Gemma Collins shares amazing teenage swimsuit photos

gemma collins

by Eden-Olivia Lord |
Updated on

She's posted the snaps to empower fans

TOWIE star Gemma Collins has shared some incredible throwback photos from her teenage years.

The 38 year old posted bikini photos from her younger years but made it clear that she was sharing them to empower younger people to be themselves and not be distracted by what they see on social media.

Check out: axed TOWIE stars, where are they now?

Gallery

CLOSER axed TOWIE stars - where are they now Harry head

Harry Derbridge, 20111 of 26
CREDIT: Shutterstock

Harry Derbridge, series 1- 3 and 12

Harry Derbridge was a Towie original and still holds a very special place in our hearts. He made a welcome return to the show as Bobby Norris's love interest but, allegedly, cheated on him.

Harry Derbridge, 20182 of 26
CREDIT: Instagram

Harry Derbridge, 2018

Harry now works it as a make-up artist. Is it us, or does he look like he might have had a little help with lip fillers?

Maria Fowler3 of 26

Maria Fowler, series 1 - 3

Maria, on the left with Joey Essex and Chloe Sims in 2011, was in the show from the get-go but her TV career was rocked when it was alleged she'd worked as an escort. She's since said she quit 'by mutual consent' after she refused an on-screen romance with Mick Norcross.

Maria Fowler, 20184 of 26

Maria Fowler, 2018

Maria's now a proud mummy, engaged to be married and a self-proclaimed permanent make-up artist.

Dan Osborne5 of 26

Dan Osborne, series 8 - 14

Dan Osborne, pictured here with James Argent in 2013, managed seven series on the show. He was given the boot after a series of recordings, claiming to show Dan being verbally abusive towards his ex-girlfriend Megan Tomlin, came to light.

Dan Osborne, 20186 of 26

Dan Osborne, 2018

Dan is still in the spotlight due to his relationship with ex-EastEnders star Jacqueline Jossa. In May 2018 he described their marriage as "unhappy".

Amber Dowding, series 18 - 217 of 26

Amber Dowding, series 18 - 21

Amber was part of a mega cull of seven Towie characters in January 2018. She claimed that she and her boyfriend Chris Clark were cut because they were happy. They've now split and Chris has reappeared on the show.

Amber Dowding8 of 26

Amber Dowding, 2018

If Amber's social media is anything to go by, she now appears to mostly be on holiday. Pretty goals from where we're sitting.

Mike Hassini9 of 26

Mike Hassini, series 16 - 18 and 21

Mike Hassini brought a hot bod to Towie and...not much else. He was cut in January 2018 due to a lack of storylines as he was loved-up outside the telly show.

Mike Hassini10 of 26

Mike Hassini, 2018

Mike is working as a PT, still loved-up, and still has a very hot bod. He has subsequently appeared briefly in gym scenes on the show.

Jack Rigden, series 20 - 2111 of 26

Jack Rigden, series 20 - 21

Jack Rigden tried hard, so hard, to make an impression on Towie but his lack of on-screen romance and agg saw him get very little camera time. He was part of the big cull of January 2018.

Jack Rigden, 201812 of 26

Jack Rigden, 2018

Jack's Instagram bio describes him as an "absolute geezer". Which is nice.

Jordan Brook, series 20 - 2113 of 26

Jordan Brook, series 20 - 21

Jordan and Jack were brought in as friends of Megan McKenna. When she quit, they were left without any storylines.

Jordan Brooks, 201814 of 26

Jordan Brooks, 2018

Jordan is now dating Sofia Filipe of Ex On The Beach fame. Aww.

Ricky Rayment15 of 26

Ricky Rayment, series 4 - 14

We still think very fondly of Ricky. His rocky relationship with Jess Wright was a huge part of the show but when they finally broke up, well... Ricky left the show "by mutual agreement"with Towie bosses.

Ricky Rayment, 201816 of 26

Ricky Rayment, 2018

Ricky now seems to mainly go fishing.

