Not everyone completed the tough course either, with Torchwood star John Barrowman quitting after just two hours. The 15 celebrities — which include Strictly's Pete Wicks and Bianca Gascoigne — were flown to southern New Zealand where they took part in gruelling military winter training.
Reality star Marnie Simpson was forced to quit SAS: Who Dares Wins after one of her wounds on her breasts had opened up and got infected. Meanwhile, Rachel Johnson — sister of Boris Johnson — broke a rib during her time on the show.
Here are some of this year's most brutal injuries...
Marnie Simpson's Breast Infection
Geordie Shore reality star Simpson had a breast uplift weeks before flying out to New Zealand for the tough show. In addition to her surgery, it had only been around 11 months since the reality star had a baby and she said her C-section (caesarean) was "still quite sore".
While starring on the show, Simpson said one of her wounds on her breasts had opened up and got infected. With the show's many water-based challenges, she said it only got "worse" and she made the difficult decision to quit Celebrity SAS.
"It wasn't the right timing"
"[The DS] really wanted us to stay but I think it got to a point where the mental side, it was affecting us," Simpson told Yahoo and other press. "It wasn't doing any good being there physically and mentally. This is just not the right timing. I thought it's doing more bad than good to stay.
"If I’d not had surgery and I'd not just had a baby, I definitely would have stuck it out, but yeah, one of my wounds on my boobs had opened up and it was infected. The more I was going in and out of the water, and then I wasn't drying my body, it was getting worse."
She added: "I love this show but I don’t think it's worth my health."
She went on: "It's frustrating because I feel like if I had more time and I would have mentally and physically prepared to go in there cos I definitely wasn't mentally right either. I just wasn't in a good head space. Physically, my C-section was still quite sore and my boobs were sore. It wasn't the right timing."
When she went down into a dam, she detailed she was left in "agony".
"Oh god that was awful," she said. "The pain that put on my C-section scar. I was in agony. Honestly, weeks after I left I thought I damaged my scar. My C-section scars were not ready. I had a bad delivery, that was just horrific."
Rachel Johnson's Broken Rib
Fellow SAS teammate Rachel Johnson said she was "absolutely horrified" Simpson was taking part in the show and that she felt protective of her like she was her daughter. "I'm surprised that production allowed you to do the show," she added.
A Channel 4 spokesperson said: "Contributor care and their health and welfare is of paramount importance and all celebrities have to go through strict health and safety protocols to ensure they are mentally and physically robust enough to take part in the course.
"Marnie was cleared by the production’s medical team, who consulted Marnie’s doctors as part of this process, and were satisfied that she was able to take part."
Johnson also was injured while coming down the dam on day two of filming Celebrity SAS. The journalist, who previously appeared on Celebrity Big Brother, had broken one of her ribs. With doctors unable to do anything about broken ribs, Johnson made her own decision to "power on through" with the Channel 4 show.
"I broke a rib," she told press. "It was a lose-lose situation cos you're in terrible pain and you go to the doctor and you say, 'I can't walk or I definitely can't run. And I definitely can't carry my pack.' And the doctor says, 'Well, you know, there's nothing I can do about a broken rib. I'm not an X-ray machine. Do you want to leave?' So you just have to power on through."
A Channel 4 spokesperson said: "Contributor care is of paramount importance and we have strict protocols in place to ensure the health and welfare of each celebrity recruit before, during and after filming.
"All tasks and recruit activities are risk assessed before being completed and mitigation measures put in place. We take seriously all injuries and have an experienced health and safety and medical team on location throughout filming to treat all injuries where necessary."
Other Injuries
Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins returns to Channel 4 on Sunday, 22 September.
The show has seen some other notable injuries in the past including:
- Jennifer Ellison broke her ribs, had blood in her lung and a bleeding spleen after filming in Jordan in 2022.
- Ulrika Jonsson had to be rushed to an ambulance suffering from hypothermia during a cold water swimming challenge last year.
- Matt Hancock was struck by trench foot caused by standing in cold and wet conditions for so long.
- Saira Khan claimed she was left with 'life changing injuries' from mud wrestling with Ulrika Johnsson. She needed a metal plate and nine pins inserted into her ankle.
- Jake Quickenden was rushed into emergency surgery when tendons in his shoulder were 'torn straight off the bone' during a gruesome incident in which he ruptured his pectoral muscle and bicep in a speedboat challenge.
- Michelle Heaton was left with blurred vision after developing a painful eye infection known as 'swamp eye'.
- James Argent took part when the show was filmed in Vietnam in 2022 but the ordeal left him with trench foot, jungle rot and other long term injuries.
- Ore Oduba said he suffered PTSD after passing out during the 2021 series.
- Shanaze Read was forced out of the competition in 2021 after she broke her shoulder.
- Jeremy Irvine sustained a painful blister on his private parts.
- AJ Adudu fainted as she was forced to carry 45kg of military equipment up a steep hill.
Many celebrities have attempted the infamous Channel 4 quasi military training course - but only a select few have successfully passed.
- Series 1 (2019) - Wayne Bridge
- Series 2 (2020) - Locksmith and Lauren Steadman
- Series 3 (2021) - Alexandra Burke, Aled Davies and Wes Nelson
- Series 4 (2022) - AJ Pritchard, Calum Best, Ferne McCann and Maisie Smith
- Series 5 (2023) - Gareth Gates
Olympian Fatima fought through 'unbearable pain' after breaking three ribs when she jumped out of a helicopter into the sea.
"As the days went by, the pain got worse.
"I couldn't lay down properly or sit up properly. Absolutely awful."
This year, Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins is set to be even tougher for the star-studded cast. So, will anyone make it through the course unscathed this year? We'll have to wait and see!
