Sam Faiers and Ferne McCann avoided awkwardly bumping into each other as they both attended the Pride of Britain awards earlier this evening.
The pair both donned similar coloured outfits as they walked the red carpet tonight for the glittering event but have not yet publicly interacted and been pictured together since a series of voice notes - allegedly from Ferne, badmouthing Sam, leaked on Instagram, writes The Mirror.
The Instagram account leaking the voice notes allege they are Ferne making a number of negative remarks about her one-time close pal Sam. Ferne and Sam's friendship was put under the spotlight when it was claimed mum-of-one Ferne had made negative comments about her childhood friend's weight and labelled her former co-star a 'narcissistic b***h', thanks to a viral social media post featuring alleged voice notes sent by Ferne.
In one of the reported 39 audio clips the account claimed to have possession of , the voice called Sam a 'fat c***' in a message sent a month after the TV star welcomed her third child.
On Monday, Celebrity SAS star Ferne put the recent drama behind her as she looked sensational in a cut-out creation burgundy red and black floor-length gown, with Sam also posing for pictures just minutes before her former friend did the same. The former TOWIE star wore a similar colour scheme to Ferne for the showbiz event, stunning in a floor-length burgundy red satin gown, complete with a thigh-high split and feather features around the wrists.
Sam was supported by her partner Paul Knightley as she posed alongside the father of her three children on the red carpet, beaming as she cuddled up to her man before heading inside earlier this evening. Ferne is yet to publicly comment on the leaked voice notes, but following the social media posts from the anonymous account the star reportedly got in contact with the police.
An Essex Police spokesperson told the Mirror earlier this month: "We are investigating a report of malicious communication which was made to us in Brentwood on Thursday 29 September. We have spoken to the victim, a woman aged in her 30s, and our enquiries are ongoing."
Sam and her sister Billie Shepherd's mum took to social media last month [September 28] to seemingly slam her kid's former friend and defend her daughters, as the alleged voice notes gained traction on Instagram and went viral.
Suzie Wells, 53, said within a lengthy statement shared to her Instagram Stories: "Ferne has always been a very close family friend to all of us for over the past 20 years. It appears this voice note was sent just weeks after Samantha gave birth back in May. Since this voice note has surfaced more have been sent - very upsetting nasty things. We are as shocked as you are! Nobody should ever speak about their friends like this ever!"
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