She rang in the New Year by declaring that she was single, following a three-year on/off relationship with Carl Woods. But it appears Katie Price wasted no time getting back on the dating scene, with rumours that she’s grown close to Married At First Sight star JJ Slater.
But JJ’s co-star Georges Berthonneau exclusively tells Closer he’s not convinced the couple will have a happy ever after.
He reveals, “JJ is the biggest ladies’ man. He’s made a ton of money, so he only hangs out with models now. Katie will be obsessed with him – she’s known to love Essex guys and he’s all about that vibe. She’ll end up heartbroken because he definitely won’t be in it for the long run. He’ll want a younger, newer model soon enough. They both need to be with someone in the limelight to raise their profiles, so it’s probably a mutually beneficial situation for now. He wants to keep his name out there.”
A source reported earlier this month that Katie and JJ had “met a few times” and were “constantly texting”. They added, “She’s really into him – this is the first man she’s actually been interested in since Carl.”
Shortly after initial romance rumours began swirling, former Page 3 model Katie, 45, was pictured looking cosy with reality star JJ, 31, during a night out in Newcastle’s Bobby’s Bar. According to reports, the mum-of-five was letting her hair down following her appearance in the adult panto Big Dick Whittington and His Pussy. Clad in a leather catsuit, party girl Katie allegedly left the bar at 2am after joining drag queens for a karaoke session.
Neither Katie nor JJ – whose real name is John Joe – have publicly commented on the romance reports, but it has been suggested that they are preparing for a lucrative announcement.
An insider told a newspaper that Katie and JJ were “planning on announcing their relationship in a big way and have been advised the longer they hold out, the more the news will be worth”.
Meanwhile, a second source claimed that Katie – who’s described as having a “reputation for falling hard and fast” – has spent time in JJ’s hometown of Essex, where she’s been introduced to his friends.
But Georges, who is still dating his MAFS match Peggy Rose, believes that JJ’s priority is simply rubbing shoulders with the stars.
He says, “There’s no chance he’ll fall in love with her, but she’s definitely his type. He won’t want to have a family with her. He’s a really nice guy but he only hangs out with celebs. He didn’t go into MAFS for the right reasons. On the show, he was called the ‘Sociable Loner’ – he has all these friends but he’s really calculated. He was close with all these people from MAFS but now he’s only in touch with Luke [Worley].”
Katie is renowned for her colourful love life. She welcomed her first child Harvey, 21, in 2002, but split from his father, former footballer Dwight Yorke, shortly after she fell pregnant. In 2004, she fell in love with pop star Peter Andre on I’m A Celebrity..! and married him a year later. They split in 2009 but have continued to co-parent their children, Junior, 18, and Princess, 16. Katie was married to second husband, MMA fighter Alex Reid, between 2010-2012, before walking down the aisle for a third time in 2013 with former stripper Kieran Hayler – the father of her youngest children, Jett, 10, and nine-year-old Bunny. Her most recent relationship was with her ex-fiancé, car salesman Carl, which began in 2020 and ended last year.
Meanwhile, JJ – who has links with the TOWIE cast and reportedly hobnobbed with the likes of Gigi Hadid and Kendall Jenner during his time in LA – famously married a stranger on E4 show MAFS UK last year. He didn’t find a connection with TV bride Bianca Petronzi and instead explored the attraction he felt towards Ella Morgan – the show’s first transgender contestant. But JJ and Ella didn’t go the distance, and a heartbroken Bianca revealed on the show, “He did express to me what his normal type was, which was fake boobs, fake lips.”
And despite a source claiming that JJ feels he’s “struck gold” with Katie’s looks, Georges says, “He’s really chasing fame. Katie may be older, but she’s still a sexy woman. So many men would still jump over stinging nettles to be with her.”