reveals

ACTRESS Helen Flanagan has spilt the tea on her relationship with former Towie star James Argent – and what happened with a big X Factor singer.

As well as detailing behind-the-scenes beef on the Coronation Street set, Helen, 35, has lifted the lid on her time on Channel 5 reality show, Celebrity Super Spa.

Helen took part alongside Towie’s James Argent, celebrity chefs Rusty Lee and John Burton-Race, Shameless actor Jody Latham and Most Haunted’s Yvette Fielding.

The show aired in 2013 and followed six celebrities as they worked in a real-life spa in Liverpool.

The actress has now spilled the beans in her explosive new memoir, Head & Heart: Break-ups, Breakdowns and Being Rosie on her romances on and off screen.

The former Corrie star, who shares three kids with ex fiance Scott Sinclair, spoke about chemistry with Towie star Arg while they were on Channel 5’s Celebrity Super Spa.

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She revealed: “I became firm friends with James ‘Arg’ Argent from The Only Way is Essex and we would spend all our time together. 

“I know the producers were hoping for a show romance to develop and they’d try to push me towards him, dropping hints like, ‘Ah, you and Arg are so cute together…’ 

“But I was too mixed up over Scott and I didn’t even know if I actually fancied Arg although I did like him a lot. 

“He definitely wasn’t my usual type. I usually went for sporty guys who were into their health and fitness whereas Arg would eat four Greggs sausage rolls for breakfast. 

“I think he was probably more into me than I was him, but there was a brief moment of heat between us which felt… weird. 

“We were in my hotel room, lying on the bed while he was stroking my back – I think it could have spilled over then, but there was something holding me back. 

“And when that moment passed, it was like it was done. I wasn’t over Scott so it would have been a mistake to use Arg as a rebound.”

Opening up about a flirtation with former The X Factor star James Arthur, she said: “When I got back, I was booked to do a BBC Three comedy panel show called Sweat the Small Stuff which was presented by Nick Grimshaw and had Rochelle Humes and Melvin Odoom as the team captains. 

“The episode I was on also happened to feature James Arthur who had won The X Factor in 2012 and you could say that we, erm, hit it off. 

“Egged on by Grimmy, me and James flirted pretty outrageously throughout the filming and swapped numbers afterwards with a loose arrangement to meet up for a drink in the not too distant future. 

“Nothing ever came of it apart from the exchange of some harmless WhatsApps, but once the episode aired a few days later, the press got hold of it and ran multiple stories saying we were dating.” 

The Celebs Go Dating star added: “Scott was livid about it and tried everything he could to get hold of me, ringing my mobile and calling my parents’ landline. 

“I didn’t want to speak to him. He’d been so horrible to me and I was trying to get over him, something I felt like I was making good progress with.”

The soap star split from her “toxic” relationship with her footballer ex in October 2022 after 13 years together and share three children – Matilda, Delilah and Charlie.

Following her split from footballer Scott, Helen enjoyed a “situationship” with boxer David Hayes.

While she first met David on I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here back in 2012, things didn’t turn romantic until 11 years later – but they broke off their fling in December 2023.

She also revealed that she once batted off the attention of disgraced influencer Andrew Tate after matching with him on a dating app.

The actress shot to fame as a child star on the ITV soap playing tearaway Rosie Webster.

The mum-of-three now works as an influencer and model, and has starred in reality shows like Celebs Go Dating.

The Rosie Webster star on the ITV soap opera also confirmed a rift with Corrie co-star Ryan Thomas at the time of her soap departure.

She revealed she told him to “f*** off” during one tense moment on set before she quit altogether.

Helen’s book Head & Heart: Break-ups, Breakdowns and Being Rosie is out now

They’ve spent the last four summers in searing heat but next year they won’t be needing to pack a bikini or trunks

Amanda Holden and Alan Carr will return with a fifth series of their hit BBC1 property renovation show next year – but this time it will have a very different feel.

Because while the shows have so far been set under the hot Mediterranean sun in Italy, Spain and Greece – the next one is going to be a lot chillier. For the first time, the pair will be taking their lump hammers and hard hats and heading to Scandinavia.

Alan told the Mirror: “The producers are looking at Sweden or Norway for the next one. I think maybe it will be an eco-house up there. It will probably be an igloo or something, knowing them.” He said that moving the popular programme to a different landscape within a Nordic country was a very good idea. “I think there’s only so many times you can sort of look at a tile in the heat and go, ‘You need this…’” he laughed.

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“And actually, I’m never going to be like Handy Andy, but I do know how to use a drill now – so it just feels like I do need another challenge. It will be something very different. We’re excited. And it will be so nice to not be working in the searing heat.”

