Towie legend James Lock reveals shock new career as he steps down from the show after 10 years
TOWIE legend James Lock has revealed his shock new career after stepping away from the ITVBe reality show after 10 years.
James, who revealed last month that he was taking a break from the Essex-based programme, announced today that he has joined adult subscription service OnlyFans.
The reality star, 36, said he is also be interested in teaming up with former co-star Chloe Sims for a collaboration on the platform.
Speaking exclusively to The Sun about the new venture, James said: "It is a big decision, any sort of new venture is a big decision because of course I always have to weigh up career-wise what direction I'm going in.
"Everything needs to be balanced and one thing needs to help the other, everything I do is always towards an end goal.
"It's something that I've considered for a long time, there has been a lot of interest from people trying to get me onto the platform.
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"With me being a prime candidate, I'm always in shape, I love my fitness. So a lot of people were like 'why aren't you doing it?'.
"It's a great platform to be part of, it's a well-known platform in itself.
"I've finally decided to bite the bullet and jump on board."
James already has a huge following on social media after appearing on a number of hit shows including Celebs Go Dating, Ex on The Beach and MTV’s The Challenge UK and stateside.
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By joining OnlyFans, James will be able to share lifestyle, fitness and behind-the-scenes content with his followers, giving them more insight into his life than ever before.
The fitness fanatic conducted several photo shoots in preparation for the launch and will be offering exclusive content that can’t be found anywhere else.
"You'll be able to speak with me, get to know me on a more deeper level, people will be able to interact with me on a daily basis...you'll see a lot more from me," he said.
"The reason I chose to do it with OnlyFans is because it's a safe environment, it's a well trusted platform.
"I have a lot of people I know on the platform, like the Sims sisters, they've all advised me to go on it.
"They all love it and say 'I wish I joined sooner'.
"People will get to know me for me...people know me from Towie and as much as that is me as a real person, you've got to remember that Towie is set-up for your entertainment and it is scripted reality.
"You only ever get to see so much of me and I feel that this is the opportunity for people to really get to know me on a personal level.
"They can question and chat to me like one of my friends do - it just offers a lot more.
"I'm open-minded to anything."
James said he has no qualms with stripping off for content - saying he's proud of the nude campaigns and calendars he's done in the past.
"If you Google my name, all the shoots I've done, I've done a lot of shoots that are quite explicit for well-known magazines, tabloids, calendars, even for Towie on the show I've been naked.
"I've run down Brentwood High Street naked.
"I'm very confident with myself and my body and I'm happy to be able to do anything in that sense."
He teased that he could collaborate with other OnlyFans creators, including former Towie co-star Chloe Sims.
"I've got some huge collaborations lined up with people well-known, you're going to see quite a lot, it's going be quite a milestones," he continued.
"It's officially launching now, so no doubt Chloe [Sims] will be on the phone, I talk to the Sims sisters quite a lot.
"There are other people on the platform as well that I'm quite close to.
"Everyone would always be supportive of me, there is nothing but love - maybe do a collab with them [the Sims] at some point."
James joined TOWIE in 2013 and has since experienced a number of dramatic storylines, including relationship dramas, cheating rumours, and bust-ups with friends.
A show insider told The Sun at the time: “He was due a break as one of the OGs. He is still very much part of the TOWIE family.”
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A source added: "He’s off filming Ex On The Beach so he didn’t film the current series - but he will be back when filming restarts."
