SAM SMITH had been secretly dating former Towie star CHARLIE KING.
The multiple Grammy award winner and arguably the biggest male star in music went on a series of nights out with the Z-list ex of GEMMA COLLINS.
We’ve discovered the unlikely pair met earlier this year through social media after Charlie, who came out as gay last October on This Morning, gushed on Twitter about what a fan he was of the soulful singer.
He was even by Sam’s side as he underwent career-saving vocal surgery two months ago, although they have now stopped seeing each other.
A source said: “Sam and Charlie don’t mix in the same circles so the only way they could meet was through social media.
“The pair went out together a number of times but always had to make sure they weren’t spotted. They preferred going to low-key pubs in London or to Sam’s apartment.”
It takes a lot to shock us but the thought of gobby Gemma Collins and Sam Smith sharing an ex is pretty incredible. Though it wasn’t totally surprising that Charlie managed to catch Sam’s eye after sending 11 gushing tweets.
Last December, Charlie wrote: “You are just incredible” and followed it up in February with: “Cannot wait to see @samsmithworld perform at #thebritawards tonight — how far this man has come in a year shows that ANYTHING is possible.”
Our source continued: “The pair hung out to discover if they were compatible. Friends have said nothing romantic happened because they decided they were better off as friends.
“They enjoyed each other’s company as both are quite deep individuals. They deliberately never took any pictures together because they wanted to keep it under wraps.
“Sam’s schedule is incredibly hectic so their dates were very sporadic. They mutually decided in May that it wasn’t going to work.”
We reckon more A-listers should pair up with Brentwood’s finest. JAMES “ARG” ARGENT could be the man of KATY PERRY’s dreams.