Celebrity Big Brother contestant Lauren Harries has found love with an old childhood neighbour.
The antiques expert, 39, appeared on This Morning with boyfriend Bruce just two weeks after they went public with their relationship.
Bruce explained how he and Lauren ,who finished third in CBB in 2013, had grown up in the same area and he’d always wanted to be her friend.
After she became famous, he reached out on social media and, after being brushed off the first time, got lucky!
“I always followed Lauren’s career and liked her and felt we probably would have some sort of connection because when we were children we grew up in the same neighbourhood,” he said.
“We were in parallel streets. I lived in one street, Lauren lived in an adjacent street and I’d see her around.”
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Lauren said despite being so close in proximity as kids, they never met once.
Bruce added: “Then obviously I followed Lauren’s career and saw her transition, and obviously myself with mine, I thought even if we met as friends, it would be nice to meet up and say we have that little bit of history and stuff in common.”
Their meeting came when Bruce reached out to Lauren on Instagram. Initially, Lauren brushed him off with an emoji response but, undeterred, he decided to send one last message and try his luck.
“Lauren was on holiday in Benidorm at the end of January and I’d followed her holiday on Instagram,” said Bruce.
“She put a video on there I quite liked so I thought I’d send her one message, one last attempt.”
Lauren said this message caught her attention as Bruce included his phone number and she likes a “gutsy man”.
For their first date, they drove back through the neighbourhood where they’d grown up.
“There was a lot of chemistry between us but also that shared experience that we had,” recalled Bruce. “We drove to a park we both knew.”
They made it official after just one date, though both pointed out they’d spent hours talking on the phone before meeting in person.
When asked if it’s hard to trust people, Lauren said it can be – but not with Bruce.
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“You learn as well from past experiences and I’m very good with my intuition. Bruce and I talk, we have a lot of common, we’re very similar and we have a lot of chemistry.
“Sometimes you have to just trust someone or you’ll never trust anybody again. If you want to be happy you have to take a chance.”
As for any critics who think it’s a ‘publicity stunt’, Bruce said: “We know there will be cynics and sceptics but we’ve both said time will tell. We know we are in this for keeps.”
Lauren added: “With my life, I’ve always taken chances and never cared what people think. Just live your life and do what you want to do.”
Hear, hear!
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