OVER the years, footballers have been TV gold on the small screen.
Forget starring on the pitch, they have entertained millions in their living room through some memorable moments.
HandoutCome Dine With Me and their footballer special was TV gold[/caption]
Refer to PhotographerDanny Mills proved to be a dab hand in the kitchen on Celebrity Masterchef[/caption]
Neil Ruddock always provides hilarity when he appears on TV
We’ve seen David Seaman on Dancing On Ice, Stan Collymore on The Farm opposite Rebecca Loos and Vanilla Ice, and possibly the greatest crossover – when Come Dine With Me featured Neil Ruddock, John Fashanu, Carlton Palmer and Frank Worthington cooking for each other.
The latest footy ace beaming into living rooms is Gary Neville who’s been making waves on Dragons’ Den.
These are the most memorable moments footballers have provided on TV.
Come Dine With Me
If you haven’t seen it, we URGE you to watch Channel 4’s Come Dine With Me footballers’ special.
Neil Ruddock, who is always worth his salt in comedic value, Carlton Palmer, Frank Worthington, and John Fashanu.
Non-drinker Fashanu is simply brilliant – believing white wine should be drunk warm and red wine chilled.
While Ruddock provides laughs cooking naked, bar an apron.
HandoutJohn Fashanu, Neil Ruddock, Frank Worthington and Carlton Palmer surprisingly provided comic relief on Come Dine With Me[/caption]
Stan Collymore
Channel 5’s The Farm might be most famous for Rebecca Loos pleasuring a pig, but Collymore was certainly its most disgruntled contestant.
In fact, the ex-Aston Villa man walked off the show in a huff after a series of rows with rapper Vanilla Ice.
Collymore’s biggest gripe with the Ice Ice Baby singer was that he spent far too long in the toilet.
He added that he didn’t feel the American was pulling his weight.
RuckasStan Collymore’s bust-up with Vanilla Ice saw him leave Channel 5’s The Farm[/caption]
Danny Mills
As hidden talents go, ex-Leeds Utd star Mills had us a fooled.
Who knew he was the next Tom Kerridge?
The former England defender was a star on Celebrity Masterchef in 2012.
Mills made it the final, where his best dish, seabass with fennel and chilli risotto, was raved about by the judges.
BBCDanny Mills got to the final of Celebrity Masterchef[/caption]
Lee Sharpe
As a Man Utd teenager breaking through, Sharpe always had female admirers.
The good-looking winger appeared on Love Island for its first ever season, when it featured celebrities, in 2005.
And he had some his fellow celebrities swooning over him. Jayne Middlemiss confessed to “never having felt like this before about someone,” as he charmed the 1990s TV presenter.
But it was Abbi Tittmus who Sharpe would eventually date for two years after the show.
ITVLee Sharpe was swooned over on Love Island[/caption]
PAIt was Abi Tittmuss who eventually fell for Sharpe’s charms[/caption]
Neil Ruddock (Again)
You can’t keep Ruddock down.
With footballers continuing to impress on the telly, TV execs came up with the idea of Harry’s Heroes – getting a group of overweight, former footballers, and getting them fighting fit and on a diet.
They would be managed by Harry Redknapp, and play against a team of German legends once the ordeal was all over.
Ruddock split his trousers, got stuck in a turnstile and walked off a bleep test at level 1. On a brighter note, the old-timers beat the Germans after shifting the excess baggage.
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Neil Ruddock attempted to lose weight on Harry’s Heroes
Again, Ruddock showed he was game for a laugh on the ITV show
David Seaman
‘Safe hands’ David Seaman appeared a reliable contestant on Dancing On Ice.
He may not have had his agility any more, but you could be sure he would be able to throw his partner up in the air and catch her, etc.
Hmmm… Seaman famously dropped his ice skater Natalia Pestrova during rehearsals, although he did manage to get to the final.
He subsequently appeared on live tours for the show, where he met his wife, Frankie.
ITVDavid Seaman chanced his arm on Dancing On Ice[/caption]
Seaman later met wife Frankie Poultney on a Dancing On Ice tourRex Features
Jermaine Pennant
Here’s one we never thought we would see.
The Jeremy Kyle Show is normally reserved for the misbehaving general public, not bad boy footballers.
But Jermaine Pennant went on there to make things work with his wife, after appearing on Celebrity Big Brother and flirting with and kissing glamour model Chloe Ayling.
However, suspicions arose when he refused to do the show’s famous lie detector test. What did he have to hide?
ITVJermaine Pennant went on Te Jeremy Kyle Show to prove his innocence[/caption]
ITVHowever, Pennant told the host he wouldn’t do the show’s famous lie detector test[/caption]