TOWIE legend and in our opinion icon, Bobby Norris bravely opened up to fans this week, revealing his reasons for quitting the hit ITVBe show.
The star, who first appeared on the programme in series four back in 2012, was famous for his funny one liners and enviable friendship with Gemma Collins.
Fans were shocked earlier this year when Bobby took to Instagram to reveal the news that he was “stepping back”from the show. He wrote at the time, "After 10 years on TOWIE the show and the fans have been such a huge part of my life, but you haven’t seen the last of me and this is the start of an exciting new chapter!!"
Well now the star, who looks almost unrecognisable thanks to his new bodybuilding lifestyle, has taken again to Instagram to reveal the real reasons behind his decision.
Check out: 11 TOWIE couples you completely forgot about
11 TOWIE couples you completely forgot about
1 of 11Mark Wright and Sam Faiers
Mark and Sam's on/off relationship goes all the way back to when she was 16 and they met on MySpace (aw, those were the days). They briefly dated during their time on TOWIE but were never able to give things a proper go before he quit the show in 2011.
2 of 11Kirk Norcross and Amy Childs
Kirk and Amy's flirtationship was one of the main storylines during the first season of TOWIE and they eventually briefly dated before splitting in 2011. In a 2013 appearance on This Morning, Kirk admitted, "I will still love Amy until the day I die - she is literally like the girl version of me. When it didn't work out, it broke my heart really... and it wasn't her fault, it was both of our fault."
3 of 11Gemma Collins and Charlie King
Gemma and Charlie briefly dated in 2012 but split after she grew concerned about his friendship with Bobby Norris. Two years later, Charlie came out as gay during an appearance on This Morning. He's still friends with Gemma and even admitted in 2017 that he would consider being the GC's sperm donor if she asked.What a turn of events that would be.
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4 of 11Lauren Goodger and Tom Pearce
Remember the days when Joey Essex's BFF Tom Pearce romanced basically every woman within a 10 mile radius of Brentwood? Lauren Goodger became one his many conquests following her split from Mark Wright but they hit the rocks when she caught wind of him bragging about their rendezvous.
5 of 11Mario Falcone and Chloe Sims
It's fair to say Chloe Sims has been unlucky in love over the years but things looked up for her when she began dating close pal Mario (fun fact: Mario's sister is queen of the jungle Giovanna Fletcher). Things moved quickly for the pair and she even admitted she loved him - causing friction with BFF Lauren Pope who'd previously dated Mario - but he wasn't ready to settle down and called things off.
6 of 11Harry Derbidge and Bobby Norris
After three years away from the TOWIE scene, OG cast member Harry Derbidge returned as Bobby Norris' boyfriend (in some very skimpy swimwear) during the cast's then annual jaunt to Marbs.Their relationship ended in tears though when Harry confessed to sleeping with his ex while on holiday in Tenerife.
7 of 11Dan Osborne and Lucy Mecklenburgh
They've now found love with soap star other halves Jacqueline Jossa and Ryan Thomas but before that, Dan Osborne and Lucy Mecklenburgh were an item.They began dating in 2013 but called it quits amid claims he knew about his ex Megan Tomlin being pregnant before getting with Lucy.
8 of 11Charlie Sims and Ferne McCann
Ferne McCann's on/off relationship with Chloe Sims' brother Charlie provided LOTS of dramz on TOWIE over the years, with rumours she cheated on him cropping up more than once.Eventually Charlie publicly quit the show AND dumped Ferne at the same time in a series of tweets in 2014. Awks...
9 of 11Dan Edgar and Kate Wright
Before she wed footballer Rio and became Mrs Ferdinand, Kate Wright joined TOWIE as the ex of Dan Edgar, who reportedly dumped her to star in the show.She took him back after his romances with Lauren Pope and Jess Wright but it wasn't to be and they eventually split for good.
10 of 11Shelby Tribble and Tom McDonnell
Tom McDonnell joined TOWIE alongside a whole host of newbies including Harry Lee and Chloe Brockett in 2019 and soon caught the eye of Shelby Tribble following her split from Sam Mucklow.Sam soon came back on the scene though and Shelby dumped Tom to reunite with her ex. Sam and Shelby later quit the show together and now have a child together.
11 of 11James Argent and Jasmin Walia
In between his long-running relationships with Lydia Bright and Gemma Collins, James Argent was set up on a blind date with Jasmin Walia and they appeared to hit it off. Things seemed to move too quickly for his liking though, causing him to run from her house after being introduced to her parents. Oh, Arg...
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During an Instagram Q&A, one fan asked, "What made you not want to film TOWIE and just do the after show?"
Bobby then admitted, "It’s no secret that the last series I filmed was a tough one and emotionally draining for me, so it felt like the right time to take a step back and concentrate on my presenting career and then I was offered the job of hosting the official after party which I’ve absolutely adored!!"
During the last series, Bobby was involved in drama with his ex-boyfriend Harry Derbidge. Viewers will remember that while Harry denied cheating all those years ago, Bobby insisted that he had been unfaithful.
Last year Bobby also split from his ex-Matt Snape, sharing the news on Instagram, he wrote, "I can confirm that Matt and I are no longer together. We share some amazing memories of our time together and I truly wish him all the best.. x."
While the couple seemingly ended on good terms, it was reported that Bobby was left in “total shock” after Matt reportedly joined Tinder just days after the split.
The seemingly happy couple had been dating for over a year and viewers even saw the pair discussing starting a family.
"We’re together for over a year now, which is incredible," Bobby said to Matt during one scene.
"Where is your head in terms of being a parent, getting married - is that something you see yourself doing?"
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"100%. Always have done, since I was little. I’ve always known that I’ve always wanted a family life," Matt said. "And I think, when the time’s right, and when you’re ready in every aspect to make that step, 100%. We’ll go for it."
Even co-star Amy Childs seemed convinced the couple were meant to be, asking, "So when’s the wedding... you look so happy together".
"We ain’t there yet, I ain’t got a ring," Bobby jokingly replied.
The star met Matt at a salsa class on the show, seemingly turning around his back luck when it came to finding love. Bobby had dated fellow TOWIE star Harry Derbidgeas well as MMA trainer Chris Parkes, before taking part in 2017’s Celebs Go Dating.
Unfortunately he split from Jack, who he met on the programme, just weeks after the cameras stopped rolling.