan, who has long encouraged her to join him in the water during family holidays.
Speaking at the launch event for the series, which is hosted by Gary Lineker, Singh admitted she had previously found it impossible to swim or wade in water where she could not touch the seabed or pool floor.
"Being on an entertainment show is very different to being obviously in news," Singh told the Daily Mail at the launch event. "The whole thing was out of my comfort zone. But I couldn't have wished for a better experience actually."
Opening up about her fear of water, Singh described her teenage son as an active swimmer who loves being in the sea. "I've got a son who is very active and loves the water; he's a little fish really, he just loves it, but you know he's always tried to encourage me to try and go out into the water," she said.
She explained that her phobia made deep water terrifying regardless of safety equipment. "I really hate anything where I can't touch the... It's not that I hate it, I actually can't do it right, so on our holiday after The Box, it was the first time that I've had the courage to do it," she said.
"Even though I've got a life jacket on, but the life jacket with a phobia is just something that can save my life, it doesn't solve my phobia if you see what I mean. So it was the first time that I've actually snorkelled with him out in the sea."
The TV presenter added that facing the challenge during filming gave her the confidence to snorkel alongside her son on a subsequent family vacation. "It was amazing," Singh said. "He was so proud of me. I was glad for him that he could see me conquer my fear. So it's definitely changed how I approach my life. It's opened up doors. I feel really proud of myself."
Singh has been a familiar face on British television screens for more than 12 years, working as a political interviewer, newsreader, and relief presenter on Good Morning Britain, ITV's daily morning news programme. She noted that stepping into a high-concept entertainment format felt vastly different from the structured environment of broadcast journalism.
"I hope they're surprised," Singh said when asked how her Good Morning Britain colleagues, including co-hosts Kate Garraway and Richard Madeley, might react to her performance. "I'm usually quite composed and know what I'm doing."
"Also, the problem slightly is that when you are a journalist, you're expected to know stuff and have the answers, or you can certainly find the answer out," she added. "So it's very discombobulating for me from my day job to have no briefing notes."
Celebrity friendships and personal life
The Box features ten celebrity contestants in total. Singh revealed that despite having spent over a decade interviewing prominent figures, her regular routine rarely permitted her to form genuine personal friendships with her subjects.
"We just really got to know each other; that's like a lovely experience which we never get time to sit with a bunch of people who in your normal daily life we would never work together because our paths just don't cross," Singh explained. "I probably would interview everybody here on TV for my job, but you don't get to properly get to know people, so it's really nice."
Away from her television career, Singh is a single mother to Tushaan, whom she shares with her ex-husband Ranjeet Singh Dehal. The pair secretly separated when she was seven months pregnant with her son.
Singh is currently in a relationship with Louis Church, who is 18 years her junior. The couple first met when Church worked behind the scenes as a production staff member during Singh's 2020 appearance as a contestant on the BBC's flagship ballroom dancing show Strictly Come Dancing.
Inside the rules of The Box
The Box is a physical and mental challenge show in which ten celebrities are sealed inside large yellow containers and dropped into undisclosed mystery locations across the country.
Once released from their boxes, the contestants are forced to tackle a series of unpredictable physical, mental, and logical tasks with minimal guidance or advance instruction.
Touted as a potential replacement for Ant and Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway in ITV's prime-time Saturday night line-up, the format combines tactical decision-making with high-pressure group dynamics.
Each episode of the series culminates in a tense elimination showdown named The Duel, where two contestants face off head-to-head to avoid being sent home.
Discussing her tactical approach to the game, Singh admitted that she took a relaxed stance compared to her more competitive castmates. "I suppose I was never really seen as a threat. I wasn't the fastest. I never fully understood the game," she said.
"I'm not especially competitive," she added. "I was much more interested in enjoying the experience. Some of the others were incredibly competitive, they were absolutely determined to eliminate each other."
Gary Lineker's move to ITV
The series is fronted by former England football captain Gary Lineker, marking his debut as the host of a major network entertainment gameshow.
Lineker explained that taking on the project offered a fresh challenge after decades in sports broadcasting. "It's different - it's something I've never done before, which appealed to me, alongside the unique nature of the concept," he said.
The hosting role comes after Lineker signed a major deal with commercial broadcaster ITV following his departure from the BBC last year amid a widely publicized controversy surrounding social media use.
The former Match of the Day presenter left his flagship football highlights role after sharing a pro-Palestine video on Instagram that featured a rat emoji, leading critics to accuse him of sharing an anti-Semitic trope.
Lineker later apologised unreservedly for the post, stating that he had been unaware of the symbol's offensive connotations and emphasizing that he would never consciously share anti-Semitic material.
The veteran broadcaster, who had previously been the BBC's highest-paid presenter, stated at the time that stepping down from his role at the public broadcaster was the responsible course of action.
Broadcast details and release date
Viewers will be able to watch Singh and her fellow contestants when The Box makes its television debut early next month.
The series premieres on Saturday, September 5, airing on ITV1 and streaming online via ITVX.
