Lauren Goodger, former star of TOWIE, embarked on a decade-long relationship with co-star Mark Wright. However, she recently disclosed the reason behind her decision to remove the intimate tattoo she had gotten in his honor.

Since departing from The Only Way Is Essex in 2012, Lauren Goodger has returned to the screen for the newest season. While she’s excited to reconnect with some of her former castmates, there’s one person from her past she’s keen on leaving behind: her ex, Mark Wright.

In a bold move, she has ensured that her iconic tattoo bearing his name, located in a rather intimate area, has been erased from existence.

“I removed my Mark tattoo a long time ago. It was on series two of TOWIE. It’s just been brought back to life as Amy [Childs] and I discussed it on the show last week,” Lauren exclusively told OK!.

“As you can imagine another man’s name tattooed on me wouldn’t really go down well with new partners,” she laughed.

Lauren revealed the real reason she had a tattoo of Mark Wright removed

Lauren and Mark, who is now married to Michelle Keegan, began dating in their teenage years, and their relationship endured for a decade until their eventual split in 2011. Their tumultuous journey was frequently featured in TOWIE storylines, garnering significant attention from viewers.

As Lauren returns to captivate audiences, she recently addressed her private tattoo during an episode that aired on Sunday, April 7. During a conversation with beautician Amy Childs, Amy reminisced about giving Lauren spray tans in the past.

Lauren and Mark split in 2011 (Image: ITV/REX/Shutterstock)
Amy recalled: “I remember spray-tanning you and being like, ‘oh my God, she’s got “Mark” on her noonie’.” She then asked Lauren: “Have you still got it?” before Lauren replied: “No. It’s gone. It had to go. How could I get with a new boy with that on my noon?”

Amy quipped: “Could you not have just put a love heart around it,” as Lauren said: “No, no, no,” with both women going into fits of giggles.

Lauren then jokingly asked: “Could you imagine?” with Amy replying: “I had to ask you.”

The star opened up about her tattoo to Amy Childs (Image: ITV)
“Why did I do that though?” Lauren continued. “See things like that, I look back and think it’s so cute, but at the time, I was really serious about it.”

During her conversation with OK!, the 37-year-old also delved into her past, courageously disclosing that both therapy and her recent career pivot have been significant turning points for her.

“I have had therapy but I’ve not had any sessions in the last couple of months so I need to book my next session in. I definitely feel TOWIE has given me a boost. It’s like the old Lauren is coming back a bit again which is nice,” she said.

Lauren said daughter Larose might make an appearance on the show (Image: Phil Harris)
It appears fans are equally thrilled to see Lauren back on screens after her departure from the show in series six. Despite previously admitting that returning to filming disrupted her “mum bubble,” the former Celebrity Big Brother contestant instantly knew she had made the right choice once she resumed filming.

“The reaction to the first few episodes has been absolutely amazing,” Lauren said. “We hit 1.2 million views on my first episode so I know the team were over the moon.”