Holly Willoughby smiling © Getty

Inside Holly Willoughby's leaving party as she prepares to leave the UK

The Dancing on Ice presenter was surrounded by her close friends  

April 18, 2024

Holly Willoughby enjoyed an ultra-lavish leaving dinner in Chelsea on Wednesday night, ahead of her departure from the UK to film her brand new Netflix series, Bear Hunt. 

HELLO! can reveal that the former This Morning presenter, 43, was surrounded by her close friends Christine Lampard and Nicole Appleton for a Mexican feast at A-List hotspot, Ixchel on the King's Road, where they enjoyed a cocktail-fuelled evening before Holly jets off to Central America for two months.

The mother-of-three  wanted to have an intimate dinner with her "tight knit" crew before she left, and the Chelsea eatery couldn't have been more perfect. The group gathered in private room in the restaurant, where they enjoyed speciality cocktails themed around the exciting new TV project which she will present alongside Bear Grylls.

Holly has a tight knit group of friends including Christine Lampard and Nicola Appleton
Holly has a tight knit group of friends including Christine Lampard and Nicola Appleton

The Mexican restaurant is the ultimate A-List hotpot and has seen the likes of Princess Beatrice and Poppy Delevigne walk through its doors.

As for the cocktails, the group could choose from 'Holly's Palmona', the 'Aztec Marg,' a classic margarita or 'Bear's Punch,' a non-alcoholic option. 

News of Holly's brand-new show with Bear was revealed last month. The premise of the programme will see a lineup of celebrity contestants enter the jungle in Costa Rica.

The celebrities will have to survive out in the wilderness and for those who fail to impress, they will be put into a 'Bear Hunt', a cat-and-mouse game where they will try and avoid Bear Grylls as he "hunts" them down. The show isn't set to air until 2025.

Sharing news of her new career venture, Holly wrote: "Introducing Bear Hunt – this new action-packed competition show sees a group of unlikely British celebrities dropped into the Central American jungle as prey for one of the world's most fearsome predators... @beargrylls! Hosted by @hollywilloughby – coming to Netflix in 2025."

The move came after the star departed from her regular hosting slot on This Morning she held for 14 years. 

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