Who is Lydia Bright? Celebrity Hunted star and former Towie queen
SHE'S best known for starring in The Only Way is Essex, but did you know that Lydia Bright recently announced her pregnancy?
The TV star dropped a second bombshell, admitting that she's also no longer with the baby's father. But don't fret because we have the full lowdown...
Who is Lydia Bright?
Lydia is a 29-year-old reality star and beauty entrepreneur based in Essex.
At school, she became part of the school orchestra and got up to grade 5 in violin, being put on the gifted students programme due to her hard work.
In April 2013 she launched her YouTube channel, Looks for Less, which now has more than 11,000 subscribers, where she recreates celebrity looks from High Street finds.
She also creates a weekly Vlog every Sunday which documents her weeks activities and writes a blog documenting her life and the trends and products that inspire her.
The site, lydiarosebright.com, has a loyal following and has lead Lydia to be a judge for blogging competitions for both Reveal and More Magazine, where she has had a chance to offer her style advice and give make-overs to competition winners.
She shot to fame as part of the original cast of Towie in 2010.
Is Lydia Bright pregnant?
In August, Lydia made the surprising announcement that she’s expecting a child.
It’s unclear when she’s set to give birth, but she should be pretty far along if she’s already at the stage to share the news with fans.
This will be Lydia’s first child, which she conceived during her relationship with her baby’s father, Lee Cronin.
The two, however, are no longer together.
Why did Lydia and Lee Cronin split?
Lydia told that she didn’t expect herself to be in a situation where she’s pregnant and alone, adding that her fairytale future has not “worked out exactly how I wanted”.
"It's been so hard keeping this a secret”, she told the mag while opening up about her pregnancy for the first time.
"I've done so much travelling, I've done all my partying holidays, I'm where I want to be in terms of my life, financially and career-wise. It just feels like the right time for it all to happen for me.
"I've always wanted the fairytale. And it's obviously not worked out exactly how I wanted.
Lydia strongly hinted that the relationship fell apart because she couldn’t “beg somebody to be with me, and I can’t beg somebody to love me”.
And despite being a single soon-to-be mother, she remains firm with her belief, saying: "I know this baby will be the best thing that has ever happened to me”.
What happened between Lydia and James 'Arg' Argent?
Lydia and Args' relationship pre-dates that of even Towie - and has been a major storyline for Lydia on screen.
The pair have been on and off since they were teenagers, but rumours of infidelity and drug use on Arg's side began to take it's toll.
The Sun reported that their 2016 split came after she had allegedly caught him using the class-A drug cocaine after relapsing from a rehab stint, and she ended things.
During a holiday with the Towie gang, the pair reunited for one night of passion following James' mission to win her back.
However, it later came out he slept with another ex, Gemma Collins, the same day he got with Lydia.
Following their holiday tryst, Lydia laid down the law and ruled out the pair ever reuniting.
In June 2017, sources close to the star believe Lydia didn’t want to be the subject of yet another storyline with Arg, prompting her desire for a clean break from the long-running series.
A Towie insider said: “Lydia’s loved being on Towie despite the stresses it’s caused in her personal life, particularly when it comes to Arg.
“She was weighing up her future following the end of the last series and with Arg clearly being back in contention, it triggered her decision."
What do we know about Lydia Bright's book?
Her first book, "Live, Laugh, Love, Always, Lydia", was released on June 15 2017.
It details her journey so far, from start to finish.
As well as detailing her personal journey, Lydia has also included her dating tips, inspiration quotes, the work-out that got her bikini body ready for her TOWIE comeback in 2014 and even some of her favourite photos and recipes.
She wrote the book herself and has been promoting it via her social media. Speaking on her Amazon page she describes what an adventure it was to write the book: "I have laughed, cried, cringed and beamed with pride recounting all the crazy stories I have put into it."
When was Lydia Bright in Towie?
Lydia originally appeared in the first series of Towie in 2010, introduced as the ex-girlfriend of James 'Arg' Argent.
Viewers were soon hooked on their on-again-off-again stormy relationship, which has continued ever since.
Speaking on her about her time on Towie, Lydia said: "After dead end jobs I decided to move to Marbella, Spain with my boyfriend Arg to have some fun working in a bar.
"We broke up during this time and he flew back to England to appear on Towie.
"I was later contacted by the show to appear on it as well. After much consideration I decided to take the plunge (mainly as they promised to pay for my flight and excess luggage.)"
But she said her first appearances may not have been as smooth as they looked.
She added: "My first ever scene on TOWIE was horrendous, I was stiff and awkward and looked like coco the clown. But after a few weeks, months and years I became very natural around the cameras.
"I have been through a complete emotional roller coaster having to go through months of heartache in front of the nation. Although I also got to make amazing life long friends and achieve things I never thought would ever be possible."
She briefly left Towie in that year’s Christmas special to focus on her relationship with co-star Tom Kilbey, but returned when it didn't work out.
What else has Lydia starred in?
Lydia is starring in the new series of Celebrity Hunted.
The show follows a team of celebs as they try to stay off the radar and remain at large for two weeks as a crack team of hunters try to track them down.
She is joined by reality TV star Georgia Toffolo, alongside rugby star Gavin Henson and celebrity chef Aldo Zilli.
In the summer of 2017 Lydia pitted her wits against the perils of the Crystal Maze as the famous '90s game show relaunched on Channel 4.
In late 2016 and early 2017, Lydia tried her hand at some of the most challenging and dangerous winter sports for Channel 4's The Jump.
She was eliminated from The Jump in the semi-finals – however, after Gareth Thomas quit for "personal reasons", the reality star was reinstated for the show's Grand Final - but lost out again.
Unfortunately, the Towie star just wasn't high enough when it came to the final jump-off.
Proving herself to be somewhat of an adrenaline junkie, Lydia also took part in the 2016 series of Celebrity Island, and formed a close bond with Made in Chelsea's Ollie Locke as they survived on a marooned island.
However, she found herself caught up in a grizzly scene when she accidentally impaled her finger on a fish hook - which then had to be pulled out.
In 2018 she appeared in Five Star Hotel alongside fellow Towie legend Joey Essex and Made in Chelsea's Spencer Matthews.
MOST READ IN TV & SHOWBIZ
What do we know about Lydia's fashion business?
Following her success on Towie she went on to open her own fashion boutique, Bella Sorella, with her sister in Essex.
After six months of trading they launched bellasorella.co.uk as an online fashion site that ships worldwide.
Lydia acts a head buyer for the business and can be found working at their Loughton boutique most weekends.
The sisters have also embarked on a successful pop-up-store tour of the UK with their boutique, visiting cities including Bristol, Portsmouth, Glasgow, Sheffield and Redditch.
In 2012 she launched her own fashion collection, Lydia Rose Bright, during the Christmas season.
She said: "Shortly after launching my boutique and buying from a number of brands I realised that there was a gap in the market for a real 1950's, glamorous occasion wear label.
"That's when I launched my first clothing collection and my second business venture."
The collection has grown from strength to strength with high street and online retailers including very.co.uk, Lipsy, River Island and Bank, the collection is also the third best selling brand for online giants ASOS.
She added: "Fashion for me has always brought me excitement, inspiration and confidence. I feel so lucky that now I have built a career around it, it really is a dream.
"Style is a way to say who you are, without having to speak.' I really hope that my fashion sense showcases who I am as a person and tells a bit of my story."