The series kicked off with The Italian Job, which filmed in the summer of 2022 in 40 degree temperatures. It was similarly sweaty in Tuscany the following year, and again in Andalusia for The Spanish Job in 2024. And there was no respite from the heat of high summer during filming on The Greek Job, currently entertaining 4million viewers every week, which was filmed in Corfu last summer.

But the temperature in the north of Norway during July can be just 10 degrees, and while further south it tends to be around 20 degrees – the same as the average Swedish temperature – the experience is guaranteed to be far fresher for them next time around.

In the show, which always airs on BBC1 from January, the pals don boiler suits and grab power tools to renovate and decorate a dilapidated property which is then sold off, with all profits going to the BBC charity Children in Need.

The new project is likely to focus on using natural and sustainable materials to create a well-insulated and energy efficient home which respects the local landscape. It may involve solar panels or a green moss roof, plus plenty of timber.

The Italian properties featured on the series each cost just 1Euro to buy, then sold for £125k and £185k respectively. The Spanish house also made a tidy profit, having been bought for £55k and sold for over £200k. “That’s good, because the money goes to charity as well, so it’s really positive,” Alan said. One reason that the filming location needs to stay within Europe – rather than moving further afield – is so that Amanda, 54, can travel back and forth to present her Heart Radio breakfast show.

Alan and Amanda were both delighted when the production team chose Corfu for the current run, because it is a regular holiday destination for Amanda and her family, and Alan, 49, has even joined them there.

But when they arrived on the idyllic Ionian island ahead of filming, they were horrified by what they found. “It’s a dump,” Alan lamented about the house, while Amanda agreed it was “definitely the worst” they had encountered. Nevertheless, they soon set about turning it into a dream family escape, with their efforts on display in the final two episodes from Friday.

The pair believe that the secret of their success is that “we muck in and we encourage each other”. Alan has told how, after four years, he’s even started to have fun while knocking down walls. “I have got much better,” he said of his skills earlier this month. “I was thinking, the latter end of The Greek Job, I was actually enjoying it, and I’ve never, ever enjoyed DIY.”

They said that making the series had deepened their friendship and they now texted each other on a daily basis. “We are the same,” Amanda explained. “We laugh at the same stuff. The worst time was when he was filming The Traitors and I didn’t hear from him for three weeks. I knew he must have done quite well because he was gone for so long.” After seeing Alan’s triumph on The Celebrity Traitors, Amanda is now in talks to take part in the next series later this year.

Like this story? For more of the latest showbiz news and gossip, follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok, Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Threads.

KATIE Price has revealed a brand new tattoo on her shoulder just days after getting her new husband’s name inked.

The former glamour model, 47, stunned fans when she revealed that she had married businessman Lee days after meeting him.

The mother-of-five got hitched for a fourth time in a quiet ceremony in Dubai with no loved ones present.

It came just hours after Katie revealed they had got engaged, calling it a “wedding at first sight”.

Katie has since returned to the UK after without her new man, while Lee took to social media to dispel reports that their marriage wasn’t official in the eyes of the law.

Now Katie has showed off yet another new tattoo – and it’s huge.

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The media personality posted a picture of her revealing a new design on her left shoulder.

This is the latest inking to her massive collections.

Just a a few days ago, Katie revealed she had her new man’s name inked on her hand, while he had her name on his.

And earlier this month, the podcaster showcased her huge flower tattoo on her bum as well as horses on her forearm and stomach.

Her various leg inkings were also on display.

Katie wrote: “I absolutely love it!! Now that is what you call a piece of ART!”

When it came to her bum art, Katie said: “Tattoo round 3,” with a picture of her full behind peeking out from red tracksuit bottoms.

Earlier this year, Katie stripped naked to show off her tattoo-covered back and captioned the revealing shot: “Join my Onlyfans link in my bio,” referring to the X-rated online subscription service.

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Earlier today, Lee revealed the real reason he had not jetted back to the UK with Katie.

He said: “I’m going be meeting Katie tomorrow in the UK.

“I just need to wrap up a few things here.

“She had to get back for her children because she’s a good mother and she’s lovely like that.”

Despite currently being apart, a smiling Lee said that he and Katie “are so happy” and that more information would be coming out via their publicists in the coming days.

“Hey guys, how are you?” he began in a video posted on his Instagram Stories.

“So yeah, myself and Katie are legally married okay. I think you know that.

“No, I’m not a gigolo,” he added. “There is a press release going out.

“I wish,” he said of the gigolo nickname. “I would have got more money from it wouldn’t I, I don’t think those are the going rates in Dubai, but let’s look at it obtusely.

“So yes, I’m in Dubai, she’s in England,” he confirmed again of their current locations. “You’ll see us reunite.”

Before signing off, Lee made a brief swipe at online speculation over the couple’s wedding rings.

