Fan favourite The Only Way Is Essex star Sam Mucklow has revealed he's QUIT the show, saying he wants get away from the drama which causes "anxiety", as well as focusing on his relationship with co-star and girlfriend Shelby Tribble.
The 27-year-old, who is the younger brother of former TOWIE star Billi Mucklow, said he is currently unable to balance his workload, after becoming a full-time cast member last year.
Announcing the news on Instagram, the Essex hunk wrote, "GOODBYE TOWIE! I [have] made the decision to leave TOWIE. It was something I have been contemplating for some time and I finally had to make a decision about what I wanted to do.
"After the away trip in Spain I took a few weeks off of filming to try and get back on top of my work that I had let slide away from me.
"Juggling filming 3 days a week and trying to manage my various work commitments it was no longer feasible for me to continue on the show."
CHECK OUT: TOWIE's most iconic moments
TOWIE's most iconic moments - SLIDER
Amy gives Sam a vajazzle
There's no better place to start than the birth of the 'vajazzle', a crystal encrusted pattern that can be applied to a woman's nether regions to make their bits looks fancy and elegant. Beaut babe. After Amy Childs and Sam Faiers filmed this scene and it had aired, this was the only thing the nation was talking about, with salons across the country starting to offer the beauty treatment so fans of the show could replicate their idols and be a true Essex women.
Kirk calls Maria an extra
Cast your minds back to when Kirk Norcross and Lauren Pope were a thing (dig deep guys) and Kirk fell out with Lauren's friend Maria Fowler. Obviously, the pair were fighting over literally nothing, but that didn't stop them, as they came head to head in a bar and Kirk ended up calling Maria an "extra". Savage. Things then soured further as Maria started to date Kirk's DAD Mick Norcross, joking that she was Kirk's step-mum.
Arg buys Lydia a pig
When James 'Arg' Argent and Lydia Bright joined series 2 of the reality show, they instantly became fan favourites, with their romantic love story wooing the nation. So when Arg bought Lydia a micro pig named Mr Darcy to declare his love for her, they both made us think, 'Would our partner do that for us?'. However, it turned out Mr Darcy wasn't a micro pig and was in fact a normal pig, outgrowing Lydia's back garden and having to be sent to a farm to live.
Lauren and Mark get engaged
How could we forget the first ever engagement of TOWIE, with Mark Wright and Lauren Goodger looking loved up and ready to take on the world. They'd been together nearly ten years before they joined the show and their love seemed to blossom as Mark popped the question, confirming his love for the Essex beauty. There was just one thing, they got engaged in a car park. Classy.
Sam declares her love for Mark
But there was drama just around the corner, as Sam decided she was in love with the hunk and admitted it to his face, making him question whether he wanted to be engaged to Lauren anymore.
Lauren pushes Mark into a swimming pool
Literally, the most iconic moment. Having been questioning his relationship and engagement to Lauren, Mark was having doubts, as was Lauren, after rumours of cheating began to surface and cracks started to show. As Mark headed to a pool party with the rest of the cast, leaving Lauren at home, she was having none of it and decided to unexpectedly turn up. Mark was so surprised and Lauren kicked off, following Mark's comments that she should go back home. She ended up pushing him in the pool and the pair split.
Lucy and Mario get engaged
TOWIE has seen many of these but Lucy Mecklenburgh and Mario Falcone's engagement was the most romantic, extra TOWIE scene to air. Away on holiday, sunbathing on a yacht, Mario pulls out a whopper of a diamond and asks Lucy to be his wife. Despite the ups and downs in their relationship, it seemed like the pair were finally settled....
Lucy swilling Mario with red wine at a white party
Cue the drama. Lucy and Mario's relationship becomes plagued with cheating rumours, breaks down and they eventually call it quits. Will there ever be a happy ever after on this show? Probably not.
Harry's 18th birthday party
A favourite party moment of ours was when Harry Derbridge hosted a fancy dress themed party for his 18th, with many of the cast member going over the top (of course). Harry turned up as Lady Gaga, wowing his attendees but let's not forget the late Nanny Pat who turned up as the actual Queen. Icon.
Gemma telling Arg, "You ain't ever gong to get this candy
After Arg and Lydia broke up then got back together then broke up then got back together then finally ended their relationship, Arg moved on with Gemma Collins, otherwise known as the GC. Yet again, it looked like the pair were made for each other but things soon spiralled out of control and the relationship catastrophically ended, with Gemma turning up in front of everyone at a pool party, whacking off her caftan and shouting "You ain't ever going to get this candy". James just stood in the middle of the pool, mouth opened, shocked. We still haven't recovered.
Sam and Joey have their first date
Sam and Joey Essex were an unlikely match on TOWIE, seen as though Joey was a few years younger than Sam. However, the pair seemed to get on like a house on fire and decided to see whether their friendship would work as a relationship and Joey took Sam on their first date. But he took her to a dump. His reasoning was that it would be "different" and "cool", but it ended up being stinky and gut wrenching instead.
Gemma leaving Mick a pie, and him pieing her off
Kirk's dad Mick was a catch back in the day, owning the legendary club Sugar Hut, where all the cast members would party on and off screen. One cast member who wanted a bit of Mick was Gemma, who lovingly made him a pie and left it on his doorstep to win his affections. However, it didn't seem to work as Mick said he didn't like Gemma in that way and pied her off with her pie. Ouch.
When Gemma held an exorcism
Gemma is known for her "GC" persona - the larger than life, savage and diva princess. But in one episode, Gemma decided enough was enough and wanted to show the real her. Therefore, the took the logical conclusion to having an exorcism to get "the GC" persona out of her body. You cannot write this stuff.
Joey and Ricky fight in a shop
After Ricky Rayment joined the show, there wasn't an instant connection between him and Joey, after the pair were talking about each other behind each others backs. It all came to a head at the re-opening of Lauren Goodger's beauty salon, with the pair scrapping inside and outside the shop, knocking products over as they fought onto the high street. The fight was seen as so bad, Essex Police were called to stop the pair from fighting. They later apologised to each other and made up.
Gemma and Ferne's diva fight
The fight of all fights. In a quiet, suburban town sit three women as they watch Gemma and Ferne McCann have a war with words over who has "earned their divaship". Nothing else needs to be said, except from TV gold.
He continued, "After having long discussion with various people at the TOWIE production company we made the mutual decision that it would be best for me to leave the show.
"Me and @shelbytribble have never been happier and we are continuing our little fairytale away from the pressure and anxiety from the show.
"I really feel I have made the right decision to focus on the things that are truly important to me!"
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Sam concluded, "I wish everyone the best of luck cast and crew ✌️🙏 I have been extremely lucky to be part of such an amazing show! It’s been a short but eventful part of my life and I will be putting it down to a life experience with no regrets.
"I’m walking away with a smile on my face and a beautiful girl on my arm 🥰."
Fans were quick to comment on the post, expressing their sadness. One user wrote, "Please know that if I ever leave my job, I’m going to put out this same statement with relevant info changed 😂 this is both eloquent and succinct. Good luck in everything you do in your future ✌️" while another said, "So gutted to read but wish you and shelby the best xx."
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This is the latest Sam Mucklow news, after the reality star seemed to announce he had proposed to Shelby while the pair were away on holiday.
Taking to Instagram, he posted a picture of the duo kissing, with the caption, "Who's coming to the wedding then?"
However, it has been claimed the photo was in fact staged, purposely 'faked' to annoy Sam's ex-girlfriend Nicole Bass, as it was her BIRTHDAY when he posted the photo.
Awkward...