FIFTEEN celebrities from the world of entertainment, sport and journalism have signed up to take part in this year’s unique version of Special Forces selection, in the LONGEST ever series of Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins. Taking part are; Actor John Barrowman, (56), Journalist Rachel Johnson, (57); DJ and Reality TV Star Bianca Gascoigne (36); TV Personality (and returning Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins recruit), Pete Wicks (34); Former England Rugby Captain, Chris Robshaw (37); TV Presenter, Cherry Healey (42); Ex- Professional Boxer Anthony Ogogo (34); Comedian Shazia Mirza (51); Love-Islander & Campaigner, Georgia Harrison (28); Reality TV Star and Radio Host, Bobby Norris (36); Influencer, Marnie Simpson (31); Former Olympic Gymnast, Ellie Downie (23); Comedian, Tez Ilyas (40); Pro Basketball Player, Ovie Soko (32); World Heavyweight Champion Boxer, Lani Daniels, (34).

Stream or watch on Channel 4: Sundays and Mondays at 9pm, from 22 September

Interview with Shazia Mirza

Why did you say yes to this show?

Well, I didn't, actually. They asked me three times and I said no! I had friends that had done it before, like Zoe Lyons, and they told me not to do it, and so I just kept saying no. And they kept asking. And I asked why and they said, “because we saw you on The Island with Bear Grylls and you were amazing on that and we think you'd be great on here.” But I watched SAS and it was horrific!

What were you hoping to get out of the experience?

Well, I didn't realise how unfit I was. I thought that I was very fit because I do swim every day. I swim in cold water. I run. I thought I was fit, actually, I'm not. What I thought I would get out of it is I know that I'm a strong person mentally, because I've done these kind of things before, like The Island with Bear Grylls. I survived that for a whole month without any food. I did all the fishing and it was a lot longer than this. I just thought, “What can go badly wrong in eight days?” So I wanted to see how long I’d last.

Did you do any preparation for the course?

Yeah, I did. I ran with a weighted vest, a 32 kg weighted vest every day. I used to run in north London. Then I took the vest with me to New Zealand, and I also ran with the weighted vest on for a week before we started. I was also swimming in cold water, which is what I normally do. And I was going to the gym. I was doing weights. So I did prepare for it as much as I can. I mean, they didn't give us much notice to say that we were going to be on the show. It was really a matter of weeks, but in that time I did prepare for it.

Did you speak to Zoe?

I did. I spoke to her quite a lot. I know her very well from comedy, anyway, and she said that she got trench foot and it was awful and they were in Thailand and it was horrific. She told me to do the weighted fest. And she said it was going to be mind over matter at a certain point.

What did you think about being in New Zealand?

When they said they were going to New Zealand, I thought, “You know what? I've never been to New Zealand”, thinking that I was going to see the sights. Thinking it's going to be like Lord of the Rings! New Zealand was amazing, the scenery was incredible, it was breathtaking, and it was a really amazing environment, but it was actually as horrific as I thought it was going to be. It was more Game of Thrones than Lord of the Rings, it was awful! But because I do cold swims anyway, but New Zealand was freezing! And it was worse because every time we did something wrong, they wanted us to go into the ice bath head first. You think you might have got used to it after a while, but you don't because you get dry and you get warm, and then you see them taking you near water or you see them taking you near ice, and you’re like, “oh, not again!”

Did you bond with the other recruits?

Well, it was weird because every time we woke up, somebody was missing. Somebody had gone. And we're like, “Oh, where's Rachel? Where's Pete? Where's Chris?”And it's because once they take you out, you can never go in and say goodbye, you know, that's it. Then once they've left, they've left. I have to say the girls were fantastic. The way we really stuck together, truly, me, Rachel Johnson, Cherry Healey, Georgia Harrison, and Bianca. Maybe on paper we will not get on. We're so different. But the girls really stuck together and really supported each other. Ovie was so nice to me. I mean, he was so supportive and helpful and kind and just so encouraging to me, which helped me, I think, stay in as long as I did. He was really just a great support and a really nice guy.

Did you learn anything from the DS?

I learned a lot from them. They fought in Afghanistan, in Bosnia, you know, in these real, proper, dangerous situations. I learned a lot from each of them about keeping calm, about using your brain, not reacting in the moment, but just to thinking things through. They taught me a lot about resilience and never giving up, really, was like, no matter how tired you get, no matter how down you get, just never, ever, ever give up. And that tenacity and that keeping going when all you want to do is give up. He taught us a lot about survival, really, which is what this is about. It's about survival, about keeping going, why you've got to keep going, and how when you think you've got nothing left to give, you always have a little bit more in the tank.

What was the hardest part of the course?

I think it’s mind over matter. Yes, you've got to be physically fit to a point, but there comes a point where it doesn't matter whether you're physically fit, because it is mind over matter and that you are stronger than you think. The mind is way stronger than the body. When the body gives up, the mind can keep going and can really propel you forward.

So was it more a mental challenge than a physical one?

I'm good mentally, for me, it was physically, I felt that I was not that fit. I thought I was not as fit to be in the SAS, you know. I mean, I could have done more weights. That's what Rudy said to me, “You need to do some weights”. And since I came out of there, I've been doing weights. I’ve been beasting the gym SAS style!

Did the course live up to expectations?

I mean, it was worse than what I expected. It was worse than what I'd seen because they can only show so much on TV. I mean, it was actually horrific. But, you know, when I think about the women that I was in there with, like Rachel Johnson and people like that, they were fantastic. For a 58 year old woman she outlasted a lot of the young people. And I think from what I saw, women are mentally much stronger than men.

Did you learn anything about yourself during the course?

I learned that. Do you know what? If I can do this, I can probably do anything. I say I fear this and I fear that, but if I had to do it, I'd do it. I'm scared of heights. I'm scared of the freezing cold. I'm scared of going really deep under water without an oxygen tank. I did everything. I did them all. I never, ever backed out of a task. I failed at tasks, but I never backed out of a task. That's good.

So would you do it again?

No, there's no need! I know Pete did it twice, but there's no need to keep doing this. If you do it once and you do it properly and you give it everything and you learn something from it, and you feel you did the best you could do, then there's no need for you to do that again.

Interview supplied by C4