Cradling his newborn baby girl as he lay in bed at the exclusive Soho Farmhouse retreat, even Mark Wright couldn’t believe his luck.
There for a family getaway just weeks after his wife, actress Michelle Keegan, had given birth to little Palma, he gave a hint as to his contented state of mind when he posted the picture to his two million followers on Instagram.
‘In my Dad era…’ he wrote, affectionately. ‘Trip away with my girls.’
An old pal of Mark’s jokingly commented that the former The Only Way Is Essex star looked remarkably like a ‘competition winner’ as he posted from his £800-a-night cabin in the Oxfordshire countryside.
The friend added that Mark looked ‘smug and showy-offy’ as he also posed on one of the private members’ club’s famous turquoise bikes, and was pictured strolling with his daughter in a fashionable £1,200 buggy.
But then, that is Mark. Catapulted to fame in 2010 on the ITV reality show, he is – according to those who know him best – ‘a right show off’.
And talking of eras, those latest wholesome photographs illustrate something else rather neatly: the stark contrast between his life now and his early days of fame when he was dating his last serious girlfriend, childhood sweetheart Lauren Goodger.
Mark, former associates point out, has ‘wholly reinvented himself’ since meeting and marrying Michelle.
Mark Wright, on a family getaway just weeks after his wife, actress Michelle Keegan, had given birth to Palma, posted this picture to his two million followers on Instagram
Mark pushing his daughter in a fashionable £1,200 buggy while staying with wife, Michelle, at a £800-a-night cabin in the Oxfordshire countryside
And since the Fool Me Once actress – who is unanimously described to me as a ‘lovely, lovely, lovely girl’ – gave birth to their first baby last month, they have been remarking upon just how different the two women are.
‘Mark’s torrid past has been long forgotten,’ a source told me. ‘He is good at his own PR and has totally reinvented himself.
‘He must be chuffed. He cheated on Lauren and now, today, he’s making out he’s the perfect catch. Life’s good for him. You wonder if he ever gives Lauren a second thought.’
It’s likely to be a little different for Lauren. Indeed, those who know her say that their split in 2012, after ten years together, left her distraught and humiliated – hardly surprising given that Mark cheated on her several times, including with his TOWIE co-stars, Sam Faiers and Lucy Mecklenburgh.
The pair had met as teenagers and Lauren was close to Mark’s family. When TOWIE launched, their relationship was central to the show. They were its golden couple, their many ups-and-downs documented across the drama’s first two series.
Lauren Goodger and Mark Wright in their TOWIE days, back in 2011. They split a year later after ten years together
Former associates point out that Mark has ‘wholly reinvented himself’ since meeting and marrying actress Michelle Keegan
Mark’s extra-curricular antics, which led to some fiery scenes, were obviously ratings gold and helped the show earn a controversial Bafta in 2011.
Things didn’t get juicier than the series two finale, which took an explosive turn when Mark riled Lauren by failing to invite her to his house party, fearing she might make guests feel uncomfortable.
Inevitably it led to fireworks. Lauren gate-crashed the party and angrily confronted Mark before pushing him into his outdoor pool.
They eventually split in 2012 and, while Mark began his bid to whitewash his lothario reputation and become a household name, Lauren found herself cruelly ridiculed for her looks on the covers of celebrity magazines.
Their lives and careers continued to follow different trajectories. While Mark signed up for Strictly in 2014 – making the final and eventually coming in a respectable fourth place – Lauren took part in Celebrity Big Brother and became the seventh housemate to be evicted.
Lauren with her ex, builder and semi-professional footballer Charles Drury, with whom she had two children; the youngest, Lorena, died when she was two days old. Drury was later charged with assaulting the TOWIE star on the day of the funeral
Mark married Michelle the following year and has spent the last ten years in wedded bliss. But Lauren has endured more than her fair share of heartache. She met builder and semi-professional footballer Charles Drury, and gave birth to their baby girl, Larose, in July 2021. She became pregnant a second time two months later, but the couple split up shortly afterwards.
Lauren was then left devastated when their second daughter, Lorena, tragically died at just two days old.
Drury was later charged with assaulting Lauren on the day of Lorena’s funeral, and accused of ‘controlling and coercive behaviour’ during their relationship.
He was cleared last year after she withdrew her support for the prosecution.
However, she has prompted speculation that they are back together after appearing together a week ago in a live video on social media platform TikTok.
‘It must have been hard to watch Mark turn himself into this handsome, wholesome star,’ said a former associate of Lauren’s. ‘He was horrible to her, and that all seems to have been forgotten now Mark and Michelle are together.
‘Michelle and Lauren really couldn’t be more different – you can imagine Mark will definitely be thinking he has moved up in the world. There is no way Lauren would be good enough for him anymore.’
Lauren, pictured with her daughter Larose, moved into a bog-standard detached house near to Brentwood where TOWIE was filmed, while Mark and his family live in a mansion in the Essex village of Ongar, which is said to be worth £3.5million
Today, Mark lives in his ‘dream home’ with Michelle – a mansion in the Essex village of Ongar which he bought for £1.5million, demolished and rebuilt. It’s now said to be worth £3.5million and boasts a stunning staircase and swimming pool.
Lauren, meanwhile, moved into a bog-standard detached house nearer to Brentwood, where TOWIE was filmed.
And while Michelle has had roles on successful TV dramas such as Our Girl and Bobby and Tina, in which she played the late England World Cup winner Bobby Moore’s wife, Lauren appears to be concentrating most on her clothing range.
‘In my Dad era…’ Mark wrote, affectionately, on social media. ‘Trip away with my girls’
She and her daughter are often seen wearing matching outfits to publicise the brand on social media. Lauren also regularly does paid interviews for celebrity magazines and will make deals with the paparazzi to take her picture in public, which can be sold on to the press.
Michelle, by contrast, has yet to show baby Palma’s face – and I’m told she never will. Instead, fans have had to make do with a side shot of her head and a peek at her tiny hands.
‘Michelle has no plans to thrust her daughter into the limelight, unlike Lauren,’ a source said.
‘But then, their lives are very different.’
My sympathy for Lauren is limited. I met her back in 2011 at the Prima High Street Fashion awards at the Battersea Evolution venue and she was one of the vilest celebrities I have encountered.
She had recently split from Mark (though they did briefly get back together) so I introduced myself and explained I was friends with her publicist. I said I understood that she may not want to talk about her romance ending, but that I wanted to introduce myself and say hello regardless.
She went silent. Then, as she looked down her nose at me, she said in her Essex twang: ‘I ain’t allaahhed to tawwwk abbaahhht it.’
I know a rebuttal when I see it, so I simply said I’d leave her to it. ‘Yeah, you’d bettah,’ she snarled.
Michelle, on the other hand, has never been anything but polite and, well, lovely.
‘By looking at the women in Mark’s life, it shows just how much he has changed,’ said a source familiar with the former couple.
‘They are different in literally every way, and Mark knows which type he now prefers.’
