Sam Thompson has been reunited with girlfriend Zara McDermott after winning ITV’s I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!
Strictly star Zara had previous commitments, so couldn’t meet him at the bridge after almost a month apart, but the Made in Chelsea star was overjoyed to be back by her side. Sam was crowned the winner of the latest series of the gruelling challenge show, after a total of 12 celebrities headed into the Australian jungle to rough it for three weeks, beating Nigel Farage and Tony Bellew.
New pictures show Sam and Zara’s emotional reunion as the pair locked lips at London’s Heathrow Airport on Wednesday afternoon. Sam was of course joined by his best friend Pete Wicks who had flown out to Australia to meet the reality star in camp.
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The TV star, 31, and the former Love Island contestant, 26, were pictured looking overjoyed as they kissed and embraced each other. Zara surprised the new king of the jungle with a cluster of rainbow-coloured balloons which said “Welcome home”.
Reflecting on how he was feeling about his win after landing back in the UK, he told the PA news agency: “It hasn’t sunk in yet but I’ve had my best mate Pete out there so he’s been keeping me very grounded. I told him to call me king for a day and he didn’t even want to do that. It’s been a really, really fun couple of days.”
Despite not being able to make it to the jungle, it didn’t stop Zara’s celebrations on Sunday as she watched Sam’s win from home. Video footage shows the moment her long-term beau was crowned King of the Jungle as she screams into the camera.
Surrounded by family and friends, Zara uploaded a clip at the weekend, showing her reaction to Sam’s victory, breaking down in tears. She penned on Instagram: “The moment we all found out… OUR KING OF THE JUNGLE!!!!!!!”
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Tony heaped praise on his co-star after his win, with Sam himself close to tears. Sitting on the throne and choking up, Sam told hosts Ant and Dec: “I feel overwhelmed, I didn’t even think I would get invited on the show.
Asked if he had a message for voters, he said: “I am so grateful, I have dreamed of being on this show. You just made a boy’s dream come true.”
Sam also told the presenting duo: “I never knew I could be as happy as I am right now, it’s been magical. It’s like a dream I don’t want you to wake me up from. I got asked for my down moments in there and I don’t know, even the moments I felt low I was like ‘I am feeling low in the jungle’.
“There were so many amazing people I never thought I would get to spend time with.” Asked about the prospect of winning he said: “I just wanted to hit cyclone. Anything else is a bonus and feels like a dream.”
The star opened up following his jungle victory in an exclusive wide-ranging chat with The Mirror’s Tom Bryant. Sam stayed out of trouble during the show when it came to getting involved in any of the fiery political debates such as Brexit.
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Sam says that this wasn’t a deliberate tactic to avoid controversy…but that he didn’t “have a clue” as to what they were talking about. “I didn’t know what was going on, and I had nothing to add, so I’d literally sit there and obviously with my ADHD, my gaze would go everywhere, and I’d just find myself following a butterfly instead down by the creek.”
As for Nigel Farage, he says he didn’t know “much about him” ahead of the jungle. He added: “The guy that I got used to in there was a sweet enough dude, he kept himself to himself but mucked in when he needed to.
“He is like 61 or something and going up and down that creek to get water, it’s tough. I’m glad I didn’t have any preconceived notions of him or anyone in there because, you know, it really makes the experience the most original you could ever have.”
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