She’s found fame as a mega-confident, sassy and no-nonsense reality star diva – but Gemma Collins is set to show her more vulnerable side in a documentary about her mental health struggles.
The former TOWIE star, 40, is partnering with mental health charity Mind for the documentary Gemma Collins: Self Harm & Me, which is set to air on Channel 4 later this year. The programme will highlight the rise of self-harming over the last decade and the emotional struggles behind it.
Gemma spoke of her personal struggles with self-harm in an interview with Piers Morgan earlier this year. She explained that her first trigger was in her 20s when she had an abortion.
After being advised to have a termination due to pregnancy complications, Gemma explained how the subsequent heartache led to her self-harming, and even showed her scars on air, expressing that they “remind her of how far she has come.”
And while Gemma – also known as “The GC” – appears confident and bubbly in TV appearances and on her social media pages, her close pal Nicole Sealey– who she met in 2011 – tells Closer that behind her outgoing appearance, Gemma is a vulnerable woman.
Nicole, 46, says, “Gemma is someone who, from the outside, looks so incredibly confident – but she has had her struggles. A lot goes on with her behind closed doors. She’s had her battles, but she’s in a good place and has learned to remove toxic people and things from her life.”
As well as struggling in her early twenties – when she had her abortion – Gemma has had a tough time since finding fame, too. Since first appearing on TOWIE in 2011, she’s been open about feeling down about her weight, and has revealed how being fat-shamed left her in tears.
She’s also talked about how her dream of having a family has been hanging in the balance after she had a number of miscarriages – her most recent last year – and last summer she revealed she suffered with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), which could affect her chances of becoming a mum.
She’s also had a turbulent love life. Her on/off relationship with co-star James “Arg” Argent – who has fought addictions to drink and drugs – hit the headlines a number of times, and came to a bitter end last year when messages emerged of him cruelly calling her a “hippo” and a “fat f--k”.
She said in an interview last year, “I am easily offended. I am vulnerable. I do wear my heart on my sleeve... I know I’m a celeb, but that doesn’t make me immune to heartbreak.”
Gemma is now dating her former fiancé Rami Hawash – and sparked new engagement rumours last week when she was seen with a huge ring on her wedding finger. And while Closer previously reported how Arg’s rekindled friendship with his ex Lydia Bright had upset Gemma, Nicole says removing toxic people from her life has helped Gemma massively.
She says, “We’ve spoken about her break-ups – Gemma has found it extremely difficult. Certain relationships she’s been in weren’t within her control and that’s incredibly hard to deal with. But now she’s removed negative people and things from her life and it’s helped her heal. She knows that’s how to handle things now.
“I think – as tough as it is – things like self harm can be a forever problem. Even though you might have it under control, it’s always there. Whether it be self-harming or maybe food issues, it’s easy to fall back into a bad place, especially when you’re under stress, so you’ve got to work to keep yourself on track.”
Check out: Gemma Collin's best diva moments
Gemma Collins' best diva moments of all time - slider
1 of 12When Gemma paraded through the Big Brother garden with a Shetland pony
When the Celebrity Big Brother stars were asked what one-off luxury they would like to be treated to in the isolated house, what did Gemma ask for? Contact with her family? Nope. A pamper treatment? Not quite... No, the GC asked for none other than a Shetland pony - which she proceeded to dance with around the garden. While stroking the pony, Gemma exclaimed "I want pink ones with glitter in their hair".
2 of 12When Matt Evers saved Gemma's precious blow-dry from the rain
Matt Evers protects Gemma Collin's fabulous blow-dry whilst leaving himself to become soaked in the rain on the Dancing on Ice red carpet.
3 of 12When Gemma slipped during her Dancing on Ice routine
The 2019 series of Dancing on Ice is the gift that keeps on giving and poor old Gemma had viewers glued to their screens when she tripped over her foot and skidded across the ice. Ouch. The TOWIE queen soon picked herself up and styled through her ice-skating miss-hap. Jason Gardiner reportedly suggested that Gemma's fall was karma for her diva tantrum the week before.
4 of 12When Gemma's entourage fixed her dress on the NTAs red carpet
Can you even call yourself a diva if you don't enlist a personal helper on the red carpet? The GC had her entourage to hand, ready to smooth out any creases in her glamorous dress.
5 of 12When she spent 72 hours in the jungle
Gemma famously lasted just 72 hours in the I'm a Celebrity jungle, but she still managed to make the nation laugh with her outrageous behaviour. The TOWIE star even insisted "People that murdered get treated better than this, and thats the truth. Even a murderer gets fed three times a day."
6 of 12Gemma's infamous candy scene
Ah, the early days of Gemma and Arg's relationship. The GC was filmed in a Marbella special, when she famously told on/off boyfriend Arg "Don't ever disrespect a girl like that again. Take a good look at this, you ain't ever gonna get this candy.", before dropping her throw and strutting away in a black swimsuit.
7 of 12Gemma's friendship with Kim K's BFF
Gemma made pals with no other than Kim K's best-friend, Jonathan Cheban in Big Brother, where she told him "By the time you're finished with me, I'm gonna be a Gem-dashian." The stars have been friends ever since and Jonathan even flies over to the UK to visit Gemma, where the pair go on fancy shopping trips to Harrods together.
8 of 12When she was a total diva in an interview
Anyone else still cringe when they remember that painfully awkward chat between Gemma and an interviewer who hadn't read her book? The GC had a major diva-meltdown when she found out the journalist hadn't been seen a copy before holding the interview, thus ending the call, "Darling, don't worry, we're going to get the book publishers to send everyone doing an interview the book. Thank you, bye!"
9 of 12When Gemma went into full GC mode on Jason Gardiner
Dancing on Ice has been full of feisty celeb dramas. Gemma didn't hold back after Jason Gardiner accused of her being lazy. The TOWIE star furiously shouted "Boring!" before yelling, "Don't sell stories on me." Poor Matt Evers couldn't even hide how awkward he felt...
10 of 12When she dumped her date live on Loose Women
Ah, poor Laurence Hearn - the charming man that attempted to win over Gemma, only to be dumped live on Loose Women weeks later. OUCH.
11 of 12Basically, her entire time in the CBB house
Other hilarious moments from Gemma's stint in the Big Brother house included yelling at producers, "I don't need the money! I've got money!". She also got upset when Big Brother failed to provide professional blow-dries: "This is very expensive hair and its all frazzled, because you've only got straighteners in here, you haven't got heated rollers. So, you can pay for me to have a new set of extensions. Straighteners are what weirdos use on their hair."
12 of 12And when she fell down the trap door at the Teen Choice Awards
Talking of Gemma's tumbles - how could anyone forget her iconic fall down the trap door at the BBC1 Radio Teen Choice Awards?
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And Nicole adds that she’s hoping the documentary will be good for Gemma’s wellbeing.
Nicole says, “For her to open up about it will be good therapy for her and help her heal. She’s throwing herself into exercise now, which is known to be a great stress release and releases endorphins, so that’s great. And she has a close-knit circle of friends too who she knows are always there for her. I just want her to be happy.
“Gemma’s got a huge amount of young fans who look up to her. Hopefully it will encourage others who are suffering to seek help. I think her speaking out about it on the documentary will do so much good and is very brave of her.”
Get the best celeb interviews in Closer magazine each week.