Coining it in

Love Island’s Cara and Nathan are set to make £1m… here are 10 other people who have cashed in from reality TV

From Big Brother stars to TOWIE alumni, some of these are bound to surprise you

IF you’re short of a few quid and don’t mind embarrassing yourself in front of the nation, we could have just the career for you.

Getting involved in reality TV is definitely the way forward, as Love Island winners Cara De La Hoyde and Nathan Massey are apparently about to prove.

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Love Island’s young dream

The pair bagged themselves the £50,000 prize money by winning the show on Monday night, but their real pay day will likely be over the next 12 months.

Top celebrity manager Rob Cooper has claimed they could be coining it in if they make smart decisions.

“If they play the game right they can earn at least £100k in the next few months, if they go on to have a family and wedding then they have the potential to be a £1 million couple,” he explained.

Which got us thinking… how much does your average reality TV star make?

Turns out the answer is A LOT, as long as they are canny with their cash. Here we look at 10 of the top reality TV earners – the only rules are that their cash has to have come after their reality show appearance. All amounts are estimates.

10. Geordie Shore’s Gaz Beadle – £1.3 million

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Gaz has made some savvy investments

You probably expected TV faves Vicky Pattison and Charlotte Crosby to be the biggest Geordie Shore earners didn’t you?

Well they’re both doing pretty well it has to be said. Vicky has moved into TV presenting and Charlotte just dropped around £1 million on a house.

But it’s actually Gaz, who pulls in between a whopping £40,000 and £45,000 A MONTH.

He rakes in £2,000 a time from personal appearances, booking about six of those a week.

Gaz also has a beach nightclub in Zante and an electrical company, plus he’s invested wisely in property.

9. TOWIE’s Lauren Goodger – £2.1 million

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Lauren is one of the original TOWIE ladies

Lauren was a TOWIE original and her romance with Mark Wright (more on him later) captivated fans.

She’s since left the show, not that her bank balance has suffered.

Lauren writes magazine columns, has a clothing line and a fitness DVD. She’s also been on other reality shows, including Celebrity Big Brother.

8. TOWIE’s Lucy Mecklenburgh – £2.5m

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Lucy Mecklenburgh plays up to her best assets

Another Essex fave, Lucy has her own shop called Lucy’s Boutique.

She doesn’t just rely on that to make her a mint though, she is also a model and has starred in tonnes of adverts for companies including Very and By Caprice.

Her slim frame is much envied among female viewers, so Lucy cashed in on that too by releasing some fitness guides and a health book.

7. Big Brother’s Imogen Thomas – £3 million

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Imogen Thomas has made a mint

She appeared on the seventh series of Big Brother in 2006, almost making it to the final but not quite.

She had the last laugh though, because she started making money from her fame almost straight away.

Formerly crowned Miss Wales, Imogen used her hot body to score modelling work and lads’ mag shoots, plus she promoted a group of taxis which netted her a cool £45,000.

6. TOWIE’s Mark Wright – £4 million

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Mark Wright definitely hasn’t looked back since TOWIE

Mark strutted around The Only Way Is Essex for three seasons, but leaving hasn’t held him back at all.

He’s appeared on other reality shows like I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!, but while they won him fans they didn’t boost his bank balance.

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That came courtesy of his turns fronting various ITV shows as part of a deal with the channel, plus his men’s and women’s fragrances.

He’s also enjoyed magazine deals, had clothing ranges, modelled and does personal appearances.

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He’s now married to Michelle Keegan

Oh, plus his marriage to former Coronation Street star Michelle Keegan hasn’t done the coffers any harm.

Also of note in sixth spot is Chloe Mafia, who famously tried out for The X Factor in 2010 but didn’t triumph.

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Chloe Mafia is worth a cool £4m

Who lets something like that stand in their way though? Not Chloe, who is now worth a staggering £4million thanks to her work as a model and her webcam stripping business.

5. TOWIE’s Sam Faiers – £4.2 million

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There must be something in the water in Essex

Yep, the TOWIE guys and girls are really dominating the list.

Sam left in 2014 and her story is pretty similar to Lauren’s. She launched a clothing line, has a clothing boutique and has created perfume and an eyelash range

She’s written a book and was the face of Fake Bake fake tan too.

4. The X Factor’s Rylan Clark-Neal – £4.5 million

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Hes come a long way since X Factor

Rylan is probably best known for coming fifth on The X Factor in 2012 despite a slightly dubious singing voice.

Before that he actually appeared on Signed by Katie Price though, where he attempted to win a modelling contract with the former glamour girl.

He won over hearts on The X Factor thanks to his fun performances and brilliant sense of humour – he famously poked fun at judge Gary Barlow’s formerly chubby physique on stage.

After the show he won Celebrity Big Brother which spring boarded his career and he’s now a regular presenter on This Morning.

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Joey Essex is also worth a mint

Tying this spot is yet another TOWIE star, this time Joey Essex.

He dated Sam, number five on this list, on the show and left in 2013. He’s got a hair care line, perfumes,, has modelled and been on TV shows like I’m A Celebrity…

3. TOWIE’s Amy Childs – £5 million

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Amy even has a beauty school

Amy is most definitely the TOWIE queen and she has the massive bank balance to match.

She’s always been a beautician, but ramped things up after the programme with her own training academy.

Amy has her own store, as well as a salon and clothing company. She’s had perfumes, various endorsements, a hair range and fitness DVD.

Her TV show It’s All About Amy helped profits, plus she’s been on Celebrity Big Brother and has an underwear and fashion line.

Savvy investment has also helped Amy’s savings grow.

2. Masterchef’s Thomasina Miers – £5.3 million

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The Masterchef star is behind a restaurant chain you’ll definitely know

Bit of a flashback this one, as Thomasina triumphed on the cookery show in 2005.

She used her win to create a stellar career in food, bringing out several best-selling cookery books and starring in TV shows like The Wild Gourmets.

Most of her money comes from something you’ll doubtless have heard of though – her Mexican street food restaurant chain Wahaca.

1. Big Brother’s Craig Phillips – £6.9 million

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Craig’s book alone made him £800k

You need to go back even further for this one, because Craig was the first ever winner of Big Brother in 2000.

His fortune didn’t come from the show either, as he donated his £70,0000 winnings to a friend who needed a heart and lung transplant.

The year after his win Craig signed a deal with the BBC to be its DIY expert and he’s since appeared on tonnes of shows for the channel and others, like Trading Up and Big Strong Boys.

He also has a production company and gives after-dinner speeches.

To give you an idea of his popularity, his 2009 autobiography My Story: Building Beyond Big Brother netted him a cool £800,000.

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