Strictly Come Dancing's Pete Wicks' 'frustration' with ITV show before exit remark

Pete Wicks gave a behind-the-scenes insight into filming for The Only Way Is Essex, ahead of announcing that he has no plans to return to reality shows after Strictly Come Dancing

Strictly Come Dancing's Pete Wicks has opened up about his frustrations with The Only Way Is Essex, aka TOWIE. The 36-year-old joined the reality show in 2015 in what was initially supposed to be a brief appearance.

However, after impressing producers with his natural approach to the cameras, he stayed for another six years before his exit in 2021. In his book, Never Enough, Pete opened up about how TOWIE was filmed after long-standing claims that it's staged.

He said: "I know, some of that drama just seemed so extreme you'd think it was made up. But I promise you, every single relationship, argument and friendship was genuine."

He added that while there was no script, storylines were crucial. "The producers would need to know what was happening in everyone's lives and what they were talking about, and then they'd set up scenes for the conversations to take place," he added.

According to Pete, once the scenes were shot, producers would then select certain parts that the cast might not necessarily be fond of, reports Wales Online.

"The producers want to make an interesting show, so obviously they're going to use the bit you don't like – it was sometimes frustrating," he admitted. "But you have to take responsibility for the s**t you do when you're being filmed.

"You signed up to that, so that's on you. If you say something rude, that's your f*****g fault."

Pete went on to describe himself as "a producer's dream and nightmare at the same time" because of his outspoken personality. With this, he admitted that he often found himself in "a lot of s**t naturally" but clarified that he never deliberately sought to create drama.

Now, the former TOWIE star is concentrating on going as far as possible in the current series of Strictly Come Dancing, with his dance partner Jowita Przystal. During his stint, he shared that he isn't considering a comeback to dating or reality TV shows like TOWIE, but isn't against tackling new challenges such as Celebrity Race Across The World.

Speaking to The Sun, he said: "I've had 10 years of doing shows. I've survived a decade. I have been a contributor on nearly every show.

"It is time to step aside and hand the baton on to younger, better looking, more talented people. Plus I am too old and have too much grey hair to be doing dating or reality shows anymore."