Fans of TV presenter Samantha Faiers queued for up to five hours to meet her on Saturday.

The star of The Only Way Is Essex (TOWIE) was greeted by a crowd of over 100 at the Ashford Designer Outlet.

They clapped, cheered and took photos on their mobile phones when she arrived at The Fragrance Shop.

Samantha was 45 minutes late, having got caught in traffic at the Dartford crossing.

But that did not deter the crowd, which steadily grew as the time got nearer for her appearance.

Samantha was at the shop to promote her new perfume, La Bella. She signed autographs and boxes of the scent and chatted to fans.

She said: “Promoting the perfume has been really good fun.

“I enjoy meeting the public. It gives me the chance to get some feedback on the perfume, which has all been good so far.”

She said she had been involved in the production of La Bella for the last 18 months.

“I had a say in the scent, the bottle and the design,” she said. “I was there for everything. I had an idea of what I wanted it to be like, and it is just what I wanted.”

Samantha, who also appeared on Celebrity Big Brother, has just had a holiday in Ibiza with her on-off partner and fellow TOWIE member Joey Essex and friends.

She has also been in Dublin promoting her range of lingerie for the Ann Summers chain.

Of her future plans, she said: “I have a big fashion project coming up in September but can’t say too much about it. That will keep me busy until the end of the year.”

First in the queue to meet Samantha were Amber Moseley, 14, and Ellen Hills, 21, who arrived at 10am – four hours before the star was due to appear.

Amber, who goes to Highworth Grammar School, said: “I idolise her and just love TOWIE.”

Ellen, who is currently unemployed, said: “I hope I get to speak to her. We both came early so we could get to see her.”

Both girls were rewarded for their patience by being the first in the shop to meet Samantha.

She signed autographs and their bottles of perfume, chatted to them and posed for photos and selfies.

Afterwards Amber said: “It was definitely worth the wait. It was lovely and she is so nice.”

One of the few men in the crowd was Gary Blackford, who was with daughter Yasmin, 15.

“I have not got a clue who she is, although I have heard of Joey Essex,” admitted Mr Blackford, of Rene Mac Kisray Place, Ashford. “I’m only here because Yasmin wanted to come.”

Yamsin, who goes to Towers School, said: “She is my favourite character. I really like her and she is so fashionable.”

Listeners of our radio station kmfm have the chance to win a bottle of La Bella. Go to www.kmfm.co.uk for details.