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'I couldn't do I'm A Celebrity because of my Buddhist beliefs', claims Koo Stark

Koo Stark has claimed the real reason she will not appear in this year's I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! is because she is a Buddhist.

Programme-makers have claimed the 51-year-old was dumped as they sought to find the "right mix" of personalities on the show.

But now Miss Stark, former girlfriend of Prince Andrew, has claimed she could never eat bugs due to her religious beliefs so could not take part.

She told this week's Hello! magazine: "I am a Buddhist and I couldn't kill anything. I am very excited about watching the programme and will be tuned in for every moment."

The former actress added: "I have been elephant trekking in Nepal. I have been on Safari in Bhutan. Tanzania and Kenya.

"I have scuba dived in Thailand and been horse-trekking in Mongolia. So yes, I am adventurous and I love being close to nature.

"But I have been told that on I'm A Celebrity you might have to eat bugs and I couldn't do that."

Miss Stark, a photographer by profession, has also revealed she has been given the all clear five years on from being diagnosed with breast cancer and having had two mastectomy operations.

For many viewers she would have been the only contestant of any possible interest in this year's I'm A Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here!

There was even speculation the American was considered simply too posh for the Z-list production.

It was also thought that, given her discretion up to now about her royal ex-boyfriend, she would have been unlikely to spill the beans in front of the jungle cameras.

The departure of her and Malcolm McLaren, who quit the show in acrimony over the weekend, has left the cast looking decidedly lightweight.

Miss Stark had been expected to marry Prince Andrew until it emerged that she had appeared semi-naked in a soft-porn movie.

Her decision to volunteer for I'm A Celebrity raised eyebrows as for years she has been protective of her privacy.

A possible reason was that she needs the money - she was being lined up for a £90,000 appearance deal plus inevitable spin-offs from the show.

A source on the show had claimed: "Koo was not right for the particular mix of characters in this year's show.

"That's why the decision was made at the end of the day.

"There was mutual interest on both sides but in the end it did not work out."

Source: Daily Mail