AS A fresh faced Essex boy, James 'Arg' Argent burst onto the scene as one of the original cast of Towie 15 years ago.
However, over the years his life has taken some twists and turns and he has now been handed a suspended prison sentence after he was convicted of pushing his girlfriend down some stairs. Here we take a look at his turbulent life in the spotlight.
OG Towie fans will well remember the very first time James Argent emerged into the spotlight as Mark Wright's joker pal, "Arg" in 2010.
The best mates found instant fame on the ITV reality show, and reaped the rewards of being a young star on the telly.
While Mark settled down and made a name for himself as a presenter and businessman, Arg continued to entertain viewers on Towie.
As his popularity soared, the money came rolling and the invites to parties grew.
DRUG ADDICTION
Arg has been very honest about his past addiction with cocaine, which he battled for six years.
The reality star revealed he first knew he had a problem in 2014 and had stints in rehab before finally getting clean in 2020.
He previously opened up about his past demons, and told The Sun how he had suffered two near-fatal overdoses.
Recalling his first terrifying incident, he told us: "I locked myself in my house and took drugs for three days straight on my own in the pitch black.
“I was at rock bottom. My heart was beating out of my chest, my nose was bleeding, I was shaking and my breathing was terrible.
"My family were banging on the door screaming, ‘Open up’ but I wasn’t answering the door to anyone.
"They feared I’d overdosed and was dead in the house."
WEIGHT BATTLE
Over the years, Arg has been honest about his weight issues which saw him reach 27 stone at his heaviest.
He admitted to piling on the pounds in lockdown after kicking his cocaine addiction.
However, the wake up call came when doctors warned him he was “on death row."
It took his mum Patricia breaking down in tears in his bedroom for him to finally seek help.
Arg told ITV's Lorraine: “I reached the heaviest I’ve ever been in the height of the pandemic and doctors said I was dicing with death because I’ve got bad asthma and was morbidly obese, which was the worst possible combination if I was to catch Covid.
“I could have been a goner, so I just knew I had to do something.”
Arg changed his life when he had a gastric band operation and shed half his body weight.
GC ROMANCE
Arg and Gemma Collins seemed like a match made in reality star heaven.
Their romance played out both on and off screen, and at times they seemed very happy.
Fans enjoyed watching them them together on Towie, and they dated for three years until 2020.
During this time, the pair had a very on/off romance, largely down to Arg's drug issues.
Gemma admitted that her ex-boyfriend's cocaine addiction tore apart their relationship.
Speaking on Piers Morgan's Life Stories in 2021, a tearful GC said: "For anyone who ever thinks about taking drugs, or just trying it for one night, you can end up getting addicted.
"I was really happy with James. We did get on, but the drugs changed him as a person.
"I fought every day for three years to get him well."
AGE GAP ROMANCE
In 2022, a then 34-year-old Arg raised eyebrows when he started dating 18-year-old Italian, Stella Turian .
The smitten star - who was 16 years Gemma's senior - even flew to her native country to meet her parents.
A source told Daily Mail at the time: "'James has totally fallen for Stella and she adores him too."
"That's why she was very keen for him to meet her family and go official with how she feels.
"James and Stella both lead busy lives, but they are keen to spend as much time as possible with one another and are planning a holiday, probably to Dubai, before the end of the year.
"Both of them are counting down the days."
After a year of dating, a "heartbroken" Arg revealed they had called time on their romance.
SHOCK SENTENCE
The Sun revealed how James was given a suspended prison sentence after he was convicted of pushing his girlfriend down some stairs on holiday.
Neighbours called the police when they heard former Miss Sweden Nicoline Artursson, 32, screaming in La Cala de Mijas on the Costa del Sol.
James spent several hours in police cells before admitting a charge of domestic violence in court the same day
The reality star was given a six-month suspended sentence and a two-year restraining order to stop him seeing or even contacting Nicoline, who he had been dating for 11 months.
An insider told The Sun: “James and Nicoline had a row that turned nasty and he pushed her over. He was arrested and taken to a station where he was put in the cells for a few hours.
“James complied with the police and the matter was resolved in the court on the same day.
“Their relationship is over and they can no longer speak or contact one another.”
Sources close to the telly star insist he is “extremely sorry” for what has happened and insists he never meant to harm Nicoline.
A friend explained: “James has been at home in Essex since this happened.
“He said he had a row with Nicoline and that he tried to end the argument.
"James said he pushed Nicoline and that she fell. He is remorseful about what happened but is insisting he never meant any harm.
“He’s extremely sorry for it.
“James said he was honest when he spoke to the police and told them everything that had happened.”
The Sun has contacted Argent. Nicoline declined to comment.
