Joe Swash has admitted that filming his BBC series with Stacey Solomon comes with its difficulties, particularly when arguments are caught on camera. The couple, who opened their £1.2 million Essex home Pickle Cottage to cameras in April 2025 for the debut of Stacey and Joe, have seen the show attract around 4.2 million viewers for its first episode. However, Joe revealed to comedian Alan Carr that the cameras sometimes capture moments they would rather keep private.
Stacey Solomon Admits Row Over Beans Was Caught on Film
Stacey joined the conversation, recalling an argument about beans that was filmed. 'Last season when they recorded us arguing over beans, I was so annoyed that time and I thought I'm hiding this so well,' she said. 'But then I thought they'd stop rolling the cameras and I was on FaceTime and I said I'm surprised you haven't said sorry. Then they start rolling again. And then we have this big row and then I look up and I'm like, Oh, they're filming this. They're definitely filming this. They've got this whole thing.'
Joe added: 'It's hard. The thing is, when we decided to do this, we said it's got to be warts and all. We can't be looking to be perfect because we're not perfect.'
Couple's Reality TV Roots
Stacey and Joe are no strangers to reality television, having met on I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here! in 2010. 'We have a holiday romance that never ended,' Stacey remarked. Joe, however, had a hidden past on reality TV, briefly appearing on ITV's Club Reps in 2002. Before his EastEnders fame, Joe was ejected from Faliraki's Hotel Matina by show regular Marie Slater after causing trouble. He recalled irritating her by calling her 'Treacle,' and later, 'all of the reps across Europe on their t-shirts, on their uniforms, had Don't call me treacle printed on the back. So it's like my first claim to fame.'
Joe admitted he tried to keep his Club Reps appearance quiet: 'I really tried to keep it quiet because I thought I was going to lose my job on EastEnders.'
Addressing Serious Topics: Joe's ADHD Journey
Beyond the lighthearted moments, the couple occasionally tackle serious subjects, including Joe's ADHD diagnosis. In a recent Instagram post, Joe confessed he hadn't been 'managing it well' and discussed his struggles. In the video, he said: 'Everybody has been asking me about my ADHD, where I'm at in my journey. I feel like we touched upon it in series one of mine and Stacey's show, and I was on the journey of starting to find the right medication. I have stopped taking the medication for the last year. Now, in hindsight, I know is a bad idea, so I'm sort of gonna start the journey again from scratch. I've got a meeting with my doctor, and ADHD doctor as well. I realised the busier I get, the more overwhelmed I get with things and I start forgetting things, doing things in weird orders. I can't explain why I've done it that way either. So, I'm gonna start the journey again, which I'm sort of excited about because I don't feel like I sort of finished the journey in the beginning. So this time, I feel like I'm gonna let you know how I'm getting on.'
