The new series of the Z-list celebfest that is I'm A Celebrity - Get Me Out Of Here kicked off on Sunday and, if previous programmes are anything to go by, animals, fish, and eels will be abused in many ways. Insects will be eaten alive. The stunts may be even worse this time, in a desperate attempt to up the shock, "gross" and fear factors.
Creepy-crawlies, reptiles and rats do not inspire sympathy in many people - but consider this: to every animal of every species, his or her life is as important as yours is to you.
Recent studies have shown that insects display a variety of skills which weren't thought possible of them before. They might not whine or tremble and cry, but we have no right to eat them alive for the purposes of cheap entertainment. It demeans us as human beings to laugh at the destruction of life and the deliberate tormenting of animals.
Please do not boost their viewing figures. Turn off in protest. If you hear about sickening stunts and who did what to which animal, complain to the TV company and the television regulators Ofcom. It's time for the cruelty to stop.
