Sam Thompson says Made in Chelsea "takes your soul" as he quits after six years
Sam Thompson is moving on – although his sister Louise Thompson has denied rumours she's leaving the show
Made in Chelsea star Sam Thompson has revealed he is quitting the reality show after six years in the wake of his break-up from co-star Sophie "Habbs" Habboo.
The TV personality, 26, told radio station Heart that most of his friends had "upped and left" Made in Chelsea already, and that his split from Habbs has made him re-examine his role in the show. He will not be back for the 17th series.
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His sister Louise Thompson was also rumoured to be exiting the E4 show, although she hit back at the headlines suggesting an imminent departure, posting on her Instagram story: "I never said this."
Revealing his reasons for leaving, Sam explained: "You don't want to be around your ex. Everyone on there is now more her friend, and a lot of my friends have upped and left.
"[MIC] takes your soul, you are so invested in it as it is your real life."
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Sam joined the show in 2013, following in the footsteps of his sister Louise. Since then, many of the older cast members have left.
Before their recent breakup, he and Habbs had a whirlwind relationship and Sam came under plenty of scrutiny for his behaviour.
"I get a lot of things wrong, and I think to learn, evolve and grow as a human you have to make mistakes but when you're doing it on TV, people are judgey. It'll be nice not to have that level of scrutiny," he said. "Getting dumped all the time was chipping away at my confidence."
The new series of Made in Chelsea will feature familiar faces including Jamie Laing, Louise Thompson and her fiancé Ryan Libbey, Olivia Bentley, Alex Mytton, Miles Nazaire, James Taylor, Sophie ‘Habbs’ Habboo, Sophie Hermann, Harry Barron and Melissa Tatum, Oliver Proudlock, Fredrick Ferrier, Eliza Batten, Mark Francis Vandelli and Victoria Baker-Harber.
Also joining the cast are newcomers Amelia Mist, Angus Findlay, Verity Bowditch, Rosi Mai, Ollie Buck, Maeva D'Ascanio and Freddie Browne.
As for Sam, he'll soon be appearing on Celebs Go Dating...
