Sam Thompson falls to his knees as Pete Wicks makes awkward Louis Tomlinson dig at live show

Sam Thompson was left cringing after his bestfriend and podcast co-host Pete Wicks took a cheeky swipe at his love life during a live episode of Staying Relevant.

The 33-year-old former Made In Chelsea star, who split from Zara McDermott last December, was visibly unimpressed when Pete orchestrated an onstage prank involving Zara’s new boyfriend, One Direction singer Louis Tomlinson.

During the podcast’s live recording on Friday, which took place at London's O2 Arena, Pete asked the stage band to perform One Direction’s hit Steal My Girl. As the tune began to play, Sam rushed onstage to try and cut the performance short.

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“S**t, I forgot,” Pete laughed, before admitting: “I’ll be honest with you, mate, I may have f***ed up there. I honestly thought that would go in a different direction.” His remark drew roars of laughter from the audience, but Sam buried his head in his hands.

Pete turned back to the band and added: “But don’t worry, it’s fine, we can try again, we can try again. Guys, f*****g hit it.” As the music started up again, Sam was seen on his knees on stage, pretending to be scared.

Elsewhere in the show, Sam admitted that the past year had been one of the hardest of his life. He credited Pete for helping him through his split from Zara.

He shared: “You probably know, and there are a select few people you can really on those moments, and Pete is the epitome of tough exterior, gooey centre, like an onion with many, many, many, many, many f*****g layers of pin. Caring, loyal, gentle, angry, but he’s the most supportive, best friend I could ever ask for.”

Sam and Zara’s breakup in December shocked fans who had believed wedding bells were in their future. The couple first started dating in 2019 after Zara slid into Sam’s DMs.

They had already weathered public ups and downs, including a brief split in 2020 after Zara admitted to being unfaithful while competing on The X Factor: Celebrity.

At the time Sam forgave her and they reconciled and went on to spend three more years together. However, their five year relationship came to an end in December 2024.

Friends close to Zara later said she had “put everything” into making the romance work but felt she had no choice but to move on.

Insiders claimed Sam was left blindsided, telling The Sun he was “devastated” by how quickly Zara appeared to get into a new relationship with Louis.

Zara's romance with the former One Direction band member has quickly become serious, and Zara now reportedly spends most of her time at the singer's multi-million pound mansion in North London.

A source told The Sun: “They’re smitten and she has been spending all of her time at his place, she’s pretty much moved in.”

The couple went Instagram official over the summer when Zara posted a kissing snap, which Louis replied to saying: “I love you.” Their siblings have publicly shown their support for the relationship, with Zara’s brother calling them a “beautiful couple” and Louis’ sister commenting “love love”.

Sam has admitted the breakup has been tough, but he is now focusing on work, friends and family. A source close to him told The Mirror: “He has been going out and having fun again, he's not dating anyone but he's been on dates. He's been around the Chelsea lot and hanging out with Pete [Wicks] a lot. He's really enjoying himself at the moment but doesn't want to be tied down.”

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