Why Billie Shepherd is ‘putting on a brave face’ amid shock Towie U-turn – and part played by younger sister Sam Faiers

IT’S coming up to two years since Billie Shepherd was last seen on telly amid speculation of friction with her younger sister, Sam Faiers. And while Billie, 36, is publicly flashing her trademark megawatt smile all over social media, insiders say away from the cameras a VERY different story emerging. Billie Faiers is returning to Towie to host the vodcast Credit: instagram/itv Billie and Sam are said to be in a good place at the moment after reports of tension Credit: Shutterstock Editorial We can reveal that earlier this month, Billie officially dissolved her long-standing TV company, Billie Faiers Enterprises, pocketing a staggering £1.2million. The star is already said to be worth around £4million from her social media. Having established the business just months after first joining The Only Way Is Essex in 2010, its closure felt like the final curtain on her television career. So when her return to the TOWIE universe was announced shortly after—this time taking over as host of the show’s official vodcast from Denise Van Outen —it raised plenty of eyebrows. But we’re told it’s part of a wider plan for the star who has been ‘putting on a brave face’ since the U-turn. It’s come as her younger sister Sam’s career has really taken off. She’s now a fully-fledged businesswoman, launching a multi-million-pound collagen company called Revive, taking her from reality star to retail star, who is thought to be worth £9million now. Our insider revealed: “There has been a lot of talk about the relationship between the sisters, and they have been determined to put on a united front. “And things are good between the pair at the moment, but it’s all incredibly complex. “Sam, who thrives on feeling high-powered, has reportedly struggled to understand Billie’s shift in priorities. “Sam thinks she should be doing more with her life than being an Essex housewife, but Billie just wants to stay at home with Greg and the kids. “Unlike Sam, who loves the glitz and glamour, Billie’s ultimate happiness lies in family life with husband Greg and their three children. “She has no interest in standard nine-to-five hours or demanding TV schedules that pull her away from home. She’s very much the Kourtney Kardashian of the family.” Sam’s life took a very different turn when she left Essex for Surrey with partner Paul Knightley and their three kids in 2020 – leaving Billie baffled and reportedly ‘abandoned’. The move is said to have been the start of issues between the pair, which were further exacerbated when Sam quit their show The Mummy Diaries in 2021. The show was re-branded as Billie & Greg: The Family Diaries, continuing to follow Billie’s family until they wrapped up their final episode in late 2024, leaving Billie wondering what was next. Sam and Billie briefly reunited for a new show – Sister Act – last year, but the show was axed after just one series as fans grew concerned about Sam’s newfound love of alternative medicine when Billie was left severely struggling with Lyme disease. With no new shows in the pipeline, the reality of Billie’s situation means she does need to find a way to keep up with her lifestyle, without a long running ITV series behind her. Billie was on TV all the time at one point but her career has taken a different path now Credit: Getty Sam has also moved away from reality TV and is now running a beauty brand Credit: Instagram When her and Sam’s joint reality show was axed after continuous criticism, it sparked a shift in the telly work she landed, and that proved hard to shake. “Billie hasn’t been offered any big TV gigs in a long time,” the insider explains. “It’s always very embarrassing when your TV show is axed. It was continuously slammed for being weird, and things like that stick —other people don’t want to work with you.” Having achieved financial security through smart investments, Instagram deals, and TV earnings over the years, Billie – who wed husband Greg in 2019 and is mum to Nelly, 11, Arthur, eight, and Margot, three – doesn’t need the money. The insider added: “But as her TV bubble burst, she hit a crucial commercial snag: without mainstream TV visibility, lucrative corporate partnerships begin to dry up. Sam and Billie first rose to fame on Towie Credit: WENN “Realising she needed a media footprint to maintain the kind of brand clout that commands top-tier commercial fees—akin to Gemma Collins‘ reported £100k-a-day rates— Billie needed a low-stress, high-profile project. Enter the Towie vodcast.” It’s thought that Billie was initially deeply hesitant to sign on, terrified it would look like a desperate step backward into the show that made her famous. Her management team are said to have persuaded her that is very different because it wasn’t about her personal life this time and she is taking over from a respected star – Denise. It also meant her family commitments wouldn’t have to play second fiddle. “When the Towie vodcast role came along, she saw it for what it was – easy money for relatively little work,” says the source. “It keeps her foot in the door without having to throw herself back into the chaos of reality TV. “She knows that maintaining her position as the UK’s ultimate “glamorous Essex mum” keeps the doors open for major commercial deals and brand ambassadorships down the line.” There have, of course, been whispers about her decision – in the past she has made it very clear she has moved on from that stage of her life. She said previously: “I won’t be getting involved because, to be honest, it’s like I’m at a completely different stage in my life now. I don’t even know what I would do on there any more… Towie is ten years ago for me. You just can’t compare my life then to my life now.” Our source added: “Yes, some people might say it’s embarrassing returning to Towie but she’s putting a big smile on her face, doing her jazz hands, and owning it. “In her eyes, she’s not desperate. It’s about working smarter, protecting the life she loves, and only saying yes to projects that fit around her family.”