'The Only Way is Essex' star Liam 'Gatsby' Blackwell posts cryptic friends message as he reaches milestone

A former ‘The Only Way is Essex’ has told his fans that he has learned who his true friends are in the last year as he marks a special milestone.

Liam 'Gatsby' Blackwell, aged 35, left popular reality TV series TOWIE in 2022 to follow his American dream, re-locating to Los Angeles a short time later. He has now taken to Instagram to share that he has been living stateside for a year - and some fans believe has has thrown shade at his former co-stars and fiends at the same time.

Posting a series of images of himself with blue, white and red balloons arranged to depict the country's national flag, he wrote a lengthy caption to commemorate the anniversary of his move. He wrote: "It’s my one year anniversary of arriving here in America! I can’t believe how much life has changed and how different my outlook is on everything compared to just a year ago. I’ve learnt so much this last year about myself, people, business and feel I’ve grown a hell of a lot."

He added: "There’s been a lot of ups and downs, and I’ve seen this year who is really there for me and who isn’t, both people in the UK and the USA. Even if I haven’t addressed anything, trust me, I know.

"There was also a lot of people who doubted me and said I’d be back after a few month . . . However, on a more positive note, I’m so happy and so glad that I made the decision to move here permanently and leave my comfort zone. It’s still early days, and I am excited for what the future holds. ‘Murica baby."

In the comments section, fans congratulated Blackwell on his successful move, but many also speculated as to who he could have been referring to. One person said: “Your so called Towie male friends quickly replaced you.” Also commenting, however, was friend and fellow former cast member James ‘Arg’ Argent, who said: “Miss you so much mate”, with a love heart emoji. Blackwell replied: “Miss you more brother. The linkup gonna be insane,” alongside a flame emoji and a heart emoji. Blackwell firrst joined the cast of TOWIE back in 2016 as Lydia Bright's best friend, but became a fan favourite in his own right. During his time on the show, he was involved in a number of dramatic storylines, including his turbulent relationship with ex-girlfriend Dani Imbert. He had previously spoken about his dream to move to the United States. He told ‘The Sun’: "LA has always been a dream of mine and I felt like there was nothing here for me here (in the UK).

"Before Towie I had been doing real estate exams already to move to LA, and I remember on my 27th birthday I was literally moving to LA, but I then got the call from Towie saying I was going to Marbella to do the first series. All my plans got put on hold but real estate in LA has always been my plan."

Since making the move overseas, Blackwell has followed his dream career path and is now a real estate agent. In July, he posted a photo of him posing outside a huge white-walled California home, next to a large ‘For Sale’ sign. In his caption, he wrote: "Done my first ever Open House this week for a property with a listing price of $1,000,000!

"My mentor asked if I wanted to do it for a friend of his although it's not in the usual area we work out of and it's pretty far out of LA! I said of course as it's the experience I want & it's perfect for my first one as I want to start from the bottom of the real estate game to learn everything, so no distance is too far." He added he was then "waiting for the offers to roll in”.

As Blackwell marked his milestone, ex-girlfiend Imbert was forced to deny using him to find fame. She joined the TOWIE cast five years after her former flame, in 2021. She is now a regular cast member on the reality series. During an Instagram Q&A with fans, she was asked: "Did you use Liam to get on Towie?", as reported by ‘The Sun’.

She replied: "I didn't need to use anyone to get on TOWIE respectfully. My contract was already signed and delivered before being told I was even ever going on a date with the boy. I can't get brought onto a whole show through someone I barely knew, it doesn't even make any sense. Also, we've been broken up longer than what we were ever together. People gotta let it go now, FFS!"

The pair split up in December 2021, just weeks after making their relationship official. In his Instagram bio, Blackwell has written: “The clean hearted always win in the end.”