I think the reason why there were so many celebrity specials was because Chris Tarrant didn’t think normal contestants had the ability to go very fall and win big. The show changed because of Chris’ take on the show; this was maybe why Jeremy Clarkson was named the host of the revival series which has seen the show return to its former glory.
So glas that the Clarkson Era did away with all this faff and brought us back to normal; where the people are the norm, and the celebrities are “celebrity specials” and nothing else.