Sam Thompson has appeared to discuss the aftermath of the separation from Zara McDermott in an episode of his podcast with Pete Wicks.
The I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here! winner reunited with his pal Pete on a new episode of Staying Relevant out today, where he addressed navigating a split in the public eye.
"It was tough," he told Pete. "It's been a real tough month."
Related: Zara McDermott announces next TV project with BBC
Last week, reports claiming a breakup between Zara and Sam emerged, detailing how the two reality TV star spent Christmas and New Year's separately.
On the podcast, Sam weighed in on making headlines with the split and dealing with paparazzi stationed outside his house.
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Sam said he's not "a press guy" and has struggled to deal with photographers, saying: "I've never had paps and stuff because I'm so boring. I've never really had to deal with it."
Addressing the media coverage of the split, Sam said: "The story broke of 'the thing' the day after New Year's", adding that some outlets published pictures of him going out on Christmas and New Year's.
"I don't go out," Sam said, with Pete joking: "Sam went out twice last year throughout the entire year."
"You just gotta ride the wave," Pete advised his friend.
"I crumble under scrutiny and confrontation," Sam said.
"You've handled yourself with a lot of decorum," Pete told Sam. "You've handled yourself really well."
Related: Pete Wicks addresses "very close" relationship with Maura Higgins
While not mentioning Zara directly, Sam also spoke on how they've lived their relationship publicly, understanding why fans may want to be privy of their breakup as well.
"I don't know if they have the right [to know], but I understand why people think they do have the right to know what's going on because you live your life in the public eye," he said, adding: "You gotta be respectful of other parties."
Finally, Sam seemingly suggested that he and Zara will be discussing the split, saying: "It's nice to be able to be like, 'Look, we're obviously gonna talk a little bit about it because we share all of our lives'."
Digital Spy has reached out to Sam and Zara's representatives for comment but didn't immediately hear back.
Reporter, Digital Spy
Stefania is a freelance writer specialising in TV and movies. After graduating from City University, London, she covered LGBTQ+ news and pursued a career in entertainment journalism, with her work appearing in outlets including Little White Lies, The Skinny, Radio Times and Digital Spy.
Her beats are horror films and period dramas, especially if fronted by queer women. She can argue why Scream is the best slasher in four languages (and a half).
