Former Love Island star Olivia Attwood has defended the show amid controversy over its aftercare in the wake of Mike Thalassitis's death.
The former contestant was found dead over the weekend, and the ITV2 show has since announced it will be changing its aftercare process after facing criticism from viewers and former cast members.
However, one of Thalassitis's fellow 2017 stars has said that the show is not to blame for his death, Attwood saying that the series "saved" her.
"People are angry and they want someone to blame," she told The Sun. "Mike was in turmoil and a lot of his problems weren’t to do with Love Island at all."
The star explained that she was having a "really tough time" before she went on the reality show and was taking antidepressants.
"Love Island saved me," Attwood continued. "I got a lot of heat in the villa for the way I was but after I came out so many girls said how they related to me. I finally found this sense of self-acceptance that I never had before."
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The reality star didn't agree that the show needed to change its aftercare process, adding: "It isn’t an aftercare situation but a 'before care'. You need to be obligated to do a certain amount of therapy before going on Love Island to prepare you.
"You live in the villa for a very long time. You’re away for ten weeks in total including the lockdown period and you end up feeling institutionalised.
"Even though when I came out everything was crazy, I was ready to be free. If producers had said, 'Once a week we are all going to get together at ITV and have a support group', I wouldn’t have wanted to go."
The show has said of its "evolving" aftercare process: "This review has led us to extend our support processes to offer therapy to all Islanders and not only those that reach out to us.
"And we will be delivering bespoke training to all future Islanders to include social media and financial management. The key focus will be for us to no longer be reliant on the islanders asking us for support but for us to proactively check in with them on a regular basis."
We would encourage anyone who identifies with the topics raised in this article to reach out. Organisations who can offer support include Samaritans on 116 123 (www.samaritans.org), and Mind on 0300 123 3393 (www.mind.org.uk). Readers in the US are encouraged to contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on 1-800-273-8255 or visit the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.
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Sam is a freelance reporter and sub-editor who has a particular interest in movies, TV and music. After completing a journalism Masters at City University, London, Sam joined Digital Spy as a reporter, and has also freelanced for publications such as NME and Screen International. Sam, who also has a degree in Film, can wax lyrical about everything from Lord of the Rings to Love Is Blind, and is equally in his element crossing every 't' and dotting every 'i' as a sub-editor.
