National Television Awards 2025

LOVE Island winner Jess Harding has caused a stir after being spotted cosying up to a mystery man, now unmasked as BBC Three presenter James Blake.

The pair were seen getting cosy at the NTAs after party at London’s O2 Arena, sparking whispers of a new romance.

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Eyewitnesses say the two looked “hot together” and “couldn’t stop laughing and flirting”.

One told The Sun: “From what I could gather, there was definitely a little bit of flirting going on.”

“There was a lot of giggling, a bit of charm, and they looked like they were having a good night for sure.”

Another source told The Sun: “They were introduced at the NTAs after-party and didn’t stop talking for the rest of the night.

“She was being pulled away by her Love Island friends who wanted her to have fun with them, but she kept going back to be with James.

“At the end of the night they exchanged contact details so it looks as though there could be a date on the cards.”

Onlookers say the Love Island bombshell and the BBC star were glued to each other for “nearly an hour”.

Meanwhile, Jess’ pals, some of whom were Love Island co-stars, were seen partying on the dancefloor.

“There was quite a lot of eye contact,” the insider said.

“It seemed flirtatious to me.

“They were definitely enjoying themselves.”

Harding, 24, who won Love Island last year, has enjoyed her singledom after splitting with her ex Ben.

Blake, 32, is a fast-rising broadcaster, fronting BBC Three docs like Hunting the Catfish Crime Gang and Hunting the Online Sex Predators.

The Belfast-born star even scooped the RTS Breakthrough Talent gong in 2024, making him one of the BBC’s most exciting new names.

Jess has been embracing single life lately after splitting with her ex.

We told how she had called it quits with her boyfriend Ben back in July of this year.

Harding won ITV2 show Love Island back in 2023 with her then-boyfriend Sammy Root.

They clinched a shock victory but did not last and split just months after leaving Majorca together.

The Sun has contacted a representative for Jess Harding for comment.

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EASTENDERS actress Jessie Wallace has made her social media comeback after darting out of the NTAs after-party in tears.

The soap star left partygoers at The O2 Arena stunned when she fled the venue inconsolable.

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Before she was left in tears, she was seen dancing with her co-stars and being labelled as the “life and soul of the party”.

Now, Jessie has taken to Instagram to share a collection of snaps from the evening and has made no reference to the reasoning behind her tearful exit.

The Kat Slater star, 53, shared images from both before, after and during the NTA ceremony in which she could be seen beaming from ear-to-ear.

Keeping coy about her tearful antics, Jessie captioned the snaps: “What a great night! Thank you to everyone who voted for @bbceastenders and my pal Steve and the gorgeous @jacjossa you are AMAZING!

“Love all me EE faaaaaaamily.”

Jessie cuddled up to many of her co-stars in the pics including Michelle Ryan and Jacqueline Jossa.

She even included a shot from the after-party in which she could be seen with Love Island host Maya Jama.

Jessie’s night turned eventful unexpectedly when she was seen running through the after-party in tears.

Jessie, 53, had been seen in high spirits during Wednesday night’s ceremony at London’s O2 Arena.

She was later spotted at the official after-party with her colleagues, including Scott and former co-star Charles Venn.

An onlooker said: “Jessie was the life and the soul of the party and was on a high after they’d picked up their big award.

“She was seen chatting with Charles and a few other people and was having a real laugh.

“But then suddenly out of nowhere she just burst into tears in front of everyone.

“Scott was like a superhero and just scooped her out and took her out of the party.

“No one could work out why Jessie was in tears. People just looked a bit baffled.”

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MOLLY-Mae Hague responded to the backlash at the NTAs after fans hit out at the star for bagging gong.

The former Love Island star won the Authored Documentary award for her Amazon Prime series, Molly-Mae: Behind It All.

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Viewers tuned into the streaming series to follow the challenges of life after her breakup from Tommy Fury.

She beat out the likes of Amy Dowden‘s Strictly Amy: Cancer and Me which followed her cancer journey and Boyzone‘s Sky docuseries.

