Celebrity Race Across the World contestant confesses to buying drugs with BBC budget

He revealed what made filming the BBC show so difficult

The 22-year-old, whose mum was late Big Brother winner Jade Goody, competed in the 2024 series alongside his dad. The pair travelled 12,500km from Brazil to Chile, finishing in third place.

(Image credit: BBC)

However, Freddy has now admitted that he was struggling with his mental health during filming, particularly around Mother's Day.

Speaking on the Terry Stone Connection podcast, he explained that he had agreed to do the show despite not feeling ready for the experience.

“I almost forced myself to do [the show]. I weren’t in the place mentally,” he said.

Knowing he would have cameras following him on Mother's Day made things even harder, as he wanted to be alone to deal with his feelings.

“I was like, ‘Oh f***, s***, I’m going to have cameras in my face. I want to be alone,’” he recalled.

'I was very selfish'

Although Freddy and his dad marked the occasion by watching the sunset together in Salvador, Brazil, he later snuck out of their hotel to buy drugs.

Freddy said he climbed out of a window and headed to the beach, ignoring a hotel worker's warning that the area wasn't safe. 

There, he met two people who made bracelets and whom he had seen earlier in the trip. After they bought him a beer, he used money from the show's budget to purchase 3.5 grams of cannabis.

He then smoked it with them on the beach while looking at the stars.

“And it was beautiful, but it was so wrong. And I was very selfish,” Freddy admitted, reflecting on how his actions could have affected both him and his dad.

He added: “I was very selfish to do so because that could have cost us the show.”

Despite recognising the risks, Freddy said he felt he needed to smoke because he was in such a difficult place mentally. 

He believes he might have been kicked off the programme had he not, explaining that he simply couldn't face being filmed on Mother's Day.

Freddy has previously spoken about his struggles with drug addiction and mental health, revealing that he began smoking cannabis at just 12 years ol