It’s an unwritten rule of showbiz that when a celebrity pairing becomes unstuck, the newly single members choose their next partner from the same elite pool, rather than dipping a toe in what Liz Hurley once famously referred to as the ‘civilian’ world.
So when musician Jesse Wood and TV presenter Fearne Cotton announced the end of their 10-year marriage last December, onlookers expected the son of Rolling Stones guitarist Ronnie Wood to hook up with a fellow A-lister, someone comfortable around household names, accustomed to the red carpet and probably used to VIP treatment.
Little wonder, then, that there was a moment of confusion last month when Jesse posted a loved-up snap on social media with his arm around Gemma Gregory – a beautiful blonde who once appeared on reality show Made In Chelsea – captioned ‘bloody love this one’.
But if anyone was worried that Gemma, 39, wouldn’t be able to hold her own in his starry circle, they needn’t be. She is in fact a former squeeze of the King’s godson Nicholas Knatchbull (grandson of the late Earl of Mountbatten), and of Henry Brett, an international polo player and former captain of the England team.
The London-born daughter of actor Paul Gregory, Gemma has also notched up a number of film and TV roles, notably in Gypsy Girl (2001) where she starred alongside Leslie Grantham, who played ‘Dirty Den’ Watts in EastEnders.
For far from being the byword for the Z-list that it once was, Made In Chelsea, the reality show which documents the gilded lives of the inhabitants of the capital’s richest borough, has catapulted its way through the showbiz rankings, securing its participants a new-found credibility among the industry’s top tier. After 14 years and 29 series, its alumni today are authors, podcasters and even front their own TV shows.
Earlier this year another MIC graduate Zara McDermott was revealed to be dating One Direction star Louis Tomlinson.
And let us not forget that the most famous of its former stars, Spencer Matthews, is related by marriage to the heir to the throne, as his brother James Matthews is husband of Pippa Middleton, sister of the Princess of Wales.
So who’s stepping out with who, who’s dumped who and who is now inextricably linked to who in the Made In Chelsea universe currently dominating Britain’s A-list dating scene?
THE SERIAL DATERS
When the E4 show launched in 2011, its scripted reality format was relatively new in the UK, being tried out also in nearby Essex (The Only Way Is Essex) and Newcastle (Geordie Shore).
But what MIC had in its favour was a bank of genuinely posh, rich, well-connected, not to mention beautiful, young people from which to draw its cast.
The early series revolved around Eton-educated Spencer Matthews and Radley College alumnus Jamie Laing, as viewers devoured their friendship ups and downs and relationship crossovers. Spencer, now 36, was a boisterous young man in his 20s when he first appeared on screen and slept with a host of the show’s female participants. But it was his relationship with Louise Thompson that prompted one of the show’s early explosive storylines.
Louise, who boarded at Kate Middleton’s alma mater Downe House before going to Edinburgh University where she was scouted for the show, was also linked to Jamie and caused a rift in the pair’s friendship.
‘I cannot believe you’d do this to one of your best mates,’ Jamie said at the time. ‘Spencer, you cannot treat me like this and hurt me. No mates of mine would ever do this to me.’
It was against this backdrop that a young Gemma Gregory popped up in 2012, initially thought to provide a love interest for another serial dater – Harrow-educated Hugo Taylor, now 38 – who had just been dumped by his girlfriend for cheating.
Gemma had known Hugo since childhood and was quickly seen prancing about in her bikini and opening bottles of wine with her teeth, but romance failed to blossom between the two. One insider dubbed her ‘a nightmare to work with’, saying she ‘turned up late for filming’. In one scene, Hugo told Spencer: ‘I like Gemma. She’s a nice girl but she can’t handle her drink.’
Within a year Gemma’s stint on the show was over and she had joined the ranks of the host of other posh lovelies who had appeared – in much the same way actors notch up an episode or two of Casualty – before going on to other things.
