Good Morning Britain presenter Ranvir Singh has revealed she conquered her phobia of water while filming new ITV celebrity gameshow The Box.
The 49-year-old broadcaster said taking part in the entertainment series pushed her out of her comfort zone and was life-changing, enabling her to go snorkelling with her 14-year-old son, Tushaan, for the first time during a family holiday.
Speaking to the Daily Mail at the launch event for the ITV show, Singh explained how the experience differed from her usual television role. "Being on an entertainment show is very different to being obviously in news," she said. "The whole thing was out of my comfort zone. But I couldn't have wished for a better experience actually."
Singh, who has read the headlines and interviewed politicians on ITV's morning programme Good Morning Britain for more than 12 years, said her fear of deep water had previously stopped her from joining her son in the sea.
Overcoming a lifelong fear of water
Singh explained that her son, whom she described as active and "a little fish" who loves the water, had long tried to encourage her to swim with him. "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 admitted that deep water had long presented a major obstacle for her. "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 wearing safety equipment had not previously eased her anxiety. "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," she explained. "So it was the first time that I've actually snorkelled with him out in the sea."
The breakthrough left both Singh and her son thrilled. "It was amazing. 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," she said, adding: "I feel really proud of myself."
Singh shares Tushaan with her ex-husband Ranjeet Singh Dehal, from whom she secretly separated when she was seven months pregnant. She is currently dating Louis Church, who is 18 years her junior, after meeting him when he worked behind the scenes during her appearance on BBC One dance contest Strictly Come Dancing.
Strictly Come Dancing is the BBC's flagship celebrity ballroom competition, on which Singh competed as a contestant in 2020.
Reactions from newsroom colleagues
Looking ahead to the broadcast of The Box, Singh said she hopes her morning television colleagues, including Kate Garraway and Richard Madeley, will be surprised by her performance on the show.
"I hope they're surprised. I'm usually quite composed and know what I'm doing," Singh said. "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. So it's very discombobulating for me from my day job to have no briefing notes."
Singh added that participating in the programme allowed her to form close friendships with fellow celebrity contestants whom she would normally only meet in formal settings. "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," she said. "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."
Format of new ITV series The Box
On the show, Singh and nine other celebrities are sealed inside yellow boxes and dropped into mystery locations. Once inside, they face unpredictable physical, mental and logical challenges with little to no instruction provided.
Reflecting on her strategy during the competition, Singh admitted she took a non-competitive approach compared to her fellow contestants. "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. I was much more interested in enjoying the experience. Some of the others were incredibly competitive, they were absolutely determined to eliminate each other."
Touted as a replacement for ITV's long-running prime-time series Ant and Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway, each episode of The Box concludes with "The Duel", an elimination showdown where two players face off against each other.
Saturday Night Takeaway, presented by comedy duo Anthony McPartlin and Declan Donnelly, concluded its two-decade run on ITV earlier this year.
Gary Lineker makes ITV entertainment debut
The series is hosted by Gary Lineker, marking his first time hosting a major entertainment show. "It's different - it's something I've never done before, which appealed to me, alongside the unique nature of the concept," Lineker said of taking on the role.
Lineker signed a major hosting deal with ITV after leaving the BBC last year following a high-profile controversy over anti-semitism. The former England football captain had spent more than two decades presenting Match of the Day on BBC One, where he was once the broadcaster's highest-paid star.
He was axed after sharing a pro-Palestine Instagram video that featured an emoji of a rat, which critics condemned as promoting an anti-Semitic slur. Lineker later "apologised unreservedly" for sharing the video, stating that he was unaware of the symbol's meaning.
"I would never consciously repost anything anti-Semitic - it goes against everything I stand for," Lineker said at the time, adding that stepping down from his role at the BBC was "the responsible course of action."
The Box begins broadcasting on Saturday, September 5 on ITV1 and streaming service ITVX.
