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PETER OUT
Towie’s Pete Wicks to take a break from the show – but insists he’ll be back
PETE Wicks has told pals that he's taking a break from The Only Way Is Essex, The Sun Online can exclusively reveal.
The fan favourite joined the show in 2015 and, despite being one of Towie’s leading characters, has decided to turn his back on it all three weeks before the series finishes in a bid to “shake off his lothario image”.
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A close friend told The Sun Online: “Pete has decided it’s time to leave Towie for now. He’s got a lot of close friends on it, and he's in a really good place and enjoying himself and his new relationship with Shelby, but he needs some time out - he insists he will return at some point in the future though.
“He's desperate to show everyone who he really is after a tumultuous year on the show after his split from Megan McKenna and fights with Gatsby - the only way is to move on and try new things.”
And the 29-year-old’s next project couldn’t be further from Essex, as The Sun Online exclusively revealed he’s signed up to join survival guru Bear Grylls’ show Celebrity Island.
Our source continued: “Celebrity Island is the complete opposite of Towie, it’s tough, it’s about survival, and it’s totally out of Pete’s comfort zone.
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“He knows how hard it’ll be, but he’s completely up for the challenge and thinks it will be the perfect way to move on from what people think they know about him, and prove there’s a lot more to him than just what fans see on Towie.”
Meanwhile Pete is doing little to hide the fact he’s missing the last three episodes and leaving the reality show for a while - as just two days ago posted onto his Twitter that he’ll be throwing a Pete Wicks Leaving Party at Essex hangout Faces Nightclub, this Saturday.
This has sparked upset and confusion among Towie fans who have even threatened to never watch again.
Pete who famously had a turbulent on/off relationship with Megan McKenna is now dating Towie new girl Shelby Tribble, however the romance isn’t enough to keep him.
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Our source said: “Pete likes Shelby a lot, but he’s not going to stay just to have another relationship played out in front of cameras.
“If they’re meant to be they will work out with or without Towie.”
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In the past Pete has shown an interest in things away from the trappings of Essex.
In December he travelled to a South Korean meat farm where he rescued 170 dogs from being cruelly culled, and in September he will fly to Romania with Humane Society International to rescue and rehabilitate strays.
He told The Sun: "I will be doing anything I can to use the platform I've got to help as many dogs as possible."
Pete Wicks reunites with the dogs he saved from a meat farm in Korea and their new puppies
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