I'm a Celebrity 2014: will Gemma Collins cash in?

I'm A Celebrity 2014 is all about TOWIE's Gemma Collins. From her meltdown in the helicopter on the way to the jungle, to her self-diagnosis of malaria after a day in the camp, she has been one of the most entertaining characters of the show so far. So will the show make her fortune?

Gemma's fortune

Collins was already doing well for herself. In the Sun's reality star top 50, she made it to number 48, with an estimated wealth of £1.1 million. This is despite the fact that the cast of TOWIE is paid a paltry £80 a day when filming the show, so this is the result of the work she has put in to capitalise on her fame.

It's worth noting that she has made her fortune despite not having the kind of mainstream appearance that has ensured the success of her fellow cast members - who can either take off their clothes or pop on some underwear in order to cash in on their reality show fame.

Her biggest money-spinner has been a plus-size fashion brand in partnership with Simply Be, which has made her an estimated £1 million. She is also thought to have made £50,000 from endorsing the House of Essex self-tan products.

Media work has been good to her too, with a £100,000 magazine column, and appearances on Loose Women, This Morning and Big Brother's Bit On The Side. She also made £15,000 from appearing on Splash! last year.

Biggest earners

Of the cast of TOWIE, she hasn't been the biggest earner so far. Amy Childs takes that title with earnings estimated at £3.5 million. This has come through a range of modelling and endorsement contracts, a fitness DVD, a brand of hair products, and her own beauty school.

Mark Wright is next with earnings of £1.8 million. I'm a Celebrity was a boost for his career and he now has multiple endorsements, plus modelling contracts and a number of TV shows. His appearance on Strictly Come Dancing is likely to help push his earnings even higher.

Joey Essex is said to be worth £1.3 million after his TV show and endorsements, and Sam Faiers is worth £1.2 million from her autobiography and a huge range of endorsements.

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I'm a Celebrity boost

Collins, however, could soon be challenging her co-stars for financial supremacy. Her fee for I'm A Celebrity is as yet undisclosed, but it's unlikely to be pushing £100,000. The real benefit she is likely to take away from the show is if a commissioning editor decides she has what it takes to front a show of her own.

I'm a Celebrity has already been a major catalyst in the careers of Joey Essex and Mark Wright, both of whom have spawned TV careers away from TOWIE as a result of appearing. This series has a strong chance of becoming the Gemma Collins Show, as we struggle to remember the last time we heard Vicky Michelle or Michael Buerk say anything that made it to our screens.

So if Collins can follow her early melodrama up with some disastrous performances in Bushtucker trials and arguments with one or more of her campmates, then there's a good chance she will be challenging Amy Childs as the TOWIE star with the biggest pay cheque before too long.

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