I'm A Celeb winner Sam Thompson's emotional reunion with Zara McDermott

I'm A Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here! winner Sam Thompson has been reunited with girlfriend Zara McDermott after a month apart as he landed back in the UK.

Made In Chelsea star Thompson arrived at Heathrow airport where he was greeted by former Love Island star McDermott, as the pair shared an emotional embrace and she gave him a balloon bouquet.

Although family and friends of the campmates usually travel out to Australia to greet them as they cross the bridge out of camp, McDermott did not go as she had signed up to take part in a reality show too as one of the cast of Strictly Come Dancing.

McDermott revealed on her Instagram Stories: "Sam thought I was still going to be in Strictly (bless him, the optimism), so Pete [Wicks] cleared his whole diary for 2/3 weeks to be there."

She added: "We also have training for our final Strictly number. So it was a bit impossible to clear everything but Sam was so excited by the idea of Pete being there anyway that he was happy for me to be waiting for him back at base. I'm obviously a bit sad not to be there though. But I am throwing a huge party for all our family and friends on the final night (keeping fingers crossed he's in it!!! so I'm in charge of hosting everyone at home!"

Towie star Pete Wicks, who is Thompson's best friend, greeted Thompson as he came out of the jungle and was also seen sharing a hug with McDermott as they arrived back at the airport.

McDermott had offered her unwavering support to Thompson during his time in I'm A Celeb, giving interviews about how proud she felt as he spoke about his diagnosis attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

In his first TV interview after winning, Thompson told Lorraine that McDermott's reaction to him being crowned King of the Jungle had brought him to tears.

He said: "I’ve seen the clip. I haven’t turned on my phone. It made me cry. It’s my nearest and dearest in that room together. I’ve never had that amount of people support me for anything. It’s such an amazing feeling. Overwhelming. I'm a very lucky, lucky person. I owe a lot of people a lot of dinners."

Also arriving back at Heathrow on Wednesday was runner-up Nigel Farage, snappily dressed in a pink checked blazer and his jungle hat.

Farage was a controversial addition to the cast this year, so it came as a surprise to some viewers to see him in the final alongside Thompson and Tony Bellew.

Celeb spotters at the airport might have got a glimpse of one of the show's hosts, too, as Declan Donnelly arrived home pushing his young son Jack through the airport in a pushchair.

Read more:

• Jamie Lynn Spears posts emotional I'm A Celeb tribute as she hints at UK move (Evening Standard, 2 min read)

• Grace Dent makes emotional admission about her early I'm A Celeb exit (HuffPost, 2 min read)

• Nigel Farage arrives back at Heathrow after coming third on I'm A Celebrity (Evening Standard, 2 min read)