Sam Faiers shocks fans with pregnancy after planning to hold off until marriage

Sam Faiers has announced that she is pregnant with her second child on her Instagram profile, appearing to be excited to expand her brood with boyfriend Paul Knightley.

Faiers, 26, told IBTimes UK earlier this year that marriage wasn't on the cards for her and Knightley just yet, but she would wait to have a second child until after they tied the knot.

The former Towie star posted a snap of herself in underwear showing her growing baby bump while holding her son Paul, captioning the shot: "Words can't describe how excited we are to meet you baby ❤ We love you soo much already. #babynumber2#2under2".

It appears that Faiers is following in the steps of her older sister Billie, 27, who also has two young children with partner Greg Shepherd.

Faiers' Instagram post was met with hundreds of congratulatory comments, with one follower writing: "Yay! So excited for you :) congratulations :D am looking forward to the next TV series!"

Another fan commented: "I am so excited for you, you are such a wonderful mummy and I hope we get a new baby diaries @samanthafaiers".

The TV star, who featured in the 2014 series of Celebrity Big Brother, is now the star of her own show on ITVBe called The Mummy Diaries, which documents her motherhood.

Faiers has been with Knightley for three years and the couple welcomed baby Paul in December 2015.

On a potential walk down the aisle, Faiers previously told IBTimes UK: "No, not yet – everyone is asking this. We will get married at some point in the future, and definitely before we have our second baby."

Faiers also claimed that she has completely lost interest in going out since embracing motherhood, stating: "I am truly so different now to before I had the baby; your priorities change, your work changes, life changes!

"I used to be worried about what outfit I'd be wearing to a certain event, now it's about what dinner I'm making for the baby," she added.