She’s made no secret of the fact she wants to become a mum and get married, and although Gemma Collins’ love life hasn’t been plain sailing recently – with her on-off boyfriend James ‘Arg’ Argent returning to rehab for drugs and alcohol addiction – she’s still pushing on with her plans for her dream wedding.
Gemma, 38, and Arg, 32, reunited most recently in November, following another bust-up that saw the worried star apparently calling 999, after fears her boyfriend had overdosed. She reportedly agreed to give their relationship another chance – on the condition that he cleans up his act for good – so they can start a family.
Despite Arg’s setback, Gemma, who often refers to herself as alter-ego The GC, has told Closer she’s continuing to dream of her big day at the couple’s favourite luxury hotel, The Dorchester. There, they spent last Valentine’s Day in a romantic £3,000 suite, where he spoilt her with red roses, a magnum of Champagne, and breakfast in bed.
She says, “If [the proposal] were to come, of course I’d say yes. I’d like a big wedding.” Feeling nostalgic for their romantic break, she adds, “I want to get married at The Dorchester hotel in London, then fly to Sicily for the honeymoon – but he’s got to buy the big yellow rock first. Until I get a big £250k or half-a-million yellow diamond, I ain’t settling with anybody!”
Sicily is also full of sentiment for the pair, as they spent a week holidaying there in the summer, before Arg fell off the wagon.
The couple – who have been on and off for eight years since they met on TOWIE in 2011– previously discussed their wedding plans last year, with Arg saying, “I am definitely asking Gemma to be my wife. We love the idea of getting married in Essex. The first time we made love was in Marbella, so it would be nice to get married there, too.”
But Arg is reportedly currently seeking help at a retreat in Thailand, for food, drug and alcohol addictions. He first entered the same centre in 2015 to curb his partying lifestyle, and emerged with a much trimmer physique. He managed to drop 3st in ten weeks, after adopting healthy eating and exercise habits, but was back in rehab by 2017. And although Gemma is undoubtedly worried about her man – who ballooned to 23st last year at the peak of his partying – she’s throwing herself into work while he’s on the mend.
CHECK OUT iconic TOWIE stars then and now
CLOSER: TOWIE Original cast then and now photos
1 of 27Lydia Bright
Lovely Lydia Bright had a tough job putting up with on/off boyfriend James 'Arg' Argent. After Arg's cheating ways proved too much to deal with, Lydia walked away from their relationship and the show in 2012, but returned for a few special episodes.
2 of 27Lydia Bright
Lydia had string of relationships and was most recently linked to mechanic Lee Cronin. She still runs her successful clothing business, Bella Sorella, and she took part in the Channel 4 TV show The Jump.
3 of 27James 'Arg' Argent
Arg was the loveable cheeky chap who could first be found singing around the bars of Essex. After proving to be a pretty lousy boyfriend to Lyds and being suspended from the show for partying, Arg went into rehab and came out a new man.
4 of 27James 'Arg' Argent
Arg is now in a relationship with another Essex blonde bombshell, Gemma Collins, and they have big plans to become the world's next big power couple.
5 of 27Lauren Goodger
Poor Lauren Goodger was always in distress over long-term boyfriend Mark Wright. The future never really looked promising for this couple. In fact, she famously pushed Mark into a swimming pool.
6 of 27Lauren Goodger
Lauren left the show in 2016, before appearing on Dancing on Ice and Celebrity Big Brother. She's now in a relationship with Joey Morrisson, who's currently doing a stretch in prison. Lauren occasionally makes a special appearance in the show that made her name.
7 of 27Mark Wright
Ah, Mark wright - he sure did have a way with the ladies in Essex. After finishing things with fiance Lauren Goodger, he had flings with Sam Faiers and Lucy Mecklenburgh. Mark left the show in 2016 after meeting actress Michelle Keegan.
8 of 27Mark Wright
Mark married Michelle in 2015 and now has a TV career in LA, presenting a show called Extras. The pair are VERY loved up and we reckon it's far less dramatic than his previous relationships.
9 of 27Kirk Norcross
Sugar Hut club promoter Kirk Norcross had relationships with Amy Childs and Lauren Pope. He even had 'his n hers' nose surgery with Popey before they split. Kirk also introduced viewers to his Sugar Hut owner dad, Mick, who had a one-sided love affair with Gemma Collins.
10 of 27Kirk Norcross
Kirk is now a dad to two kids and he has an ADORABLE Instagram feed of family photos. Kirk also had a stint on Celebrity Big Brother and Ex On The Beach, but it looks like he's now sticking to life as a daddy.
11 of 27Amy Childs
Queen of the vajazzle, Amy Childs was the beautiful beautician who only stayed in the show for a year. She soon starred in her own series, It's All About Amy.
12 of 27Amy Childs
Amy is now a mum to little Polly who she gave birth to in 2017. She is no longer in a relationship with Polly's dad, Bradley Wright, but she was recently snapped with a mystery man on holiday.
13 of 27Harry Derbidge
Young Harry was the cousin of Amy Childs and just as glamorous as her. Who can forget when he performed as Lady Gaga at his birthday party?
