Sam Thompson’s New Year may have got off to a rocky start following his split from girlfriend Zara McDermott, but he is taking comfort that his career is going from strength-to-strength.
Fans were shocked when it was revealed earlier this month that Thompson, 32, and McDermott, 28, had called time on their five-year romance.
The former I’m A Celebrity winner is still smiling however and bursting with excitment over his many plans for the future.
Number one is putting his days competing on reality TV shows behind him and following in the footsteps of his presenting heroes Ant and Dec.
He first made his reality TV debut back in 2013 in Made In Chelsea and since then, the London-born star has done pretty much every reality TV show going from Celebrity Big Brother to Celbrity SAS: Who Dares Wins, Celebs Go Dating (twice), and The Circle.
For him, winning I’m A Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here in 2023 and being crownd the Jungle King was the “pinnacle” and while he wouldn’t trade his experiences for the world, says he’s ready to take the next step.
Thompson already hosts his own Hits Radio show, is a contributor on ITV’s This Morning and co-hosts the number one rated Staying Relevant podcast with best friend Pete Wicks. Last December also saw him join Joel Dommett and Kemi Rodgers in fronting I’m A Celeb spin-off show Unpacked.
Increasingly in-demand by brands, he has now teamed with Heinz on its comfort campaign, proving that Heniz soup is scientifically as comforting as a hug from a loved one - Thompson as it goes entered the Guinness Book of World Records last year for achieving most hugs in a minute by an individual after wrapping his arms around 88 people.
Sitting down with The Standard to walk through his masterplan on behalf of Heinz, he said: “I’m 32 and I started at 20 in this industry and doing reality TV. I’ve done so much [and] I’d always wanted to do the jungle my whole entire life and I don’t think after that I would ever want to be a contestant again. I want to host eventually, I would love to host the sofa on This Morning on a Friday just once.
“I’m so happy with the journey I went on with [the reality TV] side of things, but I think whatever happens in my future and my career, I think that stays where it is because that’s just such beautiful memories,” he continued.
“I want to show people that I can do the anchoring and that I can actually host things. With Unpacked I got to watch Ant and Dec every single day in Australia. I got to watch Joel every day with his script, going through his script meetings, I got to watch all of that. So I want to build up all of this learning experience and then I want to keep doing what I’m doing in terms of Unpacked and doing some things on This Morning and keeping being present until eventually hopefully people will go he’s paid his dues, he’s good at what he does more importantly and I think I am good at what I do and we’re going to give him a shot.”
Away from the cameras, Thompson is hoping to put pen to paper and write a book about another area he’s passionate about - ADHD.
ADHD, which stands for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, is a condition that affects people’s behaviour.
Its symptoms include restlessness, impulsivity, hyperactivity, and issues with concentration.
Thompson was diagnosed with the condition at the age of 30 and revealed his diagnosis in the 2023 E4 documentary Sam Thompson: Is this ADHD?. He is now an ambassador for charity ADHD UK.
“I’m doing one of the hardest things I’ve ever done in my life later on in the year, that’s going to be a big thing I think,” he said of the challenge.
“For a very long time, I would love to do an ADHD children’s book. It has become such a huge part of my life so I think that’s the next step for that. It would be really fun, really exciting.”
