James Argent thanks Mark Wright for helping him through cocaine addiction

James Argent has thanked Mark Wright for helping him through his cocaine addiction and has admitted he’s ‘forever grateful’ for his support.

The TV personality heaped praise onto his former Towie co-star as he joined Ruth Langsford and Eamonn Holmes on today’s episode of This Morning, not long after he admitted he ‘hated’ Gemma Collins at the peak of his dependency on the drug.

‘Mark’s my best friend,’ James began. ‘Mark, alongside his cousin Elliott, they’re two of my closest friends. Mark has always been there for me through my ups and downs. Alongside Gemma, Mark’s always given me tough love.

‘Throughout December, he was phoning me begging me to go to rehab and get treatment, but wasn’t ready, I didn’t want to go, I didn’t want to stop.

‘Boxing Day, I rung up Mark and I said, “Mark, I can’t do this anymore, every time I relapse, they get worse and worse.” Over December I thought, “Wow, I’m actually close to death.”

‘I knew that if I didn’t sort myself out, I could have potentially died.

‘I rang up Mark and Mark went out of his way, he got in contact with a rehab in Thailand, he helped me booked my flights, he arranged everything.’

James continued: ‘I’m forever grateful for Mark for that… Elliott offered to pay for me to go in rehab in Marbella. I’m lucky to have friends like that.’

Talking about the positives and moving forward, James added: ‘At the moment, I’m in early stages of recovery. I’ve lost a substantial amount of weight, which is great… a big part of me using was the eating disorder, so I’m eating three balanced meals a day.

‘I’m also regularly on phone calls with other addicts and people who can relate to me. I’m trying to give myself structure and routine… I’m lucky I’ve got the support system I’ve got.’

This Morning airs weekdays from 10am on ITV.

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