TOWIE returned to our screens earlier this month for a whopping 26th series and it’s safe to say, between Chloe Sims' feud with Pete Wicks and the bullying scandal involving Chloe Brockett and Olivia Attwood, there’s been no shortage of drama.
Another of the major storylines has been Frankie Sims’ relationship with Harry Lee after it was claimed that not only did he flirt up a storm with his ex Chloe Brockett during a boozy night out but Chloe also spread rumours about Frankie’s sex life.
Despite the accusations against him, which have been backed up by the likes of Amber Turner, Courtney Green and Chloe Meadows, Harry insists he has done anything wrong and now fellow cast member Ella Rae Wise has come to his defence.
In an exclusive chat with Closer online, Ella, who was also in attendance at the event, spilled the tea on what really went down between Harry and Chloe on the night.
“Yeah, I was there that night. We went to the club – everyone went to Reign in London – and we all had a table. We were all on the table together and they were just being friendly. There was no flirting,” she told us.
The story doesn’t end there though as Ella added, “Then we went to the bar and [Chloe] and Harry were talking and I remember Chloe got up a picture. I didn’t see the picture itself but it was along the lines of saying about Frankie and her sex life.
“I remember turning around and saying to Harry, ‘Harry, I know you’re only being nice by talking to her but you’re only going to get yourself in trouble’, and then look what happened.”
Hmm, the plot thickens.
CHECK OUT 11 TOWIE couples you forgot about
11 TOWIE couples you completely forgot about - slider
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. Things moved quick 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, nonetheless) during the cast's 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 are now expecting their first child.
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...
Despite the drama surrounding their relationship at the moment, Ella and her BFF Kelsey Stratford still reckon that Harry and Frankie can go the distance.
“I think they will last. I think they’re really good together but I think sometimes Harry’s just a bit too nice,” added Kelsey, who’s been working with charity SMA UK after opening up about her younger sister’s condition in emotional scenes.
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Ella and Kelsey also broke their silence on the TOWIE bullying row after 176 complaints were made to broadcasting watchdog Ofcom about Olivia Attwood, Nicole Bass and Clelia Theodorou’s explosive bust-up with Chloe Brockett.
Ahead of the launch of her clothing edit with Walking Wardrobe, Ella told us, “It's going to look like [bullying] because it looked like it was three against one and that is TOWIE's fault, like they should never put her in that position.
“If they were going to do that they shouldn't have had Yaz [Oukhellou] with her, they should have had Courtney Green and Chloe Meadows or Amber Turner with her. They could have like stuck up for her because Yaz is in the middle because she is friends with Olivia, Nicole and Clelia, as well as Chloe.
“A lot of that scene got cut and what Chloe was saying to them was vile.”
TOWIE airs Wednesdays and Sundays at 9pm on ITVBe