14 of 27Harry Derbidge
Harry started a relationship with co-star Bobby Norris but it ended after Harry reportedly cheated. Harry recently opened up about his battle with an eating disorder, but he looks to be doing well, and is now a pretty amazing makeup artist. Do you think he's had lip fillers? Hmmm.
15 of 27Sam Faiers
Sam Faiers first hit screens when best mate Amy Childs gave her a vajazzle. She gave in to Mark Wright's romantic pursuits for a short while, but it was her relationship with Joey Essex that won our hearts (sob).
16 of 27Sam Faiers
Sam now has a BEAUTIFUL family with her partner Paul Knightley and two kids. She went on to star in another reality show, Sam Faiers: The Mummy Diaries. Sam has also opened up about her battle with Crohn's disease and she still helps to run clothing boutique, Minnie's.
17 of 27Jess Wright
Sister of Mark Wright, she had to give him a few sisterly straight-talks. She was a model and singer, with dreams of making it big in the pop music world. Jess's big relationship was with co-star Ricky Rayment.
18 of 27Jess Wright
More recently. Jess split from Strictly's Giovanni Pernice after five months of dating. She's released a fitness DVD but that's all we've heard from her, really.
19 of 27Billie Faiers
The bond between Billie and her sister Sam was pure joy to watch. She always had her sister's back.
20 of 27Billie Faiers
Billie is now engaged to Greg Shepherd, who she has a son and a daughter with. She appeared in The Mummy Diaries with her big sis, but it's reported that she's to get her own reality show which will document her getting ready for the wedding.
21 of 27Lucy Mecklenburgh
Lucy Mecklenburgh caused a lot of trouble between Mark Wright and Lauren Goodger after she slept with Mark. But her big romance was with co-star Mario Falcone.
22 of 27Lucy Mecklenburgh
Lucy is now a fitness GURU. Honestly, nothing comes between this girl and her abs. She's now in a relationship with former Corrie actor Ryan Thomas after appearing on Celebrity Island together. She also runs a fashion boutique and an online fitness program - quite the entrepreneur.
23 of 27Lauren Pope
DJ Lauren 'Popey' Pope was already known for being a bit of a party girl on the circuit before starting TOWIE. She was in an on/off relationship with Kirk Norcross and dated Tom Pearce.
24 of 27Lauren Pope
Lauren is now the proud owner of a successful hair extensions business. She recently rejoined the show.
25 of 27Maria Fowler
Model Maria Fowler was Popey's best pal and she did NOT get on with her mate's BF Kirk Norcross. She went through some tough times in public after leaving the show just two series later.
26 of 27Maria Fowler
But now Maria looks VERY happy in her new role as a mum to Evie, who she had with boyfriend Kelvin Batey.
27 of 27Nanny Pat
Nanny Pat was the voice of reason that the TOWIE cast needed. She doted on her grandkids Mark and Jess Wright, and always dished out the best advice. She also knew how to let her hair down. Sadly, 80-year-old Pat died in 2015.
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She says, “I’m inundated with offers! My agent looks exhausted – the poor bloke hasn’t slept for two weeks. I’ve got series two of my ITVBe show, Diva Forever, coming back, and it’s going to be better than ever. I’m enjoying being the star of everything.”
Gemma also returned to the Christmas special of Dancing On Ice, after she notoriously took part in the show last year, making headlines for her impressive weight loss.Although she proudly lost almost 3st, dropping from a size 24 to 20, the 5ft 9 star admits her diet has since slipped.
She explains, “Once I took my skates off, I didn’t skate ever again. I went on SkinnyJab [weight loss injections], but last month, it was party after party – cheese boards, red wine, mince pies – so now it’s January [I’ll start watching what I eat] again.”
Gemma also became the show’s most-talked about celebrity, aftersuffering a horrific fall and sensationally clashing with former judge Jason Gardiner. He called her a brat during an interview, while she accused him of selling stories on her. There’s clearly no love lost between the pair, with Gemma sarcastically saying, “I can’t even remember his second name. When the time comes, I might [take over] and be a judge, although I think I’ve got to master the art of ice skating a bit better yet!”
She did, however, get along very well with her skating pro partner on the show, Matt Evers, who is part of Dancing On Ice’s first ever same-sex couple this series with Steps star, Ian ‘H’ Watkins.
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“I love Matt and I’m so excited for the same-sex coupling,” she says. “You’ve got to move with the times and ice skating is a sport, so I think the fact that they’re allowing same-sex couples to go for it is life-changing for people. It’s amazing – and I don’t think there’s anyone better to do that than Matt and H.”
Although she describes herself as “comedy gold”, Gemma insists she never watches herself back on TV, adding, “I just haven’t got the time, but when I do see the re-runs on Instagram and stuff, it’s highly hilarious.
“I’m very special and unique, so basically no one has my magic ingredient. No one knows what makes The GC and no one could ever be The GC. I don’t compare myself to anyone. I am a stand-alone – a one-off. I’m The GC, honey – I’ve got nothing to prove!”
Read more in this week's Closer magazine, out now