The Only Way is Essex-Sam gets the Wright approval

Sam was welcomed into the Wright family on last night’s episode as Mark’s mum Carol in invited her to dinner.

However, while out buying the ingredients for the dinner, Carol bumped into Mark’s ex Lauren at the supermarket. To make things more awkward, she revealed to Lauren that she was cooking a big dinner for Sam with the family. ‘Their dating, their just friends’, she insisted. ‘She’s requested shepherd’s pie.’

‘She’s taking my space’, joked Lauren. ‘You gave enough over the years’, replied Carol. Lauren suggested that if there were any left-overs she would come round the following day to polish them off.

But despite the light-hearted conversation, Lauren was more upset than she let on to Carol, telling friends Lauren P and Gemma that she was hurt as Carol had been more of a mum to her than her own mum. Gemma told her that from Carol’s point of view if Sam makes Mark happy then she will cook her shepherd’s pie.

At the Eright family meal, which Mark confirmed to Sam was a date, he said he wished ‘courting’ was like how it was in the old days as Nanny Pat told them what it was like when she was young. Mark said he felt girls were too ‘loose’ now and he wanted to go back to when couples just held hands. He went on to say that it’s terrible how many girls throw themselves at him and he says no everytime to them-as if?!

Mr Wright also revealed that he felt him and Sam were more than friends.

‘What is it you and me?’ he said to Sam. ‘When I left your house (after skiing) I was like fuck-how do I feel about her, maybe I’m falling for her? I don’t want to be in a serious relationship, but I don’t want you seeing other people and I won’t either. I think we’re more than friends?’ ‘Yes we are’, said Sam.

Also on TOWIE

• Arg considered getting his teeth whitened for Lydia and to look sexy and feel more confident as a singer. He told his dentist at a consultation he wanted a white shade between Hollywood and Brentwood.
• Mark visited Sam and sister Billie after they were attacked in a nightclub. Mark told Sam she was still beautiful even with two black eyes. He also admitted he got nervous around her.
• Harry asked Chloe for relationship advice with his potential new boyfriend who is part German.
• At a salsa class some of the group went to, Gemma told Arg, who was her dancing partner, that if Lydia ever broke up with him to come to her.
• Joey revealed that he likes Cara, however Kirk said he wasn’t interested in Cara, and Joey said he didn’t want to break up team Jerk but going on a date with just Cara.