The first episode of Love Island last night was dedicated to Mike Thalassitis. A tribute to the former contestant - who died in March after taking his own life - was shown at the end of last night’s show, with a picture of the star alongside the caption, ‘In loving memory of Mike Thalassitis 1993-2019.’
The programme paid tribute to Sophie Gradon in the same way last year.
Viewers appreciated the tribute, with 2018 contestant Jack Fowler writing, ‘@LoveIsland keeping Mike in their thoughts at the end. Never forgotten.’ Another said, ‘Big up Love Island for putting a memorial for Mike at the end.’
An insider has previously revealed to the Mirror that producers wanted to dedicate the opening episode to him. They told the newspaper, ‘Producers wanted to pay their respects to Mike and show his friends, family and fans that he was a part of the Love Island family and is missed deeply by everyone. It is a really difficult subject but they wanted to address it rather than sweep it under the carpet or pretend it hasn’t happened.’
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