The nineteen series of the British reality television programme The Only Way Is Essex was confirmed on 3 June 2015 when it was announced that it had renewed for at least a further six series, taking it up to 21 series.^[1] It is the fourth series to be included in its current contract. The series will launch on 9 October 2016 with a The Only Way is Marbs special.^[2] It includes the first appearances of new cast members Ben Shenel and Ercan Ramadan.^[3] Mario Falcone and Frankie Essex also made a surprise one-off return to the series during the final episode of the series to celebrate Chloe Sims's 35th birthday.^[4] Love Island winners Nathan Massey and Cara De La Hoyde both made another guest appearance during the eighth episode.^[5] Original cast member James Argent was also absent for most of this series. A further two Essexmas specials aired in December 2016, where Danni Armstrong announced her departure from the series.^{[citation needed]}

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The series focused heavily on Bobby's mission to conquer his fears,^[6] the breakdown of Amber and Chris's relationship causing a divide between the boys and the girls,^[7] and the aftermath of Lockie and Danni's shock break-up.^{[citation needed]}