Stephen Mulhern Faces His Biggest Fears in Raw, Unfiltered New ITV Documentary — A Journey That Leaves Him “Changed Forever”
Stephen Mulhern has never looked more vulnerable — or more human.
For decades, viewers have known him as the playful magician-turned-presenter whose energy lights up everything from Catchphrase to Britain’s Got More Talent. But in his new ITV documentary Accidental Tourist, Mulhern steps far outside the polished comfort of the TV studio and into a world that tests him physically, emotionally, and spiritually.
And the man who always made everything look effortless suddenly finds himself exposed.
🌏 A Journey Forced Out of His Safe Bubble
The 48-year-old entertainer admits that he has spent years carefully avoiding discomfort — new food, deep water, unfamiliar cities, even unpredictable travel.
“I’ve lived like a 70-year-old man in a 47-year-old body,” Stephen jokes at the start of the film.
But behind the humour is a real truth: he has stayed safe for far too long.
So when his longtime friends Ant and Dec challenge him to travel to South Korea — alone — Stephen reluctantly says yes.
What follows is the toughest journey of his career.
They guide him from the UK, teasing him, pushing him, and occasionally rescuing him, as he navigates a culture unlike anything he has ever experienced.
😳 Prawns, Octopus… and a Food Culture That Terrifies Him
Food has always been Stephen’s biggest phobia.
In South Korea, there is no hiding from it.
From icy seafood markets to a full-blown mukbang — where he must devour plate after plate on camera — Stephen faces textures, smells, and flavours he has spent his whole life avoiding.
Prawns.
Octopus.
And yes… the infamous “penis fish.”
“There were moments I genuinely thought I might cry,” he admits.
“It sounds ridiculous, but food has always been my Everest.”
💆♂️ A Korean Bathhouse — and the Most Painful Massage of His Life
Then comes a traditional men’s bathhouse.
And the massages.
Stephen — who hates baths, hates massages, and hates being touched by strangers — is thrown into a mix of boiling pools, freezing plunge baths, and scrubbing rituals that leave his skin red and his nerves shredded.
“It was like being hit by a train,” he laughs later.
“But also… weirdly healing?”
🔮 A Shamanic Ritual Reveals a Truth Stephen Wasn’t Prepared For
One of the documentary’s most unexpected moments comes when Stephen meets a mudang, a Korean shaman.
What begins as a cultural experience quickly turns deeply personal.
During the ritual, the mudang tells Stephen something chilling:
He had been seriously ill a few years ago — far more ill than he admitted publicly.
Suddenly, Stephen is no longer laughing.
“The ritual brought everything back,” he says quietly.
“It reminded me how fragile life is, and how quickly it can all go.”
He thinks of losing his father.
He thinks of the illness he never fully processed.
And for the first time in his career, viewers see him shaken.
🌊 His Biggest Fear: The Ocean
But nothing challenges him more than the sea.
Stephen has spent most of his life avoiding open water.
Now, he must dive — without oxygen tanks — alongside South Korean freedivers.
At first he freezes, trembling as the waves rise around him.
And then, in a breakthrough moment, he dives.
He sinks deeper.
Touches the ocean floor.
Rises with a triumphant gasp that turns into tears.
“I’ve never felt so happy or tired in my life,” he says, overwhelmed.
🎥 “The Most Exposing Thing I’ve Ever Filmed”
Unlike his brightly lit game shows, Accidental Tourist shows Stephen stripped of control — unscripted, uncomfortable, and often emotional.
“This is the most exposing thing I’ve ever done on television,” he admits.
“And I don’t regret a second of it.”
📺 **Accidental Tourist airs December 14 on ITV — just one week after the finale of I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here!
It is raw.
It is messy.
It is funny.
It is deeply human.
And fans will never look at Stephen Mulhern the same way again.**