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Ashley James has revealed she has struggled with her sexuality and dated women while appearing on Made In Chelsea during her twenties.
The This Morning guest star, 38, who appeared on the E4 reality shown between 2012 and 2013, spoke about questioning her sexual preferences from as early as 14.
Appearing in a new podcast By The Way with presenter Harriet Rose, Ashley said she would kiss girls on nights out but felt ‘confused’ after they would brush it off as an ’embarrassing’ drunken moment.
During the interview, Harriet said: ‘I wanna talk about your sexuality and why it felt so difficult for you to be open about it.’
Ashley, who has two children with long-term partner Tommy Andrews, replied: ‘I think when I first started questioning my sexuality, it was the Bebo days. I actually remember being much younger.
‘When I Googled when Bebo came out, it said 18, but I’m sure I remember being around like, 14/15.’
Ashley said she then began to explore her sexuality on nights out in Newcastle. She explained: ‘I remember we’d all be going out in Newcastle, very underage but such is life, and I’d kiss a girl in the club.
‘Then the next day it would be like, “oh, my god, that was so embarrassing” and I was like, “yeah, so embarrassing,” but in my head I was like, “that wasn’t embarrassing for me.”
‘The guys would pay attention, then the girl would almost reject it as just this thing we did to get attention from men.’
The This Morning star said the rejection left her feeling ‘confused’ and ‘struggling to find my identity’.
She said: ‘On Bebo, I set my preference to girls. I remember I chatted to a girl all the time, so I think that was almost like a bit of a safe space for me.’
Harriet then asked if she was dating women while she was on the reality TV series Made In Chelsea.
Ashley said: ‘There was this thing and it kind of did get out. It was always around and I think if any of the relationships had naturally gone further, I would have just been out [as liking girls]’.
The reality star found love with Tommy, whom she met on Hinge during the pandemic. They went on to welcome son Alfie, five, and daughter Ada, three.
She said: ‘Even now I’m very much in a heterosexual relationship so it’s like, not that I can or not that I belong, but I always celebrate queerness and maybe that’s why I’m especially such a big ally.’
Of how her own journey has shaped educating her children, Ashley said: ‘I feel really strongly with my kids that I never assume.
‘You know when people are like, “is that his girlfriend?” or “when she’s got a boyfriend,” and I’m like, “hmm, let’s not do that,” because we actually don’t know.’
