Helen Skelton tells Celebrity SAS staff about "scary" run-in with armed police whilst filming in Columbia
The former Blue Peter presenter was filming for a children's programme at the time, she said on tonight's episode of Celebrity SAS.
TV presenter Helen Skelton revealed during tonight's episode of Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins that she was forced to flee the Amazon River after armed Columbian policemen "charged" her boat.
In episode five of the military training series, the former Blue Peter presenter was called into the instructors' office after failing a challenge which involved holding your breath in freezing water.
After instructor Jason 'Foxy' Fox asked Skelton to reveal something "wild and exciting" about herself, she told the story.
"I once went down the Amazon and our boat got charged by Columbian policemen with guns and we all had to get on motorbikes and whip across town," she said.
"I was making a programme for kids' TV," she added.
When Foxy asked if she was scared, Skelton said: "When you're young and single and you don't have responsibilities, I think it's a different - I wasn't scared in the same way I would be now."
The 36-year-old broadcaster has taken on many daunting physical challenges for charity throughout her career, such as walking a 150-metre tightrope at Battersea Power Station, running the 78-mile Namibian ultra marathon and cycling to the South Pole.
In 2010, Skelton kayaked the entire length of the Amazon River for Sport Relief, achieving two Guinness World Records.
The presenter also revealed that despite these formidable achievements, the scariest thing was giving birth to her second child.
"The scariest thing I ever did was give birth in the kitchen by myself, with my three-year-old bashing me on the head with a sword, but it's not like you have a choice is it," she said during a confessional interview.
Skelton gave birth to her two sons with England rugby player Richie Myler in 2015 and 2017.
She told the instructors that she took part on Celebrity SAS as she "needed to do something to know that [she's] good at stuff".
"You have kids and everything changes, and I guess before I had my kids I could do what I wanted and go where I wanted," she said.
She added: "I took on bits of challenges and made all kinds of programmes and I just wanted to do this to see if I've still got that and can still do that."
Just five celebrity recruits remain in the competition alongside Skelton: Joey Essex, Nikki Sanderson, Lauren Steadman, Locksmith and Tony Belluw.
Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins continues next Monday on Channel 4 at 9pm. If you’re looking for more to watch check out our TV Guide.
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