The King and his Queen! I’m A Celeb winner Sam Thompson has an emotional reunion with girlfriend Zara McDermott as he arrives back in London after triumphant jungle stint

Sam Thompson had an emotional reunion with his girlfriend Zara McDermott as he arrived back in London after his triumphant I’m A Celebrity stint. 

Stepping off the plane on Wednesday, The King Of The Jungle, 31, got tearful as he was greeted by his partner, 26, at Heathrow Airport. 

Radio presenter, Sam was crowned the winner on Sunday night’s final, beating boxer Tony Bellew and politician Nigel Farage, where he came out with over 50 per cent of the votes. 

Zara proudly clutched onto some balloons and flashed huge smile as she waited for him. 

Upon their emotional reunion, the couple shared a kiss and held each others faces, after spending four weeks a part. 

Sam Thompson had an emotional reunion with his girlfriend Zara McDermott as he arrived back in London after his triumphant I’m A Celebrity stint

Stepping off the plane on Wednesday, The King Of The Jungle, 31, broke down in tears as he was greeted by his partner, 26, at Heathrow Airport

Zara dressed casually in an oversized cream hoodie and grey gym leggings, layering over a fleece teddy coat. 

Sam was joined on his flight by best pal Pete Wicks who had flown out to greet him in the jungle while Zara has remained at the couple’s home in London. 

She had previously explained to fans of the show that she wouldn’t be in Australia due to her stint on Strictly Come Dancing. 

‘Pete is going. We’ve had a few laughs and jokes about this,’ she explained in an Instagram post.

‘But in all seriousness; Sam thought I was still going to be in Strictly (bless him, the optimism), so Pete cleared his whole diary for 2/3 weeks to be there.’

Earlier, Sam shared a photo to his Instagram as he waited for his flight at Brisbane Airport after finally getting his phone back. 

Making his triumphant exit, the radio presenter admitted he was ‘overwhelmed with gratitude.’

Sharing a lengthy Instagram post, Sam admitted ‘there aren’t quite words to describe how grateful he is,’ and he’s been ‘overwhelmed’ by support from viewers.

The reality star added that he was ‘a bit nervous’ when he first entered the jungle as he feared he’d ‘make himself look like a d**k.’

Posting a snap at Brisbane Airport ahead of boarding his flight home, Sam wrote: ‘I’M COMING HOME!!!! I only just got my phone back this morning, and I don’t quite know where to begin, but I want to start first of all by saying thank you. 

‘Thank you from the bottom of my heart, there aren’t quite the words to describe how grateful I am for each and everyone of you who supported me during my time in the jungle. 

‘You made a young boys dream (now slightly older) come true, and I will never ever forget that. 

‘When I first stepped foot in that jungle, I didn’t know what to expect, and I was a bit nervous about whether I was going to make myself look like a d**k as I know I’m a bit full on especially when there’s a lot of people and energy around at all times.’

He continued: ‘Coupled with not knowing what was going on in the outside world, I would be lying if I didn’t say I was nervous! 

‘Having said that, being on a show I genuinely never thought I’d get a chance to do, and getting to meet Ant and Dec and do all of these iconic experiences that I’ve always watched on the TV just made me so damn happy that I stopped worrying about all that on day 2! 

‘I had no idea of all the support, love and kindness that you all showed me, and reading some of your comments and messages, I’m overwhelmed with gratitude!!! 

‘Never in my wildest dreams, did I expect to be crowned King of the Jungle, or that I’d get to do CYCLONE! Every time Ant and Dec walked into camp, I convinced myself that it was going to be me that went next. 

‘There’s no way that people were actually voting for me. But each time I stayed another day, I felt more and more humbled and emotional. 

Sharing a lengthy Instagram post, Sam admitted ‘there aren’t quite words to describe how grateful he is,’ and he’s been ‘overwhelmed’ by support from viewers

Sam (centre) came out on top with over 50 per cent of the vote after boxer Tony Bellew, 41 (left) finished in second place and Nigel Farage, 59, (right) came in third

‘Thank you again from the bottom of my heart!!! I have more people to thank, and a couple more soppy posts, but my first thank you had to be to all of you. I Love you. ❤️’

Sam shared the post as this year’s I’m A Celebrity stars boarded their flights back to the UK on Tuesday.

Reality TV star Sam won the 2023 King of the Jungle title on Sunday by a landslide, voting figures revealed.

He came out on top with over 50 per cent of the votes, beating boxer Tony Bellew, 41, who finished in second place and Nigel, who came in third. 

ITV released two sets of figures which showed the percentages for the top three before voting was frozen and later re-opened for the final two. 

In the first round Sam raked in 43.35 per cent which was miles out in front of Tony who got 30.87 per cent and Nigel with 25.78 per cent. 

Then in the final vote Sam’s lead only increased as he bagged 56.64 per cent of viewers votes beating Tony’s 43.36 per cent by a whopping 13 per cent.

Sam had been the bookies favourite to win for the past couple of weeks after proving popular with ITV viewers.

Sam jumped into the arms of runner-up Tony when hosts Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly announced the results, before admitting he was ‘overwhelmed’.

He said: ‘I’m really overwhelmed, I didn’t think I’d even be invited on the show. I don’t know what to say.’

Asked what he had to say to those who had voted for him, he tearfully said: ‘I’m so grateful, thank you so much. I’ve dreamed of doing this show for years and years and you’ve made a boy’s dream come true.’

Sam had been open about being a superfan of the show and admitted it was ‘100 times’ better than he had expected it to be.

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