The late Rob Burrow also lost out for his piece, There’s Only One Rob Burrow, which documented his struggle with motor neurone disease.

Molly-Mae, 26, has now issued a statement on social media after a number of viewers complained about the National Television Awards result on social media.

Sharing a picture of herself on the stage, she then wrote: “Last night at the NTAs I shared a category with people whose stories will always be more powerful and inspirational than mine.

“I see that, I believe that and I want to acknowledge it again here.”

She continued: “It was only right to dedicate this award to the late Rob Burrow and his family and to the remarkable people in my category … this win belongs to them.”

However, even though the former reality star acknowledged that other nominees were ‘more powerful and inspirational,’ she thanked her fans for voting for her.

She added: “I’m so grateful for the recognition but even more grateful to have stood alongside such strength and inspiration. [White heart emoji]

“To everyone that voted … I am absolutely blown away. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.”

At the time of the ITV ceremony broadcast, Fans slammed the ceremony as they thought that ‘more worthy’ nominees should have gotten the gong.

Taking to X, one fan fumed: “Molly Mae winning an NTA over Rob Burrow or Amy Dowden is everything that is wrong with the world.”

A second stated: “If you want to know the state of tv these days… Molly Mae documentary beat Rob Burrow documentary. What wild times we live in.”

“All those wonderfully powerful documentaries and Molly Mae won!?” wrote a third.

I shared a category with people whose stories will always be more powerful and inspirational than mine.

Molly-Mae HagueInstagram

While a fourth added: “Molly Mae winning an NTA over Rob Burrow really reminds me how much I hate society today. And the mid-speech dedication felt false and completely inappropriate. His family’s face said it all.”

Vogue’s swipe

Fellow reality TV star Vogue Williams took a rather catty swipe after Molly-Mae picked up her first NTA.

Speaking on Lorraine, Vogue said: “I’m going to plan a break up because then I’m going to win an NTA myself,” before she burst out in laughter.

The star added: “Yeah there were quite a few shocked faces in the room because she was up against Rob Burrows, Freddie Flintoff, Amy Dowden, incredible documentaries.

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“I think there were a few shocked faces in the audience but she did pay tribute to Rob Burrows in her acceptance speech.”

Molly’s Speech

The star did dedicate her award to former rugby player Rob, who passed away last year at 41.

She told the audience: “Oh my goodness. Honestly, just to be nominated for this award was such an honour.”

“I think as you guys saw, we were up against some seriously inspirational people in this category.”

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She then went on to thank her production team as she continued: “This team has been the reason why this experience has been so incredible for me.

“I think with nights like tonight it’s not just about the talent. It’s about the people that make shows like these.

“I’ve learned so much, I feel like I could start my own production company at this point.”

She then went onto thank her family who she labelled as the “best support system.”

I think as you guys saw, we were up against some seriously inspirational people in this category.

Molly-Mae HagueThe NTAs

Molly-Mae added: “And thank you to my own family who didn’t choose this life [of stardom] but came on the show for me because they knew how much it meant to me.

“You’re the best support system I could ask for.”

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DANNY Jones reportedly ‘legged’ it from the NTAs after accepting an award with Maura Higgins.

The pair reunited as I’m A Celeb won the gong for Reality Competition.

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All eyes were on Danny Jones and Maura Higgins after their illicit snog at the Brit Awards six months ago.

They stood apart on stage as Danny delivered the acceptance speech.

Meanwhile, the singer performed with band McFly to open the show, then was seen with Maura to collect the gong.

But then he scarpered.

On the award win, runner-up Coleen Rooney later said: “It’s amazing, it was a tough category. We’ve had a fantastic year.”

Co-star Oti Mabuse said to press: “Our king of the jungle Danny has left already!

“He wanted us to say he is on tour so he had to leg it.”

Last month, Danny shared holiday snaps with wife Georgia and son Cooper.

The king of the jungle sported a tan after he jetted off to a mystery European seaside location.

He posted a string of assets onto his Instagram profile as he strolled through the streets with Georgia and their seven-year-old son Cooper.

The young family beamed from ear to ear as they enjoyed each other’s company by the sea.