Lydia Bright on how men have driven her to the lowest points in her life
Gemma Collins and James "Arg" Argent continue to have a long line of fiery break-ups – and Arg’s former girlfriend Lydia Bright admits she went through hell, too, during their seven-year on/off relationship.
Lydia joined the first series of The Only Way Is Essex in 2010 as Arg’s ex-girlfriend, after he cheated on her with a mystery woman in Marbella. Although she chose to forgive Arg, 31, and they became a couple, he continued to cheat on her.
Check out: Remember these former TOWIE stars? Here's what they're all doing now
CLOSER - axed Towie cast members where are they now? - slider
1 of 28Maria 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.
2 of 28Maria Fowler, 2018
Maria's now a proud mummy, engaged to be married and a self-proclaimed permanent make-up artist.
3 of 28Dan 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.
4 of 28Dan 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".
5 of 28Amber 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.
6 of 28Amber 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.
7 of 28Mike 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.
8 of 28Mike Hassini, 2018
Mike is working as a PT, still loved-up, and still has a very hot bod. Blimey.
9 of 28Jack 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.
10 of 28Jack Rigden, 2022
Jack now owns a Fish and Chip business called Let's Get Battered. He also has an Instagram page dedicated to his love of cooking and all things food called @rigdensrecipes.
11 of 28Jordan Brook, series 20 - 21
Jordan and Jack were brought in as friends of Megan McKenna. When she quit, they were left without any storylines.
12 of 28Jordan Brooks, 2018
Jordan is now dating Sofia Filipe of Ex On The Beach fame. Aww.
13 of 28Ricky 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.
14 of 28Ricky Rayment, 2018
Ricky now seems to mainly go fishing.
15 of 28Tom 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.
16 of 28Tom 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.
17 of 28Grace 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.
18 of 28Grace Andrews, 2018
Grace is now involved in a semi-permanent make-up company. Those Towie stars must really hate cleanser.
19 of 28Fran 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.
20 of 28Fran Parman, 2018
Fran and Diags split and she now hangs out in clothing that does not look very practical.
21 of 28Jasmin 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.
22 of 28Jasmin Walia, 2018
Jasmin is still being papped, which is more than can be said for some of the other ex-Towie stars.
23 of 28Harry 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.
24 of 28Harry 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?
25 of 28Lauren Goodger, series one - six, 16 and 19
Remember when Lauren looked like this? She was a TOWIE OG and her on / off relationship with Mark Wright, including getting engaged in a car park, was the stuff of reality TV dreams.
26 of 28Lauren Goodger, 2018
Lauren is still much loved by the public although her recent porn admission made some fans' jaws drop.
27 of 28Pascal Craymer, 2013
Pascal Cramer walked into TOWIE series ten as the new squeeze of Mario Falcone. Sadly, Mario still had the hots for his former flame Lucy Mecklenburgh. Pascal found out when she watched the episode in which Mario admitted his feelings for Lucy. AWKWARD.
28 of 28Pascal Craymer, 2018
Pascal recently dated king of the jungle trouser snake Nick Knowles although they split before he entered I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! We do not believe that is a real guitar.
In 2014, Arg confessed that he’d been "caught in the toilets" with TOWIE co-star Amy Childs, and two years later, he admitted to sleeping with Lydia and Gemma within hours of each other in Marbella. His infidelities, along with his hard-partying, eventually tore them apart.
Speaking on Made In Chelsea star Jamie Laing’s Private Parts podcast, Lydia reveals, "Arg made me cry all the time with his cheating.
"I was always crying on TOWIE. That isn’t my character. I’m such a positive person, but I had to address it as part of the show. Every emotion is heightened with cameras on you."
She adds, "Now that I’m 28, I wouldn’t stand for that. It’s hard to break away from someone when you’re around them. People would say, 'What the hell are you doing taking him back?' But you see them every day for months.
"It’s ten-hour days sometimes. You think, 'What’s the point of fighting it?'
"Arg is a nice person but he’s like a child. He was my first love, my first serious boyfriend. When you’re cheated on by someone, you’re so angry – but equally, they’re the only person who can comfort you. It’s like rejection," she says.
Lydia moved on after their final break-up in 2016, leaving TOWIE to compete in Channel 4’s The Jump and Bear Grylls: Mission Survive.
She has just rekindled her two-year relationship with mechanic Lee Cronin after a brief split, saying, "We had some time apart and he realised I was the best thing that ever happened to him."
They first crossed paths at an Ibiza nightclub in 2017 and discussed marriage, a family and had even moved in together before their break.
Although she’s now happily settled, Lydia admits that past failed romances are her lowest moments. She says, "The only thing I’ve struggled with is relationships. That’s when I’ve been unhappy and down. The lowest points in my life have been that."
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Considering their history, you wouldn't expect Lydia and Arg's feisty girlfriend Gemma Collins to be the best of friends.
Arg went back and forth between the Essex blondes between 2012 and 2017, but after he two-timed them in Marbella in 2016, Lydia and Gemma insisted they were "girls sticking together".
Surprisingly, they've kept to their promise, and when Lydia recently shared a loved-up snap of her and boyfriend Lee on a "date night". Gemma liked it and added a heart and star emoji.
Lydia has previously said, "I love Gemma and I've known her for years. Me and James ended on bad terms, but we ended up becoming friends again.."