Scouser Sean leaves TV’s toughest game show The Summit after doing the city proud

Scouser Sean Heath was the latest contestant to leave the mountain this week after reaching his peak on telly’s tough reality series, The Summit.

The customer services advisor from Bootle made it to Day 10 on the ITV adventure in New Zealand – more than halfway through the incredible challenge.

And while he didn’t quite make it to the top, he left with his ‘head held high’.

After a heated row with teammate Dockers over his plans to get rid of Sean’s ‘person’ Colleen, Sean, 26, told everyone to vote him out instead.

“I think I could have got to the top,” he says. “But it was time for me to go. I’d had enough.

“Colleen needed it more than me and she deserved to stay in.”

He adds: “I went in it for me, but I can’t not think of other people.

“I know it’s a game, but there are real people involved and real people’s lives. That’s the Scouse in me – it’s the way I’m built.”

The Summit, hosted by Ben Shephard, started earlier this month, with 14 strangers taking on the daunting task of climbing a mountain in the Alps of New Zealand’s South Island for a share of a potential £200,000 prize pot.

It isn’t just a test of physical endurance though, but a battle about strategy and alliances, and the ability to betray.

Taking part was the chance of a lifetime for Sean who has a real fear of heights and had never done any climbing before.

“The money was an incentive, but it was more about pushing myself, to test myself,” he says.

And he certainly managed that.

As the team made their way to the top, Sean faced his fears, scaling a precarious ladder and inching his way across a vast gorge on narrow ropes, 250ft above the river below.

He conquered his panic when he and his teammates tackled a narrow ridge 3000ft up, anchored to a safety line for fear of falling or being blown off by winds, and he kayaked across a glacial lake.

Sean made it to the snowline of the mountain, wading through deep snow, ice pick in hand, just before he was voted off.

“The snow was the hardest part,” he says. “It was so deep and there was a steep incline, and I thought then I can’t carry on. I was in so much pain and my body was giving up.  You don’t see how hard it really is.

“And I knew it was going to get harder.” 

It was the argument with senior construction worker Dockers, though, that finally sealed his fate. Faced with what his saw as injustice, Sean decided enough was enough and leapt to Colleen’s defence.

“I had struggled a little bit in the days before, but Dockers was getting on my nerves and I’m one of those people, I thought I’ve just got to say something.

“The hardest part is picking your battles,” says Sean. “It’s got to be the right time.

“Colleen was my woman there and, with Jenny, we had a pact. We were really close. Dockers was trying to pit people against her and that was it. She’s had a really bad year, she’s lost her home and her gym, and she wasn’t doing it for a game.  She was really in it to win it.

“She needed the money more than me.

“I thought no, I’m not having this. You’re messing with people’s dreams now.

“I’ve got time to rebuild my life, she hasn’t.  I have got time for opportunities again, but they might not come round for her. 

“I’ve had so many messages saying ‘well done’. I went out with dignity and my head held high.  I’m gutted that I went, but it was the right time to go – and I did the right thing.

“You’ve got to be yourself.”

Sean says he was delighted to take on the challenges and have a laugh as he got to know his campmates – showing his sense of humour when, in spite of the difficulty, he and Tara had a snowball fight in the snow!

“There weren’t many lows, being away from home was the hardest thing. The mental side was harder than the physical.”

He says the biggest thing he’ll take away is the importance of being yourself: “I like my personality, I like myself,” he smiles. “And for a lot of time I didn’t.

“That’s the biggest thing for me.”

Sean says: “I’d go back tomorrow. I have had little wins, but this was a real achievement for me and I’ve got no regrets. I’m watching myself on screen and thinking I can’t believe it’s me doing that!

“I think Dockers will win – although I hope to God it’s Colleen.

“I’ve had people coming up to me in the streets saying I’ve done Liverpool proud, and that feels great. I’m glad to know it’s had an impact on other people.

“And I think my nan would have been proud.”

Sean was encouraged by his nan Brenda to do The Summit, but she sadly passed away after the show was filmed in November 2024.

“She was the strongest person I know and she taught me strength. She’ll be looking down and giving me a big kiss now.”

You can watch The Summit on ITV here.

Find out the latest in Liverpool here.

Find out what’s good up North on our new platform, The Northern Guide. 

From the best hotels, beauty spots, days out, food and more up North – visit thenorthernguide.com and follow The Northern Guide on Instagram HERE.