Some eagle-eyed fans claimed that Katie previously wasn’t wearing her diamond engagement ring and wedding band on the correct finger.

“Our rings are on the correct hand,” he said in the video, jokily adding: “Which is on the right hand, no I’m joking, it’s on the left hand.”

“And the tattoos still remain,” he added, flashing a glimpse of his Katie tribute inking on his hand.

The Sun understands Katie’s family, including her children, Princess and Junior Andre, had no idea she was getting married for a fourth time.

A source has exclusively told us that her loved ones are set to take action after growing alarmed by the quick nuptials.

“They’re planning on sitting down with her for a serious talk today,” the insider said.

“Everyone is worried she’s spinning out of control.

“They haven’t even met this man and if she’s only known him a week, he could be anyone.

“Nobody is planning to hold back.”

HELEN Flanagan has revealed she thought she was being drugged and feared her kids would be taken away from her following her split from ex-fiance Scott Sinclair.

The former Coronation Street actress opened up on the breakdown she experienced after parting ways with the footballer in 2022 after 13 years together.

She told The Mirror: “It was the worst time that I’ve ever struggled with my mental health.”

Helen, who is on medication for obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD), believes she experienced an adverse reaction to her prescription drugs which fuelled the feelings.

“He really wasn’t playing fair,” she said of Scott’s behaviour at the time.

“So I had quite a lot of financial stuff going on as well and the stress of solicitors. I was also totally heartbroken after David Haye.

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“It just all became too much and I began to experience psychosis,” she said of the post-break-up breakdown.

“I thought I was being watched, filmed, hunted, possibly even drugged, I was seeing things that weren’t there.

“It was really frightening – I thought my kids were going to be taken away, the nursery got involved,” she added.

“I do think the medication was really bad for me, but I became quite addicted to it.”

Helen shares three kids with Scott – Matilda, ten, Delilah, seven, and Charlie, four.

The Celebs Go Dating star credited her parents and therapists as helping her to get through the dark time.

Her relationship with ex Scott continues to remain strained, with Helen recently taking several public swipes at the father of her children.

Just last week, The Sun reported how Helen was being forced out of her £1million family home by her ex.

A friend of Helen’s said: “Scott pays for the house and all the bills and he’s decided a six-bedroom place is way too big for Helen on her own with the kids.

“But Helen doesn’t want to move and is digging her heels in. She loves the place, the kids are settled at the local school and her mum and dad live around the corner.

In wake of the news, the lingerie model branded Scott “a d***head” in a new interview with the Daily Mail, confessing that the two have a “very bad relationship”.

“We only communicate through my father now. There is so much worse I could say,” she told the publication.

Over Christmas, Helen was also left furious after she spotted photos of Scott at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

She publicly hit out on her Instagram Stories: “You really are a piece of s***. How dare you not turn up to Charlie’s nativity.”

At the time, the former soap star was playing the Wicked Queen in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs at Liverpool‘s M&S Bank Arena.

Helen admitted she now takes jobs she usually wouldn’t do to pay the bills and that she feels “mum guilt” at leaving her kids to work.

“So, I can’t forgive Scott for stealing a lot of my time with my children. I resent him for that.”

Helen is expected to dish more on her break-up with Scott in her new book Head And Heart: Break-ups, Breakdowns and Being Rosie, which is released tomorrow.

ONE of the UK’s original Victorian seaside towns is set to get even more beautiful – thanks to a multi-million pound train station renovation.

Scarborough Train Station has revealed new images of the £14million upgrade which is set to be completed by March.

Repairs have been underway at the station in the popular seaside town at the cost of £14million.

The project includes a new station roof, drainage system as well as the restoration of the stonework and general preservation of the Grade II-listed building.

Still yet to be finished is the waiting room and ticket office which will also be refurbished.

The changes made are set to ‘enhance passenger experience’ at the station – which has remained open during the works.

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One of the most recognisable parts of Scarborough Station is the clock tower which is being restored thanks to a grant of £203,000 from the Railway Heritage Trust. 

Ann Shannon, scheme project manager for Network Rail, said: “We’ve been able to repair all four clock faces, fully refurbish the tower and finials, and upgrade the uplighting.

“The finish line is now in sight, and visitors will see a real difference both inside and outside the station, with the beautifully restored clocktower providing the crowning glory.”

Trains from Scarborough generally call at Sheffield and York.

The town of Scarborough was made Britain’s first seaside resort in the early 17th century after the discovery of mineral waters running from the cliffs through the town.

This saw an increase of tourists visiting the town and the addition of bathing ‘machines’ – for people to change into swimwear which arrived in 1735.

With a rising number of holidaymakers, it opened a train station in 1845 to connect Scarborough to York.

Scarborough is well-known for being an incredibly popular destination for families heading to the seaside in the summertime.

