KATIE Price’s boyfriend JJ Slater was “begging” for a celebrity girlfriend before landing his first date with her, says one of his Married At First Sight co-stars.
Nathanial Valentino, 36, who starred alongside JJ, 31, on the E4 dating show in 2023, alleges he bombarded famous women with DMs in his quest to bag a showbiz other-half.
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The reality star didn’t hold back as he spilled the tea on Jemma Lucy’s Spread The Juice podcast.
In a recent episode of the show, Nathanial and Jemma struggled to remember JJ’s name – instead dubbing him “the biggest beg in the world”.
“That weirdo, what’s his name now? The one with Katie Price now?” Nathanial said, with Jemma chiming in: “Oh yeah, he’s so weird.”
Nathanial went on: “I know all my celebrity girls, all girls that’ve got a following – every single one he’s tried with. Every single one. And then you got Katie Price.”
The pair laughed as they suggested JJ had worked his way through Instagram before eventually coupling up with the Page 3 legend.
Nathanial was originally partnered up with transgender bride Ella Morgan on MAFS UK.
But Ella went behind his back and began messaging JJ in secret, which caused fireworks when they were rumbled.
Nathanial was furious and quit the experiment.
Telly bosses did, however, allow Ella to couple up with JJ as his own marriage to Bianca Petronzi had also hit the skids.
The couple stayed together on the show but, at the final vows, decided not to move forward with their romance once in the real world. There is now no love lost between the feuding pair.
When JJ and Katie started dating, he branded their relationship a “showmance” in a scathing attack.
Nathanial told MailOnline that he believes JJ – real name John Joe – is only dating Katie because he is “desperate to stay relevant”.
He said: “Honestly, I have never met such a beg in all my life. He’s in search of fame without having a talent.
“Knowing what I know from people that were close to him in the experiment, he wanted to stay on the show and wanted the storyline, but he wasn’t going to be with Ella off the show… I know a lot of the Towie lot and their thoughts about his relationship with Katie and opinions of him… he’s a beg.”
After weeks of rumours, Katie confirmed her relationship with JJ last February.
But since getting together, the couple have endured a rather rocky relationship.
They notably faced speculation their relationship was over after it was reported they’d spent Christmas apart.
Katie and JJ later put on a united front at a Geordie Shore series launch in January but allegedly arrived separately.
Katie later shared a lengthy quote to Instagram about a woman embracing herself and not putting a man’s needs before her own.
It read: “She used to tolerate a lot because she didn’t want to lose people. She stayed quiet, overgave and made excuses for others, thinking it was the only way to keep the peace.
“But now, she knows better. She’s learned that constantly shrinking herself to make others comfortable only leads to losing the most important relationship of all – her relationship with herself.
“Now, she sets boundaries without guilt, speaks her truth, and protects her peace.
“Because the people who truly value her will respect her limits, and the ones who don’t were never meant to stay.
Katie Price’s relationship history
We take a look back at the highs and lows of Katie Price’s relationship history.
1996-1998: Katie got engaged to Gladiators star Warren Furman – aka Ace – with a £3,000 ring. But their relationship didn’t make it as far as ‘I do’.
1998-2000: Katie described Dane Bowers as ‘the love of her life’ but she broke up with the singer when he allegedly cheated on her.
2001: Footballer Dwight Yorke is the father of Katie’s eldest child Harvey. He has had very little to do with Harvey throughout his life.
2002: Rebounding from Dwight, Katie famously had one night of passion with Pop Idol star Gareth Gates, allegedly taking his virginity.
2002-2004: Katie was dating Scott Sullivan when she entered the jungle for I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here!. He threatened to “punch Peter’s lights out” when chemistry blossomed between her and Peter Andre.
2004-2009: The jungle romance resulted in Katie marrying Aussie pop star Peter. They had two kids, Junior and Princess, before their bitter split in 2009.
2010-2011: Fresh from her break-up with Peter, Katie enjoyed a whirlwind relationship and marriage with cage fighter Alex Reid. They split 20 months after their Las Vegas wedding.
2011: Katie briefly dated model Danny Cipriani… but it ended as quickly as it begun.
2011-2012: They didn’t speak the same language, but Katie got engaged to Argentinian model Leandro Penna in 2011. He later fled home to South America.
2012-2018: Wedding bells rang once more after Katie met Kieran Hayler in 2013. They had two kids together, Jett and Bunny, before their break-up and divorce.
2018-2019: Katie moved on quickly with Kris Boyson. They had an on-off romance for one year and even got engaged. They split for good in 2019.
2019: Katie was linked to Charles Drury during her on-off relationship with Kris. Charles, who also dated Lauren Goodger, has always denied being in “official relationship” with her.
2020-2023: Car salesman Carl Woods took a shining to Katie in 2020. Their relationship was up and down for three years. They broke up for a final time last year.
2024-present: After weeks of rumours, Katie confirmed her relationship with Married At First Sight star JJ Slater in February this year.
“She’s no longer afraid of losing others – she’s finally found herself.”
The Sun previously revealed that, despite putting on a show for the cameras at the Geordie Shore launch, the couple were “frosty” with each other and spent most of the night apart.
An insider told us: “Katie and JJ arrived separately to Geordie Shore launch and didn’t speak at all for a few hours.
“They were with their own friends on separate sides of the room and were really frosty with each other.
“They did finally speak for about five minutes later in the night, took a few pictures together and then left. It was all very bizarre and it’s clear that they aren’t at their best right now.
“They are clearly trying to make things work in some way and haven’t called it quits yet, but the signs don’t look good.”
A rep for Katie told The Sun: “They are 100% still together.”
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