Tom Pearce, series 5 - 1317 of 26

Tom Pearce, series 5 - 13

Remember when Tom Pearce dated Lauren Goodger following her split from Mark Wright? That was an odd time. He was quietly shown the back doorof the show in 2014.

Tom Pearce, 201818 of 26

Tom Pearce, 2018

Honestly? We're not 100% sure what Tom is actually doing these days. He used to work in the City, and his holidays certainly look pretty epic, so maybe that.

Grace Andrews19 of 26

Grace Andrews, series 11 - 12

Grace almost had a romantic relationship with Lewis Bloor (shudder) and that was the beginning and end of her time on Towie.

Grace Andrews, 201820 of 26

Grace Andrews, 2018

Grace is now involved in a semi-permanent make-up company. Those Towie stars must really hate cleanser.

Fran Parman21 of 26

Fran Parman, series 11 - 16

Fran's original romantic interest was Tom Pearce but he stepped aside to allow Diags to woo her. Bad luck. Their relationship was turbulent but apparently not turbulent enough for show producers. Diags stayed, she went.

Fran Parman, 201822 of 26

Fran Parman, 2018

Fran and Diags split and she now hangs out in clothing that does not look very practical.

Jasmin Walia, series 1 and 7 -1723 of 26

Jasmin Walia, series 1 and 7-17

Jasmin managed eight series until she was given the boot. In 2015 her agent stated: "TOWIE is very storyline dependent and Jasmin did not have much going on that we could show on screen."Ouch. She went on to audition for The X Factor. It did not go well. She also took part in reality show Desi Rascals, that lasted for one series.

Jasmin Walia, 201824 of 26
CREDIT: Shutterstock

Jasmin Walia, 2018

Jasmin is still being papped, which is more than can be said for some of the other ex-Towie stars.

Jake Hall, series 14 - 1725 of 26
CREDIT: ITV2

Jake Hall, series 14 - 17

Jake's time of TOWIE was mainly characterised by him being mean to our sweet Essex princess Chloe Lewis including many accusations of infidelity, plus rumours he'd slept with Megan McKenna.

Jake Hall26 of 26
CREDIT: Shutterstock

Jake Hall, 2018

Jake subsequently became engaged to former Real Housewives of Cheshire star Misse Beqiri. They have a baby together but in December 2018Jake was given a restraining order following a bust up with his fiancée.

Alongside the snap she wrote: "Spending the evening looking at old pics .... I never grew up body conscious it wasn’t a thing when I was younger I was just young free and me ....

"Yeah I look good but In an innocent way there was no panic ....this pic was NOT taken to fit in with a wall page on make it Instagram worthy ... Instagram is way too exposed now for young members who are on here .... they do have pressure and it’s just so nice to look back on this picture and not have had any of that pressure growing up ✌🏻".

She went on to say: "I was just a happy teenager with no body hang ups or pressure.... I think it’s so important for our younger generation to be body confident and free ✌🏻

"Also the way people expose themselves now days on the gram is way too much nothing is held back anymore everything on show nothing is left to the imagination it is way too much .... younger ones are watching x".

GC added: "I just want to say to the younger ones on Insta be YOU and don’t worry about what you see on Insta be young be happy and free 💗".

Go, Gemma.

Lots of her fans rushed to thank her for being inspirational, with one person writing: "Well said, young people need more positive role models like you ❣️✨".

Someone else said: " Loving this message... just what i needed to read right now. X thank you".

Another commented: "Well said, young people need more positive role models like you ❣️✨".

A fourth wrote: "Absolutely love this @gemmacollins1 more people should be promoting this way of thinking x".

One more added: "Best post I’ve seen in a while by someone in the public eye. Well said. X".

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In more Gemma Collins news, friends have warned the GC not to take her diva antics to extremes, after viewers threatened to unfollow the star on social media following the first episode of her show Diva Forever last week.

A source said: "Pals told Gemma not to act up too much for the cameras. They warned her that the GC persona only gets her so far and she’s skating on thin ice – as well as being in danger of alienating her fan base.

"They’ve said there’s a fine line between acting like a boss and being rude."

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