Gemma Clare Collins (born 31 January 1981) is an English media personality and businesswoman. In 2011, she began appearing on the ITVBe reality series The Only Way Is Essex. Following a brief appearance on I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! (2014), Collins has appeared in various television programmes including Celebrity Big Brother (2016), Celebs Go Dating (2018), and Dancing on Ice (2019). In 2019, she began starring in her own reality series and hosting a podcast on BBC Sounds.
Gemma Collins gains 'new found respect' as she's praised for 'brave' Channel 4 documentary
manchestereveningnews.co.ukChannel 4 viewers said they had a 'new found respect' for Gemma Collins as she opened up in a 'brave' documentary. The former The Only Way is Essex star spoke about her 20-year struggle with depression and self-harm in her Channel 4 documentary, Self-Harm and Me.
The hour-long programme, which aired on Wednesday night, saw Gemma speak honestly about her fears that the urge to self-harm might return and make her an "unfit mother".
It also featured a confrontation between the 41-year-old and her mum as she asked Joan why she didn't address her self-harming when she was younger. READ MORE: Kate Garraway discovers sweet gesture shared with Derek Draper is gone live on ITV Good Morning Britain Joan said she thought her daughter was just 'copying someone on TV' . "Yours and dad's approach was to, 'right let's never mention it'," Gemma said referring to the time she cut herself in the kitchen in front of her parents. "Life was busy and everything going on..." Joan continued, as Gemma interjected: "But what's more important: life being busy or your daughter cutting herself?" Later in the documentary, Gemma vowed to be the "best mum" to her own children one day after finding comfort in speaking to various people including her own therapist.
Following the airing of the programme, many viewers took to social media to praise Gemma. Presenter Anna Richardson said tweeted: "Well done @missgemcollins for being so honest, so raw, and…so strong #SelfHarmAndMe." @wendyhughes9 said: "A new found respect for #gemmacollins #SelfHarmAndMe , how brave and upfront she was about her issues she’d been through.