In 2014 she gave birth to son Benji and today, when not acting, she falls back on that other posh girl activity, painting. She regularly posts her work on social media. She is believed to be sober – like her new love Jesse, who entered rehab to treat his own addiction – and posts her sobriety journey on Instagram.
THE BROKEN HEARTS CLUB
Unsusprisingly, given all the hook-ups, there have also been a host of grisly break-ups both on the show and after the stars have left. Most recently, of course, was the split between Sam Thompson and Zara McDermott, which was swiftly followed by her new relationship with 1D’s Louis.
Sam, now 32, and brother of fellow MIC stalwart Louise Thompson, arrived in 2013 and stayed for seven years during which time he dated several of the show’s participants before falling for Zara, a former civil servant turned Love Island contestant, when she arrived in 2019. It wasn’t all plain sailing, however, and when Zara cheated on Sam then begged him to take her back during one memorable scene on a park bench, the clip went viral.
For a while the pair looked as if they might be one of the show’s biggest success stories. Sam went on to appear in a slew of other reality shows, including I’m a Celebrity, which he won in 2023.
Today he is a host on Hits Radio and has presented a podcast called Staying Relevant with his friend and fellow reality star Pete Wicks, who has appeared on TOWIE and Strictly.
Zara, meanwhile, has fronted a series of documentaries for the BBC and appeared on Strictly in 2023 alongside celebrity partner Graziano Di Prima, who was later found to have kicked the star during a training season and was dropped from the pro dancer line-up. When Zara and Sam called time on their relationship last year, he was said to be brokenhearted.
This week Zara and pop star Louis were snapped at a supermarket in North London having spent Easter together, rubbing further salt in the wound.
Her new relationship also gives her a connection into another echelon of showbiz royalty as Louis’ sister Lottie Tomlinson is engaged to Caroline Flack’s ex, Lewis Burton. The pair share two young children.
Another famous broken heart was Quality Street heiress Millie Mackintosh, 35, who appeared in the early years of the show and, after a fling with Spencer, began dating Hugo Taylor. During series two, she discovered that Hugo had been cheating on her with her best friend and co-star Rosie Fortescue. Millie outed the betrayal in front of their friends at a dinner party in a scene that has gone down in MIC history.
Millie went on to marry rapper Professor Green at Babington House in Somerset in a union that would last from 2013 to 2016. It was later described by the heiress as drug-fuelled and ‘toxic’.
THE HAPPY EVER AFTERS
In a twist not even the reality script chiefs could write, Millie announced that she had rekindled her relationship with Hugo in the same week as her divorce from Professor Green was finalised.
The pair went on to marry on the Greek island of Mykonos in 2018…with Rosie as a bridesmaid! They are now proud parents to Sienna, five, and Aurelia, four.
Jamie Laing also sealed his union with MIC girlfriend Sophie Habboo in 2023, first in a London civil ceremony, followed by a star- studded party on Spain’s Andalusian coast. The guest list included Spencer Matthews (but not his wife Vogue Williams) and Lottie Moss, half-sister of supermodel Kate. Both Jamie and Sophie had several other partners on the TV show before finding true love. Sophie proved a huge support to her husband last month when he completed a gruelling ultra-marathon, running 150 miles in five days from London to Salford raising more than £2million for Comic Relief. The pair now host a successful podcast together called NewlyWeds.
Completing a trio of happy couples, formerly unlucky-in-love Louise Thompson became engaged to Ryan Libbey, a fitness instructor who also appeared in MIC. The pair are now parents to son Leo, three.
Louise, who suffers from ulcerative colitis, nearly bled to death during childbirth and has written about her ordeal.
Two other couples from the show also have children together – and even made it up the aisle. Lucy Watson and James Dunmore met on set in 2015. Lucy has since described their meeting as love at first sight. They married in 2021 and welcomed their son Willoughby last year.
Whether or not Jesse Wood and Gemma Gregory will join the reality show’s band of happy ever afters remains to be seen.