Sam and Zara 'heartbroken'

Sam Thompson and Zara McDermott tried to make their relationship work but it was "impossible", a source tells new

- Eve Macdonald

After five years together - with many ups and downs along the way fans were left shocked when it was reported that TV power couple Sam Thompson and Zara McDermott had split.

Rumours started swirling that the pair had parted ways after they were spotted celebrating the festive period separately and then saw in the New Year apart, too.

Now, according to a source, it seems Sam and Zara did try their best to "make it work" but things were proving "impossible".

"Although they have known it's been over for a while, they are both devastated and heartbroken that they couldn't make it work as they had so much love for each other," the source told us.

"When they had problems in the summer, they vowed to give it one more try and hoped they could work through their issues, but it proved impossible as they were just at different stages in their lives."

Former Love Island star Zara stayed at home with the couple's cats, Albus and Cedric, while, Sam, 32, spent New Year's Eve at London's Kensington Roof Gardens with his former Made In Chelsea co-stars Reza Amiri-Garroussi and Josh Patterson.

In a post uploaded to Reza's Instagram, I'm A Celeb winner Sam was seen doing a shot and telling the group, "It's going to be a memorable evening. I'm very, very glad to be around all of you." And, prior to New Year's Eve, he had spent Christmas Day volunteering while Zara spent time with her family in Essex.

Sam also shared a post to Instagram on 25 December where he said it was looking like he would have a "bleak Christmas".