A "really gnarly school camp that's filmed" is how comedian Chris Parker describes his experience on Celebrity Treasure Island NZ.
Chris beat out 20 other competitors to win the show - and $100,000 for his chosen charity Rainbow Youth.
Chris Parker, winner of Celebrity Treasure Island NZ 2021 Photo: TVNZ
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This second series of Celebrity Treasure Island NZ was shot in the middle of 2021, and now it's aired Chris tells Jesse Mulligan it's a relief to "come out of the closet, so to speak".
Rainbow Youth was over the moon when he told the charity about the prize on Zoom earlier this week.
Chris says he was at first nervous about going on the show but glad for the opportunity to show his vulnerability and pride and be a role model for young gay kids.
"Any opportunity to get on TV is a bit of a privilege, to be honest. Those opportunities don't come around a lot.
"I was basically just having a bit of a laugh at first, then the laughing kind of stopped and I got a bit more serious, then I got emotional, then I started laughing again. It was the full journey."
- Related: Chris Parker on Nine to Noon (April 2021)
The pandemic has divided people and landing on a remote Northland beach with some strangers then learning how to put your differences aside in real life was a wonderful experience, he says.
He had preconceptions about his fellow contestants just as viewers do, and it was a good lesson to discover they were all multidimensional.
"I texted my dad and I was like 'hey, is Buck Shelford a real deal?' Dad was like 'yeah yeah yeah, he is absolutely the real deal'.
"I was like 'That Lance Savali guy, he looks like trouble'."
Although most contestants wanted to play a clean game, none were able to avoid the "scandalous moments" created by the producers to keep viewers hooked, Chris says.
"They're going to hand you a scroll that's going to ask you to blindside or backstab or whatever."
Then he reminded himself it was just a game, not unlike Monopoly: "You landed on Pall Mall. Cough up."
Chris Parker Photo: TVNZ
The producers described the show to contestants as being like a social sports game with workmates where you get pushed a bit too far, Chris says.
It felt a bit like being on a really gnarly school camp that's filmed.
"Everyone had these muscles that they wanted to show off and they were trying to find ways to show them off, which is never a massive priority of mine. I got swimming lessons, though, so I was really keen to flex that."
Mental strength ended up being the most important kind of strength, though, Chris says.
"You presume it's going to be really [phsyically] draining but actually the mental game was harder… being hungry and tired and uncomfortable all the time, that was the real challenge.
"The thing that I pride myself on in life is my ability not to give up. That's really what I think got me through in the end, was just persevering. And also I think I can make for good TV."
Chris isn't quite sure how he ended up the winner as he was behind Lance Savali in every leg of the race.
"I was having a lovely old time by myself, actually, on the beach just sort of playing games and trying not to cry. And then I just held my head up high and kept going."
The final treasure chest was buried near a patch of weeds of the same variety Chris had tried and failed to kill in his own garden.
"These idiots had their spades and they were trying to dig through metres of weeds. And I was like no 'I've dealt with this. There's no way the treasure is going to be here'. So I started pulling at the weeds to find out where they stopped, then I found a little patch of soil by a tree that I think had an X marked on it."
It was overwhelming to hear the thud of his spade hitting the treasure chest, Chris says.
- Related: Chris Parker on Eating Fried Chicken in the Shower (December 2018)