From Love Islanders to Towie icons, surprising celebs who went YEARS without sex & why it can turbocharge your love life

SHE was once voted the World’s Sexiest Woman, but Tulisa is taking a break from the bedroom.

The N-Dubz singer made the surprising revelation that she's been celibate for three years on last night’s I’m A Celebrity.

Tulisa also told her campmates Dean McCullough and Alan Halsall that she identifies as “demisexual” - which is when a person only begins to find someone sexually attractive after forming a strong emotional bond with them.

And the former X Factor judge even admitted the thought of sleeping with someone makes her feel "physically sick”.

She said: “I need actual depth. I’m a slow, slow burner, I’ve been celibate for over three years.

"I’m not an overly sexualised person.

"For me, it’s all about the connection and the emotions that I feel with someone and then wanting to express them in that way.”

But Tulisa - who topped FHM's sexiest female list in 2012 - isn’t the only surprising celeb to have gone years without sex, as we reveal…

Chantelle Houghton

Chantelle Houghton has had a string of high-profile relationships, including with Preston from Ordinary Boys - who she was married to, for a year, after meeting on Celebrity Big Brother.

But in March, she revealed she’d been celibate for two years, having decided she’d rather be alone than be with the wrong man.

The mum-of-one told The Sun: “It's been about two years now and without sex I feel empowered, independent and free.

“Chivalry appears to be dead and I'd much rather go through the rest of my life single than settle for someone who makes me miserable.

“Since my marriage to Preston ended I've suffered everything from ghosting to gaslighting and I can spot a narcissist a mile off.”

Lauren Goodger

In 2016, Lauren Goodger began dating jailbird Joey Morrison, while he was serving time in prison for a string of violent, drugs-related charges.

At the time, the former TOWIE star confessed they were yet to be intimate and she was saving herself for him.

In a candid interview with Closer Magazine, she said: “Joey’s going to be knackered when we’re finally alone because we’ll be very busy.

“There’s lots to do. I’ve been properly celibate for a year but he’s worth the wait.”

The couple broke up in July 2017, following a furious row inside HMP Highpoint South.

But Lauren continued with her celibacy journey - and still hadn’t had sex by 2018.

She said: “I'm a very sexual person, but I don't want to be intimate with someone unless I'm in a relationship. I want to settle down and have the fairytale.”

Linda Robson 

Loose Women panellist Linda Robson shocked viewers last year, when she confessed she was “celibate” - especially as she’d been married to Mark Dunford for 33 years at the time.

"Can I just say I've been celibate for two years?" she said. "I can't be a**** with all that [romance stuff]. 

“I'm just happy going out with my mates and my children and my grandchildren.”

Unsurprisingly, Linda and Mark split up just a few months later, but she saw no need to rush into further romances.

After their break-up, she told OK! "I don't need a man. I've got my friends and my family. 

“I'm not interested in dating, I'm too old now. I can't be bothered with all that 'jiggy jiggy'."

Kendra Wilkinson

She rose to fame on Girls of the Playboy Mansion, as one of Hugh Hefner’s girlfriends.

But earlier this year, Kendra Wilkinson revealed she had been celibate since divorcing her husband Hank Baskett in 2018.

In January, the former I'm A Celebrity star told People: “It's been so long since I've had sex — it's been so long that I've had any.

“Because I shamed myself on my sexuality too. Everyone sees me as a sex icon, so I shamed myself. I shamed myself, and I stayed away from anything sex. 

“I almost became celibate."

Brad McClelland

Before heading into the Love Island villa in 2021, Brad McLelland said people see him as a "top shagger" but he's "far from it."

In fact, he'd been single for two years, and not had sex in that time because he was "living with his nan".

He said: "I live with my nana and her little dog, I definitely wouldn't be going to my nana for any dating advice."

Brad's dry spell is definitely up now, as he's been dating Harry Maguire's sister Daisy Maguire since September 2022.

Yewande Biala

Love Islanders are often seen as people who play the field, but Brad isn't the only former star who abstained for a while.

In the 2019 series, viewers worked out that Yewande Biala hadn't had sex in four years.

In a villa game, she admitted to the fact that she'd "only slept with one person".

Then, later in the series, on a date with Danny Williams, she told him she'd been single for four years, saying it was part by choice and part because she hadn't found the right person yet.

Ferne McCann

Ferne McCann didn't have sex for two years after she split from her jailbird ex Arthur Collins in 2017.

The former TOWIE star made the confession in an episode of First Time Mum, while on a house viewing with her and Arthur's then-15-month-old daughter Sunday in tow.

She told Liam 'Gatsby' Blackwell: "It's coming up to two years, I'm basically a born-again virgin. 

"I need to clean away the old cobwebs!"

She certainly managed that, as Ferne and her now-fiance Lorri Haines welcomed a daughter Finty in July 2023.

Gemma Collins

She's been on and off with Rami Hawash since all the way back in 2011 - and finally got engaged to him in February this year.

But in April 2012, Gemma Collins begged her then-boyfriend Charlie King for sex on TOWIE - telling him she'd not had it in a year.

Charlie has since come out as gay but, at the time, told Gemma he wasn't ready for sex with her.

Gemma argued: "You know what everyone in Essex is like, they put it about!"

He replied: "I’m not like everyone else. I’m going to stick to my roots with that, let’s just have some fun, you need to be patient with me."

Gemma hit back: "I’ll be patient with you but its random behaviour, it’s bizarre to me, a man wants to touch you, feel you, slap your a**e.

"I’ve not had sex for a whole year."