It’s without a doubt the biggest reality series on TV, but over the past seven years Love Island has made for increasingly toxic viewing.
Aside from the relentless parade of thin, mainly white bodies, and serious questions raised over a lack of mental health support both during and after production, the Love Island villa has been a petri dish of misogyny and ‘locker room’ talk viewed through the microscope of a global audience.
And while it’s by no means been the WORST series for sexist micro and macro aggressions there’s certainly been some, let’s say, standout characters whose behaviour has really shone a light on early red flags and the subtle signs of abuse.
With misogyny and possessiveness a major criticism of this year’s series in a way it hasn’t been in previous ones, ITV and Love Island have felt the pressure to re-asses the format after Ofcom received over 5,000 complaints in just two weeks.
‘We continually assess a programme as it is going on because it is one of these odd every night live sort of shows,’ said Kevin Lygo, managing director of ITV studios, in a media briefing this week.
‘But when the series comes to an end on Monday, we will always sit down and review what we think about it, what the reaction has been, how well it has done.
‘And we have to say this year, remember, it is the best one we have had in many years and I think everyone is thoroughly enjoying it.’
He continued, ‘To get five million people to watch a show every night at 9 o’clock is extraordinary in the modern era, so something is being done right.
‘But… we must always look to improve and work on what we have done. But we are very happy with the way it has gone so far.’
Hmm, that old well-if-it-makes-good-TV-what-do-you-expect-us-to-do-about-it chestnut, hey? Many viewers are in agreement that producers stepped into warn the boys to play nice following what seemed like orchestrated apologies after the Snog, Marry, Pie challenge
This may well be the series that prompts Love Island bosses to, as stated by domestic abuse charity Women’s Aid, outline ‘specific information on abusive relationships and an understanding of controlling behaviour in relationships’, but it’s long overdue. If Love Island is to play it’s part in evening the playing field in heterosexual relationships and normalising a sense of mutual respect, it might just be high time they started taking these complaints – not to mention the repeated advice of established women’s charities – seriously.
Love Island's most misogynistic, sexist and downright disrespectful moments
1 of 5Maura and the 'all mouth' incident
Maura Higgins was an unexpected fan favourite in 2019 and we were all rooting for her when bombshell Tom Walker walked into the villa and swiftly caught her eye. That was until, just moments after Maura picked him to spend a night in the hideaway with her, Tom callously boasted to the boys that he was about to find out if she was 'all mouth' or not - gross. Thankfully Maura heard every word and forfeited the trip without hesitation - but not before calling out Tom's misogyny.
2 of 5Zara Holland loses her Miss Great Britain title
Cast your mind way back to 2016 and you'll like remember the SCANDAL that was Zara Holland losing her Miss Great Britain title after giving Alex Bowen - who went on to place runner up and marry his Love Island girlfriend Olivia Buckland - a blow job. While the glaring 1950's style misogyny from an official body (Miss GB, we're looking at you) might not happen today, the slut shaming and double standards exhibited by other Islanders, the media and the general public at the time wouldn't be quite so out of place in 2022.
3 of 5Molly-Mae vs Anton
Also in 2019, Molly-Mae Hague - one of the most successful Islanders ever - certainly made an impact when she entered as an early bombshell and quickly found everlasting love in the form of one Tommy Fury. Not everyone was quite so happy for the pair, though, with OG boy Anton Danyluk particularly bitter that she hadn't fallen for his charms. Cue months of Anton publicly branding Molly-Mae a 'fake' (the ULTIMATE Love Island insult) and unfollowing her on social media.
4 of 5Camilla's feminist debate
Series three's Camilla Thurlow didn't have the easiest time on the show - that was until she met now-husband Jamie Jewitt and went on to place first runners up with him (not to mention have two babies, so, you know, turned out alright in the end) - but remember when she was coupled up with Jonny Mitchell who told her 'feminism believes in almost inequality'? A proud feminist, Camilla was understandably upset by Jonny's view, but was told she was overreacting by the other Islanders.
5 of 5The shaming of Megan Barton-Hanson
If there was one woman who truly felt the full force of Love Island's culture of misogyny and sexism, it was former stripper Megan Barton-Hanson. Aside from the predictable sexist discourse about her career choices, Megan's decision to get intimate with some of the boys in her series saw her slut-shamed relentlessly and receive death threats upon leaving the villa - a fate not suffered by her male counterparts, needless to say. Megan has gone on to brand herself as an outspoken, sex-positive feminist and has worked on a number of campaigns, including a collaboration with Ann Summers.