Dying to be famous... Could Mike’s death spell the end of Love Island?
The death of Love Island star Mike Thalassitis shocked the showbiz world last week – reigniting fears that the overnight fame so many reality TV stars crave can also destroy them…
He was young, handsome, famous and seen at the best places, usually with an equally gorgeous partner. It looked like Love Island and Celebs Go Dating star Mike Thalassitis had everything to live for, which is why his death on 15 March was such a shock.
Mike, 26, was found hanged in woodland close to where he lived in North London, just days after his grandmother had passed away. He had recently moved in with her to be her full-time carer.
Tributes flooded in from the world of showbiz. Friend and fellow Love Island star Montana Brown, 23, said, ‘[Mike] went through a really rough time in November and December… the work wasn’t coming in, he’d finished Celebs Go Dating, the buzz had kind of gone and he didn’t really know what to do for work.
‘I know he had a massive tax bill that he paid. I think the stress really, really got to him. He thought, “This fame isn’t what it’s cracked up to be. Where do I go now?”’
While it is too early to know exactly what happened in Mike’s final hours, his death was immediately linked to those of other of reality TV stars. In the past 13 years, more than 20 have committed suicide across the globe.
Gia Allemand, 29, from the US show The Bachelor, died in 2013 after being found unconscious at home by her boyfriend. Last June, Russian star Anastasia Tarasyuk, 24, killed herself after the fame she found on Dom 2 (House 2), Russia’s top-rated reality TV show, began to wane.
Mike Thalassitis’s death comes just nine months after Love Islander Sophie Gradon was found dead. Sophie, 32, was in the 2016 series of the show but said she’d ‘sold her soul to reality TV’.
Three months before she died, she revealed the ‘ horrific’ abuse she’d been subjected to online, and admitted she’d struggled with
crippling anxiety and depression. ‘There would be so many negative comments,’ she said. ‘The way you look, the way you talk… you take it like you’re being judged. It can really get into your mind.’ While early reports indicated that Sophie took her own life, her mum, Deborah, has said, ‘There is nothing to support the suggestion that Sophie committed suicide.’ Last week, the inquest into her death was halted at her family’s request, so that investigations can continue into the cause of her death. Meanwhile, 85,000 people applied for a place on last year’s Love Island in a bid for fame and fortune. The harsh reality for some is that it ends in notoriety and abuse. Many Islanders have now spoken out about the problems they faced after leaving the show. ‘People’s lives change overnight and no one can mentally be prepared for it. The good and the bad,’ said 2016 contestant Kady McDermott. In less than 48 hours after Mike’s death, a petition was set up by fellow Islander Jonny Mitchell, tagged ‘ITV – No more suicides, give real support to all contestants.’ As we went to press, it stood at 77,733 signatures. Health Secretary Matt Hancock said he was ‘very worried’ about the support available for reality TV contestants, and added that TV bosses had a ‘duty of care’ to look after them. ‘The sudden exposure to massive fame… can have significant impact on people.’
Love Island bosses said last week that they were extending their support and aftercare to include ‘all Islanders, not only those that reach out to us’.
ITV says the move comes after a six-month review of the show’s ‘medical processes’ by an independent expert, stating, ‘ 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.’
The statement also said, ‘The Mike we knew was a remarkable and charismatic young man who made a huge impression, both on the Love Island team and on viewers of the show. Our thoughts and deepest sympathies are with his family and friends.’
Anyone feeling emotionally distressed or suicidal can call Samaritans’ free helpline number, 116 123, or email jo@samaritans.org