Falling out of love with Love Island

As Love Island casts its 2021 series, a contestant from the 2020 winter series has opened up about the mental health toll of partaking in the reality TV show.

In an Instagram Q&A, Siannise Fudge admitted that her appearance on the show has had a lasting effect on her mental health.

“I was very content and happy in my life before Love Island and I feel like mentally I’m not as happy,” she said. “If I could turn back the clock, I think I would have made a different decision.”

Fudge isn’t the first contestant to regret signing up for reality TV. Zara Holland, who was a Love Island contestant in 2016, says her stint on the show led to anxiety and depression.

Jennifer Zamparelli, who appeared on The Apprentice in 2008, says she feels sick when she thinks about her time on the UK show. “There was sleep deprivation, we weren’t fed properly. They drive you to a point of near madness,” she said.

The darkest indictment of the industry is the dozens of contestants who took their own lives after participating in reality TV shows.

There have been many conversations about how reality TV producers can protect the wellbeing and dignity of contestants and take their duty of care more seriously.

But perhaps they won’t take it seriously until we hear more accounts from participants who deeply regret taking part.

The reality TV industry needs an urgent overhaul, but it needs the voices of the people it has harmed most to lead the way.