SHOW NO! Emmerdale’s Anthony Quinlan reveals huge reality show he auditioned for twice & didn’t get – & ITV hit he turned down

EMMERDALE star Anthony Quinlan has revealed the huge reality show he auditioned for twice and didn’t get – and the ITV hit he turned down.

Anthony, 41, played Pete Barton in the ITV soap from 2013 until his departure in 2020.

The soap star hunk has now revealed the reality show he wanted to appear on, and the one he didn’t.

He told us that he auditioned twice for I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! but didn’t get the chance to be a campmate.

He also revealed he was offered a spot on Celebrity Big Brother but turned it down.

“I got asked years ago to do Big Brother — that was between Hollyoaks and Emmerdale,” Anthony told us via WhichBingo.

“I was offered a substantial amount of money and I was considering it, not out of heart, but the fee was hefty.

“Who wouldn’t be swayed? You’ve got a potential good few years’ salary there for a show where — and listen, it is still work — but I just didn’t feel it was something I wanted to do for the right reasons.”

Anthony added: “For anyone that does it, I think it’s incredible and really brave. I don’t know if I’d be brave enough.

“Maybe because I am a bit too self-aware, I don’t know if I would ever fully be myself in that environment. I am quite a private person in many respects. A lot goes on social media these days, and we only show certain things. I’ve always tried to keep my private life private to a degree.”

He then opened up about auditioning for I’m A Celebrity.

“I did actually audition for I’m a Celebrity twice,” he revealed.

“It never went my way either time.

“If I’m being brutally honest, I think I’d be all right with the challenges bar the food. I’m a foodie and I think I’d be letting the team down on that front.

“Something more physical would appeal to me — something like The Games on ITV where Ryan Thomas and a few others did sprinting, weightlifting, swimming, diving. Any kind of athletics or sports performance, I’d be all over that.

“SAS: Who Dares Wins as well — my missus did that and she was outstanding. Something that challenges me physically as well as mentally would stimulate me a lot more,” he said.

Elsewhere in the chat, he revealed to us that he will be appearing in the next series of Time on BBC One.

He said: “I’ve been trying to get back into the acting game more this year.

“The past few years I’ve been running online PT alongside my supplement business BoxedOff, which takes up a lot of time — but I’m so grateful.

“I signed up with a new agency last year and things have gone from strength to strength.

“I’ve just landed a role with the BBC in a production called Time — the Jimmy McGovern crime drama, series three.

“There are some phenomenal actors involved. The director is unbelievable. It’s very exciting to be a part of it.”

Time is an anthology crime drama set in a prison which first aired in June 2021 and starred Sean Bean and Stephen Graham.

The second series premiered in October 2023 and starred Jodie Whittaker and Bella Ramsey.

Speaking about why he has focused on his business in recent years, Anthony told us via WhichBingo: “The fitness and business side was always something I built in the background as a safeguard, not as a replacement for acting.

“I kind of made a vow to myself at Emmerdale that I would set something up so that if I were to step away, I’d have something there.

“Acting is my passion, it always has been and it always will be.”

Anthony has been on our screens since he was 20, after landing the role of Gilly Roach in Hollyoaks.

He then became a household name in Emmerdale as Pete Barton.

Anthony told us he wouldn’t rule out joining a third soap, saying: “Never say never. I mean, obviously with a family on the way you want security as well.

“I grew up watching Coronation Street, and EastEnders is a phenomenal show as well.

“I always said when I was younger I’d love to do Coronation Street. Growing up watching it with my family, being from Manchester, it was a given.

“My partner (Nikki Sanderson) was in it as well. So yeah — if the right role came about, who knows?”