PREPARE TO BE MOVED AS THE ONLY WAY IS ESSEX JOKER OPENS UP ABOUT LOSING HIS MOTHER WHEN HE WAS JUST TEN YEARS OLD

AFTER ten years of being on the box as a big reality star, you might think you know Joey Essex. All quirky catchphrases, gleaming teeth and unusual fashion choices, he’s basically made a career out of being as thick as two short planks and as deep as a puddle.

But what most of us won’t know is that when he was just ten years old, Joey’s beloved mum took her own life. Unable to deal with the pain and trauma, he’s spent the 20 years since then trying to bury his grief.

But now, as he turns 30, Joey is finally acknowledging how much his mum’s death has affected his life and relationships, and wants to try to face his trauma and move forward.

With the help of a clinical psychologist, and the encouragement of his family, he starts the process of looking back at the past and trying to understand its impact today.

But it’s far from easy, and there are many scenes where the tears flow (for both Joey and the audience) as he faces his fears and anxieties and says things out loud he’s never shared before.

The word “brave” can often get bandied around when discussing celebrities speaking publicly about personal and difficult experiences, but it’s definitely true in this case.

Joey has spent two decades unable to talk to even his own family about his mum’s death, unable to look at photographs or watch home videos of her, doing his best to avoid his pain and trauma.

So to agree to tackle it head-on, on camera, to share the process of his therapy and his most vulnerable moments with an audience – shows a bravery, strength and depth we didn’t know he had.

Perhaps he didn’t, either.

BRAVE: Joey Essex is talking for the first time about his mother’s death. Far left, Joey with his dad

Joey watches home movies of his mum for the first time with his nan, Linda and his sister Frankie