By KIRSTEN MURRAY, SENIOR SHOWBUSINESS REPORTER and CODIE BULLEN, SENIOR SHOWBUSINESS REPORTER
Published: 11:33 BST, 4 September 2026 | Updated: 16:06 BST, 4 September 2026
Ranvir Singh has revealed she 'nearly drowned' in a terrifying incident as a child as she was forced to face her phobia of water on new ITV gameshow The Box.
The celebrity gameshow, hosted by Gary Lineker, is set to air on Saturday and sees him encourage a group of stars to take on either a mental, logical, hilarious, daunting or physical task.
And in a preview clip during Good Morning Britain on Friday, Ranvir, 49, was left 'shaking' in fear as she and another contestant tried to climb down a wall into water, and admitting she cannot swim.
In a confessional, the journalist revealed why she fears water, saying: 'A long time ago, when I was really, really little, I nearly drowned. Since then, I've always had a panic response to water if my feet can't touch the ground.'
As they cut back to the studio during GMB, Ranvir's co-host Kate Garraway, 59, said: 'I didn't know you had a fear of water?'
Ranvir replied: 'Yeah, it's been there forever. I was about two or three when I jumped into a pool and went under.'
Ranvir Singh has revealed she 'nearly drowned' in a terrifying incident as a child as she faces her phobia of water on new ITV gameshow The Box
Joining Ranvir on The Box are Strictly Come Dancing: It Takes Two host Ellie Taylor and ex-Dragons' Den star Sara Davies, both 42, The Chase quizzer Jenny Ryan, 44, and 36-year-old The Only Way Is Essex alum Joey Essex.
The lineup is rounded off by Love Island alum Shakira Khan, 23, former Speaker of the House of Commons John Bercow, 63, JLS singer JB Gill, 39, Liverpool football legend Graeme Souness, 73, and 24-year-old content creator Danny Aarons.
In each episode, the group is taken to an unknown destination in a box, but they do not know their daunting challenge until the door opens to them.
Viewers will see a whole new side to Ranvir after she said the experience pushed her ‘out of her comfort zone’ and was life-changing, as she overcame her fear of water.
‘Being on an entertainment show is very different to being obviously in news. The whole thing was out of my comfort zone. But I couldn't have wished for a better experience actually,’ she told the Daily Mail at the ITV show’s launch event.
Speaking about overcoming her fear of water, and how it helped her bond more with her son Tushaan, 14, she said: ‘I've got a son who is very active and loves the water; he's a little fish really, he just loves it, but you know he's always tried to encourage me to try and go out into the water.
