Sam Thompson has been through a lot in the past year, including a split from his partner Zara McDermott, and the growth of his podcast Staying Relevant with friend Pete Wicks
Podcaster Sam Thompson has announced that he is ‘done’ with reality TV as he switches his focus to other projects.
The former Made in Chelsea star, 33, said that he had reached an age where he felt it was time to stop and concentrate on podcasts and documentaries.
Sam, who won the 2023 edition of I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here! has been building up a following through the podcast he co-hosts with friend Pete Wicks called ‘Staying Relevant’.
Speaking to Closer about his transition from reality TV to other projects, Sam said: “You get to an age when you go, ‘I’m done’, when it comes to reality TV. The jungle was the perfect end to my time in that sphere, because you can’t beat that.
“I haven’t had a holiday in two years. Next year I’d love to take some time off. Maybe there’s another documentary on the cards, too.”
Whilst documentaries may be on the horizon, for the moment Sam is best known for the podcast he co-hosts with former Strictly Come Dancing contestant Pete Wicks, who has been a supportive friend since Sam’s split from fellow Made in Chelsea star Zara McDermott in January.
This has included taking a lie detector test in which Pete, 36, admitted he preferred Sam being single to when he was with Zara, whom he dated for five years. The operator of the lie detector confirmed Pete was telling the truth.
Whilst Pete has been supportive of Sam, he has also teased him about being a “single man with cats”—felines who Sam describes as “like my sons.”
Speaking to The Standard about his relationship with his podcasting co-host, Sam is honest about their surprise at their success as they prepare for a live recording in front of 20,000 people at London’s O2.
He said: “We’re so proud of ourselves for getting there. It’s wild and we can’t believe it’s happening. When we were looking back at all the things we’ve done, we found ourselves just cracking up. We really have done some things.”
Speaking to The Sun about his future plans, Sam doubled down on his desire to slow the pace to ‘consolidate’ what he has at the moment. He said: “Next year, I want to really consolidate and figure out what it is that I want to do, and not just be a yes man.
“I feel like I’m lucky enough to be in a position where I really can. And I want to decide what it is I actually want to do—maybe that’s something really important, and find out what my legacy will be.”