Ferne McCann's much loved reality show Ferne McCann: First Time Mum has been on air for a staggering eight series, but she's exclusively revealed that it very nearly didn't happen at all.
The first series of the show aired back in 2017, where she prepared for her biggest challenge yet, motherhood, coping with pregnancy, the reality of becoming a single parent and finally giving birth to her daughter, Sunday, who is now four years old.
Before the series aired, Sunday's fatherArthur Collins was sentenced to 20 years behind bars in 2017 after carrying out an acid attack at nightclub which left sixteen people with chemical burn injuries and temporarily blinded three others.
And now Ferne has revealed that she originally turned the show down, exclusively telling Closer, "I was about five months pregnant, it was a show based around my pregnancy but it was quite far on into my pregnancy [when I was asked].
"I actually turned the show down, I didn't want to do it for various reasons, I kept meeting with the production company and they encouraged me to go for it and in the end I came round to the idea and thought you know what, what an amazing opportunity, at a time in my life when I really needed a positive focus. So yeah, all systems go when I said yes."
Ferne also admitted that the first time it dawned on her that she was going to become a mum was during labour.
"I think it was when I gave birth," she admitted.
"Which sounds ridiculous because you've got nine months to prepare. I really found it difficult to connect my pregnancy with Sunday actually being here.
"When I went through labour and that euphoric moment of her coming out, that's when everything fell into place. It made so much sense."
WATCH: Ferne McCann spills the tea on her new boyfriend Lorri | My First Times
Despite the tough times, Ferne has finally got her fairytale in the form of new boyfriend Lorri Haines, who is starring in the new series of her show and who Ferne has labelled as 'The One'.
According to reports, the pair are already thinking about marriage and more children.
"[Marriage and kids] is definitely something we talk about all the time. Lorri’s the first person I can see having a future with, so those things often come up. And with one of my best friends Danielle [Armstrong] getting married this year – it’s happening all around us.
"It’s not just a dream – I feel like it is going to happen," she told OK!.
In a recent snap from a family holiday to Greece with daughter Sunday, Ferne gushed about her "little family", writing, "When I count my blessings I count these two twice 💫❤️."