Sam and Billie: “We’d never have a double wedding!”
The Faiers sisters chat to Closer about marriage, motherhood and why they decided to leave TOWIE behind
They lived out their partyloving T early 20s together on The Only Way Is Essex, and now sisters Sam and Billie Faiers are supporting each other through the ups and downs of motherhood.
While Billie, 28, still lives in Essex with her fiancé Greg Shepherd and their children, Nelly, three, and Arthur, 11 months, Sam recently made the decision to move to Hertfordshire with her partner Paul Knightley, their son Paul Junior, two, and three-month-old daughter Rosie.
However, when Closer catches up with them, Sam, 27, assures us, “It hasn’t made a difference to me and Billie, we still see each other at least two or three times a week.”
They may be close, but there’s one thing the sisters insist they’d never consider – a joint wedding. While Billie, who got engaged to Greg four years ago, is currently planning a romantic big day in the Maldives, Sam insists there’s no chance that she and Paul will tie the knot at the same time.
“No! There’s no way we would do that!” she laughs. “Billie wants all the spotlight on her for her wedding day and I want it on me for mine.”
SPIN-OFF DREAMS
Then, Billie adds giggling, “Oh my God, can you imagine? There’s a show in itself!”
After Sam’s success with reality show The Mummy Diaries – a fly-on-the-wall documentary about her life as a new mum – Billie and her family will feature in the third series. And there could be potential for a whole host of shows, just like the infamous Kardashians.
Sam says, “We should definitely do a spinoff wedding show! We’d love to continue making them, we’re really enjoying it – but we take each series as it comes.”
The girls were part of the original TOWIE cast when it launched back in 2010, introducing viewers to a world of fake tan, vajazzles and nights out at Essex hotspots like Sugar Hut.
There was also plenty of love drama, with Sam’s relationships with Mark Wright and Joey Essex both playing out on screen.
But in 2014, she announced she was leaving the show. And Billie followed two years later.
Sam says, “We’re in such different places now. I was 19 when we started, Billie was 20. Now we have families!”
Billie adds, “I think we pulled away from it quite naturally. We were at such different stages in our lives to the other cast members.”
But they haven’t left the pitfalls of reality fame behind completely. Sam and Paul received criticism on The Mummy Diaries when he failed to buy her a gift for their two-year anniversary, and there was a backlash following a scene where Paul kissed his mum Gaynor on the lips in a manner some viewers deemed “weird”.
Sam admits, “Having cameras on him isn’t really something Paul enjoys. It’s just not really for him. He finds it particularly uncomfortable when we are filming scenes at home and it’s just the two of us. He prefers it when we’re out and about. But he’s definitely got better in this series – he’s more himself.”
And of course he now has an ally in the form of Billie’s other half, Greg. Billie says, “It’s actually really good with Paul and Greg together – they’ve filmed some really funny scenes for the show. Greg is a natural in front of the cameras.”
FAN BACKLASH
But Billie – who kept her romance with Greg out of the spotlight during TOWIE – admits that she fears her relationship will now be put under the same microscope as her sister’s. She confesses, “I worry people will judge me and Greg [as a couple]. We bicker a lot on the show and I think, ‘Do I sound like a complete cow?’ But I do realise that we are putting everything out there to be judged.”
Sam adds, “There will always be negative headlines. It’s really rare that you get constant positive feedback. It’s a reality show at the end of the day and everyone has an opinion.”
Billie reasons, “It’s one of those things where you just have to tell yourself, ‘This is how I do things, this is what works for my family.’”
Of course, there are plenty of positives, too, with the girls admitting that the show is a great way of capturing family memories. So, could there be more little stars on the way? Sam smiles, “Yeah, I definitely want more kids. I’ve always said I want four. Although, I need a gap now – I at least want to wait until Paul is in school. “I said last time that I wanted a wedding before another baby and then along came Rosie… So I’m not going to plan ahead this time!” Billie adds, “I definitely need to get married first. Greg has said no more before then!”
‘We’re putting everything out there to be judged’