Jarrod Bowen thought 'big balls' wife Dani Dyer 'was joking' over Celebrity SAS appearance as West Ham captain's astonishment revealed

Dyer has admitted that she decided to appear on the show to see if she's "got balls". "The shows I’ve done before have never been anything quite like this," the wife of the West Ham captain exclusively told The Sun on Sunday.

"I wanted to have a go and see if I’ve got balls. I came out thinking, ‘I’ve got big balls! I’m really glad I’ve done it," she said.

Dyer and Bowen, who have two two-year-old twins, tied the knot back in May. And despite knowing what she was signing up for, the daughter of TV icon Danny Dyer, star of Football Factory and Eastenders, has admitted that she has always wanted to do the show.

She revealed that both Bowen and Dyer were watching an episode of Celebrity SAS and decided she wanted to one day appear on the programme: "The last time I watched, I was sitting with Jarrod, and thinking, ‘I really want to do that’. Jarrod was like, ‘Are you joking, Dan?’. When the opportunity came about, I said, ‘I have to do it’. It’s very rare I get to test myself."

Asked why, Dyer replied: "Because I’m nuts. I’ve always watched it and thought, ‘Would I be able to do it?’."

Dani added that she had the backing of her father and husband when it was announced she'd feature on the TV show. Dyer added that Danny could not believe she signed up for Celebrity SAS.

"He absolutely loves it," Dyer revealed. "He was like, ‘You cannot be my child to want to go into a show like that’. I don’t think he’s been on a running machine for a very long time.

"It’s not his thing. But he was like, ‘Just go and have the best time, go and smash it and just go and give it your best, really’." Dyer also admitted that her father was "devastated" when she signed up for Love Island, but is far more supportive of her Celebrity SAS appearance, saying: "With Love Island, he was devastated. And then it all turned out to be a lot better than he hoped. So for SAS, his hat went off for me.

"As well as Jarrod, they were all so petrified. But they were like, ‘Just go and have a go’. They were really proud of me for even wanting to do it."

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West Ham fans will be hoping captain Bowen and his teammates can show the same fight and determination in the Hammers' battle to beat the drop. The east London side sit five points from safety following Saturday's Premier League action.

Nuno Espirito Santo's side were unable to capitalise upon Nottingham Forest's 2-1 loss to Manchester City in the lunchtime kick off as they fell to a 1-0 home defeat to Fulham. Raul Jimenez's 85th-minute strike was enough to separate the two teams, a result that extended West Ham's winless run to seven matches as Nuno's team crashed to a third successive league defeat.

And Bowen expressed his frustration at the result after the full time whistle as West Ham face the very real threat of relegation.

Speaking with the official West Ham website, Bowen said: "It’s very frustrating. I thought we had good moments - we got into the final third well and we combined well at times, I thought, but we just didn’t take our chances. My chance was probably the biggest one, to put us in the lead. I’ve got to convert that and I take responsibility, as we all have to, because no-one’s going to give us anything in this league.

"When things aren’t going well, it can be easy to point fingers, but ultimately we’re the ones who have to change things. I start with myself first, and I have to demand more from myself, but we all have to demand more from each other.

"A few players spoke after the game, which is good. It’s always hard when there’s emotion after you’ve lost a game, but it’s a really good group here, and we all know that we have to demand more of ourselves. Everyone agrees with that, and we have to stick together."

West Ham have the chance to quickly move on from Saturday's defeat to Fulham when they welcome Brighton to the London Stadium for the final game of the year on Tuesday night. The Hammers then kick off 2026 with a trip to table footers Wolves, who need a huge turnaround if they are to beat the drop having failed to win all 18 league matches this season, collecting just two points in the process.