Gemma Collins: ‘I’m scared Arg will run back to pregnant Lydia’

Gemma Collins has told pals she’s worried boyfriend Arg will rekindle his friendship with ex Lydia Bright after she announced her pregnancy and split from her partner

She’s made no secret of her insecurities over her on/off boyfriend James “Arg” Argent’s feelings for his former girlfriend Lydia Bright – sobbing on her show Diva Espana last year after he cruelly told her he never loved her like he did his long-term ex.

And insiders say Gemma Collins’ insecurities were reignited last week after Lydia, 28, announced she was expecting her first child, but had sadly split from the baby’s father, Lee Cronin, after a two-year relationship.

Opening up about her pregnancy in an interview, former TOWIE star Lydia said, “I’ve always wanted the fairy tale. And it’s obviously not worked out exactly how I wanted.”

A source says, “Deep down, Gemma thinks Arg will always hold a candle for Lydia and was really worried about how he’d feel about her not only being pregnant, but also now being single again."

“Her worst nightmare would be for Lydia and Arg to strike-up a friendship again, as she’s convinced old feelings would come rushing back and, with their deep connection and his close bond to her family, she says she wouldn’t stand a chance and she’d lose out yet again to the girl who she’s always felt like she’s come second-best to.”

As one of TOWIE’s original power couples, Arg and Lydia had a rocky nine-year relationship that weathered many storms from the moment they hit screens in 2010, after falling in love as teenagers in 2007.

Opening up about their desire to settle down together, Arg – who revealed last week that he’d reached his biggest weight of 24st – once said of Lydia, “In my heart, I’ll always believe she’s the girl I’ll marry and have babies with.”

Check out: James Argent's body transformation journey

The pair’s fiery romance finally came to an end in 2016 but, just days before Lydia’s baby announcement, Arg cryptically Tweeted how he’d heard “bad news”, while Gemma put on a brave face – congratulating her former co-star on her baby news on Twitter.

The source says, “Gemma asked Arg if he’d reached out to Lydia over the pregnancy, which led him to snap. He accused her of trying to stir up trouble and they had a row over Gemma’s blatant lack of trust for him.

“Gemma was sobbing as she told pals it was clear the news had upset Arg and how she feared it meant he still had feelings for Lydia – and with their relationship already on such thin ice, she started to panic that she was going to push him away and make him run back to her.

“Arg assured her he’d never go back to Lydia and begged Gemma to stop obsessing over her, but she insisted that with his constant put-downs, it was hard to feel special and wanted by him.”

The couple split in April after he shared an unflattering video of her snoring and later bombarded her with abusive text messages, claiming she was a “fat joke” and had “more rolls than Greggs.”

In an episode of Gemma’s reality show Diva Espana last year, she broke down in tears after Arg told her he never loved her like he’d loved Lydia.

She said, “He doesn’t care that I’m his girlfriend... and the fact that someone says to me does it hurt that I’ll never love you like I loved my ex-girlfriend...”

Gemma has also seen how supportive Arg was to his ex-TOWIE co-star Ferne McCann when she became a single mum after splitting from her daughter’s dad, Arthur Collins. The pair often holiday together and Gemma fears Arg may reach out to Lydia in the same way.

Gemma was also criticised last week when she admitted that her 3st weight loss – which she’d previously put down to a vegan diet – had actually been the result of using controversial £250 appetite-suppressing injections, SkinnyJab, to achieve her trimmer frame.

The injectables – which contain the drug liraglutide and are said to help people feel full for longer, reduce appetite and control blood sugar levels – have been labelled as “potentially dangerous” by many health experts due to their many side-effects, which can include dizziness, headaches, digestive problems and the risk of upper respiratory tract infections.

Trolls were quick to slam the star – with one sarcastically quipping, “Great role model”, while another said, “Promoting slimming injections to young fans is the height of irresponsibility.” The injectables were created by Caroline Balazs, who insisted all customers were assessed by clinicians who were trained by the NHS.

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Despite her recent admission, the star was left fuming in June when she was accused of using diet pills to aid her slim down – even threatening to take legal action against the company.

But pals say Gemma – who’s become an icon for curvy women over the years and has her own plus-size fashion line – wasn’t fazed by the onslaught of negative reactions after insiders recently told Closer how she was convinced being hated and riling-up fans with her diva behaviour would make her an even bigger star.

The source adds, “Gemma just wanted to be honest with fans and feels immune to the backlash, but pals are worried she’s alienating those who loved her for her authenticity and how real she always was about her weight struggles.

“But, deep down, Gemma is happy the jabs have worked for her and she is determined to keep her weight down in whatever way she can to make sure Arg only has eyes for her.”

Read even more celeb stories in this week's Closer magazine - out now.