The town has two beaches, North Bay Beach and South Bay Beach, and has been welcoming holidaymakers to its shores for over 400 years.

North Bay is the quieter spot along the coast, while South Bay is where you’ll find amusement arcades, cafes and a busy harbour.

Other seafront attractions include the miniature railway called North Bay Railway, Scarborough Open Air Theatre and Scarborough Sea Life Centre.

The Grand Hotel in Scarborough is one of the seaside town’s most recognisable buildings and sits high above the promenade.

The building was completed in 1867 and at the time was the largest hotel in Europe – and one of the largest in the world.

It’s had some famous faces stay there over the course of history too from Winston Churchill to The Beatles.

When the Sun’s Alex Lloyd visited last summer, she discovered brightly coloured beach huts on South Bay which can be rented from £50 a day in peak summer.

She also visited the South Cliff Gardens and hopped onboard the town’s funicular railway.

For more on train stations, the UK’s busiest has revealed new plans for massive £1.2billion transformation.

Plus, this is UK’s ‘best rural train station’ which is next to the seaside-themed town that is miles away from the coast.

SPAIN has always been a top holiday destination for Brits – but is quickly being taken over by a number of other destinations.

According to Jet2 CEO Steve Heapy, Spain has lost its appeal to holidaymakers with other destinations coming for its crown thanks to rising costs.

In an interview with Hosteltur, Mr Heapy predicted that Brits are ditching Spain for other destinations, all in North Africa.

The reason being? Money.

Mr Heapy explained: “Price is critical; inflation has affected Spain more than other emerging markets, making the destination more expensive.

“Tourist taxes don’t help either; paying an additional five euros per person per night on top of the trip cost represents a significant expense.”

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In places like Barcelona, the surcharge for overnight stays is rising to €5 £4.34) per night.

In the Balearic Islands like Majorca and Ibiza, there’s an eco-tax added to accommodation which ranges between €1 (87p) to €4 (£3.47)pppn.

It will soon also be more expensive to fly to Spain, as previously reported, Aena, which operates the majority of airports in Spain, is increasing its airport charges by 6.44 per cent in 2026.

With the increase in cost, Mr Heapy said that Brits are heading to other locations instead – which are still just a few hours away from the UK.

He said: “North Africa is performing well, with Morocco, Tunisia, and Egypt standing out.”

Morocco is a great option for Brits, especially those seeking winter sun – and some destinations are less than an hour from the UK.

A flight from the UK to the vibrant city of Marrakesh takes just three hours and 40 minutes.

In February there are highs of 21C – much warmer than being in the UK at that time of year.

It’s cheap too, according to Skyscanner you can fly with Ryanair from London Stansted from just £15 on February 23, 2026.

On that same day, it’s more expensive to fly to Madrid which is £17 – and the journey is one hour less.

Head of Sun Travel Lisa Minot recently visited the Moroccan city where she discovered desert landscapes, colourful streets and new bars, restaurants and hotels.

Other popular destinations in Morocco include Agadir which has beautiful golden beaches, the country’s capital Rabat, Essaouira on the southern coast, Fez and Tangier.

Tunisia is also back in the game according to Jet2’s Mr Heapy.

The number of Brits heading on holiday there has risen significantly with around 350,000 British visiting in 2024 – 65 per cent more than the previous year.

And numbers are rising thanks to its great weather, short flights and beautiful beaches.

And according to TravelSupermarket, Tunisia offers some of the very cheapest 5-star holidays on the market, averaging at £614pp.

Egypt has plenty of beautiful beachside resorts that will appeal to Brits seeking a fly and flop holiday.

You’ve got beach resorts like Sharm El Sheikh and Hurghada, or if you want more of the city life, head to Cairo of Luxor & Aswan.

With loveholidays, breaks to Sharm El Sheikh including breakfast and flights start from as little as £219pp.

There were other Mediterranean destinations that Mr Heapy said are keeping a good level of tourism – like Greece.

There you get the best of both worlds from ancient cities to beautiful islands.

It’s also home to the world’s best island for 2025 – Paros, where travellers will find secret beach clubs and incredible restaurants where holidaymakers dance on tables.

Spain’s neighbour, Portugal, is also continuing to be popular especially in places like Lisbon, Porto and the Algarve region.

One writer who relocated from London to Lisbon still can’t believe how cheap it is.

You can pick up booze for less than £5 – from local beer to wine, she said “you can still purchase a top-quality house white or red for just a few euros.”

Coffee can be bought up for around 80p if you like an espresso – or coffee with milk – called a ‘galão’ – will usually come in at under two euros.

For more on Portugal, here’s the secret side of the country crowned one of the best places in Europe to visit.

And hear from one Greece expert who names four better value islands where locals go on holiday with Santorini-like houses and secluded beaches.