Basildon's Denise Van Outen is one of a number of celebrities to sign up to a special series of Channel 4’s, The Circle.

A dozen celebrities have signed up to the series in an effort to raise cash for the Stand Up To Cancer appeal.

The Circle sees contestants confined to an apartment and interact with one another only through social media.

Battling it out to be crowned the most popular player, the contestants will be split into two camps – those staying true to their identity and those using a catfish profile to play an entirely different celebrity.

Filmed non-stop over the course of a single week, the special will also see a number of celebrities move in together in a bid to play one character, all before scoring their fellow contestants and ultimately ejecting the least popular from The Circle.

Denise has revealed she will be one of the contestants who will be themselves.

She said: “I’m just looking forward to having a nice week on my own. It’s going to be like a holiday for me! I’m not doing it to prove anything, I just think it’s really fun.”

Towie star Pete Wicks will also be taking part in the series, and will team up with Made in Chelsea’s Sam Thompson.

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They are planning to trick fellow contestants into thinking they’re Countdown mathematician, Rachel Riley.

Pete said: “We tried to think of someone that is as different as you could get from us. I mean, firstly, she’s intelligent, we’re not.

“She’s a woman, we’re not.

“She just seems like a really nice person, so that’s going to be quite difficult for me to try and pretend that I’m a nice person.”

Another Essex link to the celebrity special will see Loose Women presenters Kaye Adams and Nadia Sawalha combine and act under the guise of Gemma Collins.

“The thing about playing the GC is, she’s a very complex character. I think even people that hate her, love her.

Even when she behaves outrageously, it’s funny.

How she gets away with the diva-esque persona, I’ll never know. It’s going to be a challenge!” said Sawalha.

Other contestants confirmed for the series include Baga Chips from Ru Paul’s Drag Race UK, KISS FM stars Rickie Haywood-Williams and Melvin Odoom, Geordie Shoe’s Charlotte Crosby, Duncan James from boyband Blue, rapper Lady Leshurr and YouTube sensation Saffron Barker.

The Celebrity Circle for Stand Up To Cancer launches on Tuesday, March 9 on Channel 4.