Perdita
19-09-2008, 08:33
Whether it's Ozzy at the Brits or Sharon on The X Factor, the Osbourne family definitely know how to make memorable and entertaining TV. 22-year-old Jack, the youngest of the clan, is no exception, and has been granted a fourth season of his ITV2 adventure show Adrenaline Junkie. This time around the self-confessed daredevil is taking some celebrities along for the ride. We gave Jack a call to find out what we can expect.
How will this series of Adrenaline Junkie differ from the first three?
"Well, we've really tried to up the ante this year. Nine celebrities will be coming around with me for two and a half weeks. Basically we go around and do a load of crazy s**t."
The celebs going with you include Jodie Kidd, Craig David and Bez. Were there any celebrities that you wanted to get but turned you down?
"There was loads of people that we wanted to pick, but it's really hard to get people to give you more than two and a half weeks of their summer. Everyone's usually pretty busy. That put a little dampener on things. But I think we've got a real eclectic bunch of celebs who make for really entertaining television."
Who would have been your dream pick to leave dangling off a cliff?
"I thought it would have been funny to get Justin Timberlake out. He's a really nice guy and I just wanted to scare him a little bit."
Was the appeal of the show watching celebrities squirming?
"It's not like an I'm A Celebrity... where they're forced to do something and get voted off. The approach I take is that I'm the catalyst for allowing people to have a couple of interesting weeks. The celebs will get out of it what they put in into it. If they just wanna breeze through it and muck around, they can, but if they're looking for some self-exploration then this is the place to do it."
Were you tempted to get Amy Winehouse or Pete Doherty involved?
"Oddly enough, the powers that be really wanted to take Pete Doherty or Amy Winehouse. I immediately said 'no', because it's too much of a responsibility. It's not just the fact that they're drug addicts, but for health reasons too. You've got to be aware and 'on it', when you do the things we do on Adrenaline Junkie."
How do you deal with the celebrities' diva behaviour?
"It is hard. There have been times when I've just had to bite my lip. The standards that some people expect are borderline ridiculous. The ones that are particularly bad are just like kids, but then you can't really blame a kid for acting like an idiot. That was my take on it."
What's your favourite stunt on the new series?
"We set up a stunt in Switzerland where we parked up two gondolas side-by-side in the middle of this valley about 300 metres off the ground. We set up a rope swing, where we tied a rope to one gondola and jumped onto the other one. That was pretty crazy."
Do you ever get any problems with lawyers warning you not to do certain challenges?
"It's not so much the lawyers that's the problem as the insurers. The insurers are always the big burden. One time, we were about to go racing on the Nürburgring. We had all the cars set up and we were all ready to go, but then our insurers pulled the plug. Our producer was on the phone and he went absolutely nuts. The trouble with insurance companies is that they want all your money but don't want to pay anything. So when we started to tell them that they would have to reimburse us for the trip to Germany, all the construction team, everyone's wages, they soon changed their mind."
This is now the fourth series of Adrenaline Junkie. Do you feel like you're coming out of your father's shadow?
"I'd like to think so. The Osbourne name is a blessing and a curse. Even if I had gone on to be a lawyer or something, people still would have said, 'it's because of your dad'. I don't think I will ever be credited with doing something solely because I achieved it. I think I've paid my dues when it comes to TV work and presenting though."
Jack Osbourne: Celebrity Adrenaline Junkie airs Wednesday, September 24 at 9pm on ITV2.
They really do some crazy things on that show but I like it
How will this series of Adrenaline Junkie differ from the first three?
"Well, we've really tried to up the ante this year. Nine celebrities will be coming around with me for two and a half weeks. Basically we go around and do a load of crazy s**t."
The celebs going with you include Jodie Kidd, Craig David and Bez. Were there any celebrities that you wanted to get but turned you down?
"There was loads of people that we wanted to pick, but it's really hard to get people to give you more than two and a half weeks of their summer. Everyone's usually pretty busy. That put a little dampener on things. But I think we've got a real eclectic bunch of celebs who make for really entertaining television."
Who would have been your dream pick to leave dangling off a cliff?
"I thought it would have been funny to get Justin Timberlake out. He's a really nice guy and I just wanted to scare him a little bit."
Was the appeal of the show watching celebrities squirming?
"It's not like an I'm A Celebrity... where they're forced to do something and get voted off. The approach I take is that I'm the catalyst for allowing people to have a couple of interesting weeks. The celebs will get out of it what they put in into it. If they just wanna breeze through it and muck around, they can, but if they're looking for some self-exploration then this is the place to do it."
Were you tempted to get Amy Winehouse or Pete Doherty involved?
"Oddly enough, the powers that be really wanted to take Pete Doherty or Amy Winehouse. I immediately said 'no', because it's too much of a responsibility. It's not just the fact that they're drug addicts, but for health reasons too. You've got to be aware and 'on it', when you do the things we do on Adrenaline Junkie."
How do you deal with the celebrities' diva behaviour?
"It is hard. There have been times when I've just had to bite my lip. The standards that some people expect are borderline ridiculous. The ones that are particularly bad are just like kids, but then you can't really blame a kid for acting like an idiot. That was my take on it."
What's your favourite stunt on the new series?
"We set up a stunt in Switzerland where we parked up two gondolas side-by-side in the middle of this valley about 300 metres off the ground. We set up a rope swing, where we tied a rope to one gondola and jumped onto the other one. That was pretty crazy."
Do you ever get any problems with lawyers warning you not to do certain challenges?
"It's not so much the lawyers that's the problem as the insurers. The insurers are always the big burden. One time, we were about to go racing on the Nürburgring. We had all the cars set up and we were all ready to go, but then our insurers pulled the plug. Our producer was on the phone and he went absolutely nuts. The trouble with insurance companies is that they want all your money but don't want to pay anything. So when we started to tell them that they would have to reimburse us for the trip to Germany, all the construction team, everyone's wages, they soon changed their mind."
This is now the fourth series of Adrenaline Junkie. Do you feel like you're coming out of your father's shadow?
"I'd like to think so. The Osbourne name is a blessing and a curse. Even if I had gone on to be a lawyer or something, people still would have said, 'it's because of your dad'. I don't think I will ever be credited with doing something solely because I achieved it. I think I've paid my dues when it comes to TV work and presenting though."
Jack Osbourne: Celebrity Adrenaline Junkie airs Wednesday, September 24 at 9pm on ITV2.
They really do some crazy things on that show but I like it