The twenty-eighth series of the British reality television programme The Only Way Is Essex began airing on 12 September 2021, and concluded on 14 November following 10 episodes. A further two "Essexmas" special episodes aired on 15 and 16 December. Ahead of the series, it was announced that the show would be evolving with some changes, including axing a number of cast members to therefore focus on a smaller group of cast and allow more time to film their real lives, such as their bonds between family and friends. Cast members confirmed to be axed were Chloe Meadows, Clelia Theodorou, Courtney Green, Ella Wise, Harry Derbidge, Harry Lee, Kelsey Stratford, Nicole Bass, Rem Larue, and Tom McDonnell; joining Georgia Kousoulou, Tommy Mallett, and Joey Turner, who had already previously announced they had quit. Bobby Cole Norris also announced that he had quit the series but would be presenting "TOWIE: The Official After Party", a new online spin-off series.
Yazmin Oukhellou also made her return to the series during the premiere. Despite having been axed from the show, Meadows, Green, Wise and Derbidge made brief guest appearances throughout the series alongside Frankie Essex, Georgia Kousoulou, Tommy Mallet, and Nikki Blackwell, who also made minor appearances. The series included appearances from two former Love Island stars Joe Garett and Jack Fincham, and new cast members Angel Bo-Stanley and Bill Delbosq also made their debut.
Cast
Episodes
Ratings Catch-up service totals were added to the official ratings. Episode Date Total ITVBe viewers Episode 1 12 September 2021 394,000 Episode 2 19 September 2021 422,000 Episode 3 26 September 2021 447,000 Episode 4 3 October 2021 424,000 Episode 5 10 October 2021 355,000 Episode 6 17 October 2021 430,000 Episode 7 24 October 2021 490,000 Episode 8 31 October 2021 434,000 Episode 9 7 November 2021 411,000 Episode 10 14 November 2021 431,000 Essexmas 1 15 December 2021 305,000 Essexmas 2 16 December 2021 265,000 Series average 401,000
References