Love Island star Liam Llewellyn has broken his silence following his shock exit from the show, telling MailOnline he can’t deal with his actions being manipulated by producers.
The 23-year-old Welsh student, who left after just six days in the villa at the start of the series, says he underestimated how being filmed 24/7 would affect him mentally, knowing his every move was being watched and edited unfavorably .
And he believes his former co-star Luca Bish, 23, won’t be happy when he finds out producers made him look like a controlling misogynist.
‘You’re not in control’: Love Island star Liam Llewellyn has broken his silence following his shock exit from the show, telling MailOnline he couldn’t deal with his actions being manipulated by producers
Liam said: “I thought I was going to have the summer everyone dreams of but now I live with no regrets, I took a chance but I realized I can’t live on TV.
“I was expected to do things for a TV show and I couldn’t be myself. I didn’t want to do it. It’s a TV show and it’s being produced. Not everything is natural.
“In my head I wasn’t in the right position to be on a TV show because that’s what you do. You have to go on dates, do challenges, and you don’t control any of it.
“In my meetings, they asked me to redo things because they didn’t quite work out.
“I had a lot of meetings with the executives, the series editor and professional physiologists, but after a few days of feeling like this, I made the decision on my own behalf that it wasn’t right to continue. ‘
‘It wasn’t right for me’: Welsh student who quit after just six days in cottage at start of series says he underestimated how being filmed 24/7 would affect him mentally
‘The editing he’s getting is not justified’: Liam believes ex-co-star Luca Bish won’t be happy when he finds out producers made him look like a controlling misogynist in his pairing with Gemma Owen
Liam was paired with Gemma Owen, 19, thanks to a viewer vote, but they were only together for a few days.
She has since been paired with Luca, who is one of the show’s original islanders, but in recent weeks the fishmonger has come under fire for his controlling manner.
Earlier this month, the charity Women’s Aid issued a warning to the show’s male stars, and Luca in particular, for their misogynistic behaviour.
Luca was called out for ‘bullying’ contestant Tasha Gouri, 23, who he repeatedly called a ‘fake’ and he accused his own partner Gemma of flirting with other contestants – despite encouraging the boys to be unfaithful during Casa Amor.
He even ran out of the villa this week after falling out with Gemma over her playful licking of Adam Collard, 26, during a challenge.
‘My head was miles away’: Liam left the Love Island villa after six days and spoke for the first time about the ‘out of body experience’ he had during his short time on the series
Liam believes that Luca was a victim of the show’s harsh editing process and their drive to “do drama”, saying that he doesn’t look like what they’re currently portraying him as.
He explained: “I know Luca and what he’s really like and it’s nothing like what he sees.
“Suddenly the editing it’s getting isn’t quite justified. It’s hard for me to sit here and watch this while viewers form an opinion, whereas if you spend 10 minutes with it, it will change.
“Any opinion people have about the show, I think you have no idea, I think if only you knew. You see such a small segment that they really don’t know what’s going on.
“It’s a TV show, they have to make drama and make something small into something big and viewers get lost in it all.”
Liam also has sympathy for Jacques O’Neill, 23, who left the villa 17 days ago – after show bosses introduced ex-Islander Adam solely to prevent his relationship with Paige Thorne, 24.
‘Paige is there for me’: Liam linked up with Gemma Owen thanks to viewers’ vote, but they’ve only been together for a few days and now says he’s most attracted to Paige Thorne
The boy admits that he has reached out to Jacques and the two will meet after the series ends.
Liam said: “I contacted Jacques as soon as I made this decision. I found it a really difficult watch and it took me back feeling the way I did.
“I know we’ve both had completely different experiences, but I contacted him and he said he appreciated my message and we’d meet and talk.”
However, Liam admits fellow Welshman Paige is his favorite girl in the villa, despite never having a relationship with her.
He added: “Gemma is a really good looking girl but I would say Paige is there for me.
“She’s a really lovely girl, attractive. We got along pretty well there and she’s a classy girl.
Bring me back: Liam also has sympathy for Jacques O’Neill, who left the villa 17 days ago – after show bosses introduced former islander Adam Collard solely to interfere with his relationship with Paige Thorne
Liam was personally chosen to be on Love Island after casting producers invited him to take part.
His initial reaction was to reject the opportunity, but his family, including rugby star father David, encouraged him to take the plunge.
He quickly realized that he couldn’t forget the hundreds of cameras in the villa, as well as the behind-the-scenes team that accompanies the stars on their dates.
Liam explained: “I didn’t apply for the show they approached and even then I thought no, but they offered me an opportunity and I didn’t think I could turn it down.
“You walk into the villa and it’s an unnatural environment. At first I thought I would settle down and be fine, but as the days went by I realized that wasn’t changing for me. If anything, it was getting worse.
“Some of the cameras are hidden, but there are surrounding areas in the cottage where they are shuffling panels, you can hear them shuffling, there’s a massive camera that goes around the garden – I called it a TV camera – if that’s on you, you know you’re live .
“You know when that camera is on you and you’re having a conversation that gets a little juicy… it’s on you. There’s a team of 12-15 around you when you’re in meetings walking around, it’s good for meetings.
‘It’s an unnatural environment’: Liam was hand-picked by casting producers to star on Love Island but said he can’t forget the hundreds of cameras in the villa which ended up making him nervous
While Jacques was seen sobbing on screen as he broke the news of his departure to the cast, Liam didn’t seem to shed a tear.
But he says, off camera, that he went through severe emotional turmoil and was “gutted” faced with such a decision in a tense environment.
He said: “I will admit that behind closed doors I got very emotional.
“It was a big decision to make, and you don’t make decisions like that without having a mental battle with yourself.
“I was confused and gutted by the way I felt. My body was there, but my head was miles away.
“I couldn’t narrow it down to one word, but I was so overwhelmed. I’ve never felt like this before and I don’t think I ever will because being on Love Island is the greatest of all stages.
“When you have that gut feeling and you believe that you’re not your normal self, you can’t be afraid to make that choice, even if it’s scary at first.”
Add Comment