Sam Thompson is widely regarded as the happiest man in showbiz.
But over the past 12 months, the former Made In Chelsea star’s signature smile has masked a period of private turmoil.Â
He has had to cope with the breakup from his girlfriend of five years Zara McDermott, who moved on with One Direction star Louis Tomlinson, a nasty case of burnout, and a spell in therapy.
Indeed, 2025 threatened to be Sam’s year from hell, the first major bump in the road of a fledging career that had steadily been on the rise, exploding in 2023 when he was crowned King of the Jungle on I’m A Celebrity… Get Me out Of Here!
But thanks to some time out and reflection, Sam, 33, has emerged stronger than ever, not only with his health intact, but also a sold-out show at London’s O2 Arena, a monumental charity achievement, and, to cap it all off, a new relationship.
After a brief romance with Love Island star Samie Elishi, Sam has settled down with London DJ Talitha Balinska, spending their first Christmas together, with sources saying the couple is utterly smitten.Â
Over the past 12 months, Sam’s signature showbiz smile has masked a period of private turmoil, but the former Made In Chelsea star successfully overcame troubling times
He has had to cope with the breakup from his girlfriend of five years Zara McDermott, who moved on with One Direction’s Louis Tomlinson, a nasty case of burnout, and a spell in therapy
The documentary-maker wasn’t just Sam’s girlfriend, she was also his comedy sidekick on viral social media content that helped boost both of their profilesÂ
A source close to Sam told The Daily Mail that the past year has been incredibly tough for him.Â
They said: ‘Sam was certainly struggling at the beginning of 2025, and no one really knows the true extent of how his breakup from Zara affected him.
‘Despite suffering knockbacks many people would not have recovered from, Sam has managed to come out the other side in a much better place.Â
‘Now thriving, Sam is focused on building momentum in 2026 and is genuinely looking forward to the future.’Â
This time last year, Sam’s world was rocked by his breakup with Zara.
The documentary-maker wasn’t just Sam’s girlfriend, she was also his comedy sidekick on viral social media content that helped boost both of their profiles.
Their hilarious TikTok videos, often featuring his podcast co-host and best friend Pete Wicks, helped the couple land two of the biggest gigs in British television: I’m A Celeb for Sam, and Strictly Come Dancing for Zara.
The previously inseparable pair sparked breakup rumours after spending Christmas and New Year apart, with their separation revealed by The Daily Mail just hours into 2025.
The previously inseparable pair sparked breakup rumours after spending Christmas and New Year apart, with their separation revealed by The Daily Mail just hours into 2025Â Â
Sam achieved a major career milestone this year, performing a sold-out show at London’s O2 alongside his Staying Relevant podcast co-host, Pete Wicks, marking their success as a duo
Insiders said the split was due to intense work commitments. Zara was filming her BBC documentaries and competed on Strictly in 2023, while Sam co-hosted the I’m A Celeb spin-off show Unpacked in Australia during the final months of 2024. Both have insisted there was no scandal.
The breakup was made even more painful for Sam when Zara’s shock romance with Louis, 33, was confirmed just three months later.
A source close to the reality TV favourite revealed that the high-profile nature of Zara’s new relationship hit Sam hard.
The insider said: ‘Zara was always going to move on, but in an ideal world for Sam, her next romance wouldn’t be quite so headline-making.Â
‘Dating one of the most famous men on the planet was the last thing he needed after a breakup. Not only was he getting permanent reminders of their split, but his name was also inevitably part of their story in those early days. It was not a position he enjoyed in any way.’
Dealing with the fallout from his split was made even harder by Sam’s fragile mental state at the time, brought on by burnout.
He attributed his breakdown to a grueling work schedule following his I’m A Celeb win, which led to a dream role on This Morning and a new radio show, all layered on top of his already packed commitments.
The pressure became so overwhelming that Sam barely left the house for six months, venturing out only for work.
Dealing with the fallout from his split was made even harder by Sam’s fragile mental state at the time, brought on by burnout following his I’m A Celeb win in 2023
Speaking to the I’m ADHD! No You’re Not podcast in October, he opened up about just how debilitating that period was.
He said: ‘I won the jungle the year before that, but it was like a blessing and a curse,’ adding, ‘I’ve always wanted to work on This Morning, and they called up, do you want to come and work, and I was like ‘f*** yeah’, and then I got a new radio show, ‘f*** yeah’, a podcast three times a week, a live tour and then all the brand stuff because I love doing digital marketing on my Instagram, I adore it and have my own marketing agency, then I have the two businesses.
