Joey Essex breaks the heart of his ex-girlfriend Grace Jackson after ditching her for a second time in favour of Love Island’s new blonde bombshell.

The former TOWIE star, 33, claims his connection with newcomer Jessy Potts, 25, is stronger than the one he shares with Grace, who he dated last summer when they met on holiday in Ibiza.

Grace, 25, is left in tears after Joey returns from dating Jessy with changed feelings and sidelines her completely despite the couple recently speaking about taking their relationship to the next level.

TV star Joey confesses to having an instant attraction to Jessy and the feeling is mutual after the Leicester-born influencer admitted to finding him ‘good looking’ ahead of her villa entrance.

Jessy’s presence on the show marks the beginning of the end for Joey and Grace, whose romance hangs by a thread following heated rows and hurt feelings in Wednesday’s night episode.

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Joey Essex breaks the heart of his ex-girlfriend Grace Jackson after ditching her for a second time in favour of Love Island’s new blonde bombshell

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The former TOWIE star claims his connection with newcomer Jessy Potts is stronger than the one he shares with Grace, who he dated last summer when they met on holiday in Ibiza

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View galleryJessy’s presence on the show marks the beginning of the end for Joey and Grace, whose romance hangs by a thread following heated rows and hurt feelingsA TV source told MailOnline: ‘Grace is devastated… she believed in her romance with Joey, the history they share together and everything they have built since her arrival in the Love Island villa.

‘But Joey has completely dismissed their time as a couple in pursuit of his new connection and even claimed his initial spark with Jessy was stronger than his feelings towards Grace after two weeks.

‘Their impending breakup causes huge disruption in the villa, with Wednesday’s episode set to be the most dramatic of the series.’

Revealing his immediate connection with Jessy, Joey said, ‘I felt I got deeper in 20 minutes with Jessy than with Grace.’

Confiding in co-star Harriett Blackmore, Grace explained her feelings of confusion, saying, ‘I’m fuming, I’ll be honest.

‘With Joey, he has been how he has been with me, this constant reassurance and feeling like I genuinely believe and trust everything he’s saying. He’s been that way with me, so it’s made me open up and be that way with him.

‘For him to then go on a date and come back in. I felt like he was so cold with me… his energy was so off.’

Expressing her heartbreak, Grace told Joey: ‘I am so disappointed in you.’

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Joey continues getting to know new arrival Jessy despite his history with ex-girlfriend Grace, who breaks down as she’s forced to watch their growing connection

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Expressing her heartbreak, Grace told Joey: ‘I am so disappointed in you’ as the couple discussed Jessy’s arrival

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TV star Joey confesses to having an immediate attraction to Jessy and the feeling is mutual after the Leicester-born influencer admitted to finding him ‘good looking’

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Revealing his instant connection with Jessy, Joey said, ‘I felt I got deeper in 20 minutes with Jessy than with Grace’

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View galleryAt first, Joey looked irritated by the idea of dating someone new, before meeting Jessy, still topless and wearing a crown following the show’s Heart Rate Challenge

Jessy chose to go on a date with Joey following her arrival in the villa after saying he ‘intrigued’ her and she was keen to get to know the man behind the reality TV persona.

At first, Joey looked irritated by the idea of dating someone new, before meeting Jessy, still topless and wearing a crown following the show’s Heart Rate Challenge.

Joey and Grace’s relationship has been on the rocks since they found themselves in the bottom three following a public vote.

The couple met on holiday last year and their romance continued once they were home, but they eventually split over their lack of time together, with Grace based in Manchester and Joey, Essex.

Bombshell Konnor Ewudzi chose to couple up with Grace, stealing her from Joey, after the model refused to confirm whether they were ‘closed off’ to pursuing new connections.