London:
A British lawmaker suspended from Prime Minister David Cameron's Conservative Party for appearing on a reality TV show has been voted off the programme by viewers after just a few days.
Nadine Dorries, 55, spent 12 days in the Australian jungle on "I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!" before becoming the first person to be evicted from the ITV show by a public vote on Wednesday night.
The outspoken Member of Parliament (MP) was suspended from her party two weeks ago for abandoning her job for a month without permission to join soap actors, pop singers and sportsmen in the jungle.
Angry Conservatives and constituents joined other viewers in nominating Dorries to complete stomach-churning tasks on the programme, from being buried in insects to eating ostrich anus.
Dorries is no favourite of Cameron's, having called him and finance minister George Osborne "two posh boys who don't know the price of milk."
After her eviction, Dorries said the experience had made her less "self-important".
"I think it is important that MPs realise that you need to go where the public go," she said. "More people vote on (TV talent show) 'X Factor' and 'I'm A Celebrity' than they do in the general elections."
She insisted she had warned government officials that she was taking a month off to do something "quite controversial" and defended her decision, saying that many MPs took several weeks off at a time without being punished.
The show has also been seen by celebrities as a useful way to boost a flagging public profile. It is also reported to pay an appearance fee of 40,000 pounds (50,000 euros, $64,000).
Dorries, who represents a constituency in southeast England, earns more than 65,000 pounds as an MP.
Now in its 12th series, previous winners of "I'm a Celebrity..." include former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher's daughter Carol and ex-England cricketer Phil Tufnell.
Left-wing firebrand George Galloway, who runs his own Respect Party having been expelled from the Labour party, is the only other serving MP to have taken part in a reality television show.
Six years ago he appeared in "Celebrity Big Brother", in which he had to do robotics in a lycra outfit and impersonate a cat lapping up imaginary milk.
Nadine Dorries, 55, spent 12 days in the Australian jungle on "I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!" before becoming the first person to be evicted from the ITV show by a public vote on Wednesday night.
The outspoken Member of Parliament (MP) was suspended from her party two weeks ago for abandoning her job for a month without permission to join soap actors, pop singers and sportsmen in the jungle.
Angry Conservatives and constituents joined other viewers in nominating Dorries to complete stomach-churning tasks on the programme, from being buried in insects to eating ostrich anus.
Dorries is no favourite of Cameron's, having called him and finance minister George Osborne "two posh boys who don't know the price of milk."
After her eviction, Dorries said the experience had made her less "self-important".
"I think it is important that MPs realise that you need to go where the public go," she said. "More people vote on (TV talent show) 'X Factor' and 'I'm A Celebrity' than they do in the general elections."
She insisted she had warned government officials that she was taking a month off to do something "quite controversial" and defended her decision, saying that many MPs took several weeks off at a time without being punished.
The show has also been seen by celebrities as a useful way to boost a flagging public profile. It is also reported to pay an appearance fee of 40,000 pounds (50,000 euros, $64,000).
Dorries, who represents a constituency in southeast England, earns more than 65,000 pounds as an MP.
Now in its 12th series, previous winners of "I'm a Celebrity..." include former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher's daughter Carol and ex-England cricketer Phil Tufnell.
Left-wing firebrand George Galloway, who runs his own Respect Party having been expelled from the Labour party, is the only other serving MP to have taken part in a reality television show.
Six years ago he appeared in "Celebrity Big Brother", in which he had to do robotics in a lycra outfit and impersonate a cat lapping up imaginary milk.
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