‘So, all of this stuff and then I did Unpacked which was the Australia show, I just wanted to gobble it all up.
‘Anyone listening to this will think f*** off and I get it… it’s all stuff we dream of doing but it doesn’t stop the energy from being zapped. I would sit there fighting and telling myself to stop being a little bitch.
‘I said yes to absolutely everything but by the end of the year I was in a really tough spot, like a really bad spot. Burnout is real. I took a bit of a step back this year.’
Sam took weeks out of the spotlight to recover, scaling back his media duties to focus on getting well again.
He was out of the country when Zara and Louis’ relationship was confirmed, reportedly he was tipped off first, but it was hardly the news he needed to get his mojo back.
Speaking to You magazine last week, Sam gave his first real insight into his split.
He said: ‘Look, I can’t speak about Zara out of politeness, and I respect that we’ve both kept it that way.
‘But I don’t know one person who enjoys going through a break-up. I needed therapy to help me process that change in my life. I worked so hard last year, I neglected friends and family, even myself a bit.’Â
Sam raised an incredible £1.5million for charity after running and cycling from London to Manchester over five days, the equivalent of five marathons
Pictures of so-called love rivals Sam and Louis training together at Soccer Aid HQ in Champneys, Tring, Hertfordshire, dominated the press coverage back in JuneÂ
He continued: ‘One of the big takeaways was to give myself some time, otherwise the danger is you get ill. We like to think we’re superheroes but then we burn out.’
Sam had a major reason to focus on his recovery – he was about to face the biggest challenge of his career yet, a grueling 260-mile endurance race to raise money for UNICEF as part of this year’s Soccer Aid.
The star’s Matchball Mission saw him running and cycling from London to Manchester over five days, the equivalent of five marathons, to deliver the matchball at Old Trafford ahead of the England versus Rest of the World fixture.
Despite a painful calf injury, Sam completed the challenge, raising an incredible £1.5 million. But as soon as he crossed the finish line on June 6, attention quickly shifted to the match itself nine days later, where he was due to play alongside a certain Louis Tomlinson.
Pictures of the so-called love rivals training together at Soccer Aid HQ in Champneys, Tring, Hertfordshire, dominated the press coverage. Journalists were briefed not to ask Sam about Louis, to avoid fuelling the story further.
Speaking two days after the match, which passed without incident, largely thanks to Sam pulling out due to injury (though he did make a late substitute appearance to receive praise for his charity efforts), he gave Pete on their Staying Relevant podcast a behind-the-scenes insight into what happened with the boyband star.
He said: ‘Look, it’s not about me and you know Louis, it’s not about who anyone’s dating… it’s f*****g UNICEF, its charity and everyone’s gonna be there for the exact same reason it’s to raise money.
‘If he’s got anything about him which I heard he does, he’s gonna sit there and say the exact same thing like it’s amazing.’
Getting through Soccer Aid, and his long-anticipated, awkward meeting with Louis, was a turning point for Sam. The monkey was finally off his back, and he was back in full flight.
Three months later, he and Pete performed a sold-out Staying Relevant One Night Only live show in front of 20,000 fans, cementing their status as major players in the rapidly growing podcast world.
Sam’s sister Louise has unofficially stepped into the role Zara once held as his partner-in-crime for TikTok content
Sam’s sister, Louise, 35, has unofficially stepped into the role Zara once held as his partner-in-crime for TikTok content. And after a few brief romances, he has finally found love again with Talitha Balinska.Â
The couple went Instagram official in December after a months of dating, and sources close to Sam say he’s so happy.Â
Speaking about his new relationship on his podcast, Sam announced: ‘I’ve got a girlfriend. I’ve got a girlfriend.
‘It was just super relaxed. It was so boring really, but that’s kind of how I wanted it to be. We just went for dinner and I was like, “I really like you,” and I just went “I’d love to be your boyfriend.” I don’t know why I’m panicking more now.’
He continued: ‘I said “Look, I really, really like you and you make me feel really comfortable. I feel like I can be myself around you. I don’t want to date anyone else. I’m 33, I wouldn’t be dating someone this amount of time if I didn’t think it had legs to last. So will you be my girlfriend?,” and she said “yes” and so I said “great.”‘
