Love Island’s reformed villain Adam Collard has issued his verdict on this year’s ‘toxic masculinity’ row as he admitted his own desire for fame ‘came at the expense of other people’.
The Celebrity SAS star, 29, who has since welcomed his first child and got engaged to sports presenter Laura Woods, earned a reputation as a Lothario during his stint on the 2018 series and later returned for the 2022 series.
He received criticism for his partner-swapping on the show and has since been blasted by his ex-girlfriends for his alleged ‘toxic behaviour’.
And now, Adam has shared his thoughts on the behaviour of men on Love Island after fans slammed this year’s male stars for their toxicity – with allegations of ‘manipulation, gaslighting and disrespect’.
Adam went on to discuss his own behaviour, as he admitted to the Daily Mail: ‘I was young, and I had just come out of a relationship. And obviously, you’re very, very influenced when you’re in there by fame and different sort of things.
‘Sometimes it can come at the expense of other people.’
Love Island’s reformed villain Adam Collard has issued his verdict on this year’s ‘toxic masculinity’ row as he admitted his own desire for fame ‘came at the expense of other people’ (Seen on show in 2022)
Adam received criticism for his partner-swapping on the show and has since been blasted by his ex-girlfriends for his alleged ‘toxic behaviour’ (Seen in 2022)
On this year’s show, contestants Dejon Noel Williams, Harry Cooksley, Ben Holbrough and Harrison Solomon all came under fire for their treatment of prospective partners.
The most prevalent criticism of the stars has been gaslighting – particularly Harry’s claims he ‘cannot remember’ a number of his conversations.
Sharing his thoughts, Adam revealed that he thought Harry’s behaviour only became out of order when he made things exclusive with Helena Ford – before confessing his feelings for Shakira Khan mere days later.
Adam said: ‘[Harry] was with Helena and now he is with Shakira, right? There’s nothing wrong with what he did from switching from Helen to Shakira, if he didn’t say we’re exclusive.
‘I think that’s the key difference from what I did – and I’m not trying to say I’m right and he’s wrong by any means – for me, I think I kind of said I did like one girl and then I was honest enough to say… like I never went exclusively for anyone, and I think that’s the key difference.’
Adam, who is currently starring on the seventh series of Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins, went on to share his theory on why the attitudes between the girls and boys is different.
He said: ‘You know how many times you meet people in real life where it’s very exciting at the start, and then, like, a few weeks down the line, you think, “Oh, I don’t know if this person’s right for me”. That happens in love island in three days, not three weeks or three months.
‘You’re almost like, speaking to them all day, every day, 24 hours. You find out very, very quickly. But it might look like some of the boys don’t know what they’re like in there – and girls are more mature than boys as a whole, they don’t have a clue themselves.’
Sharing his thoughts, Adam revealed that he thought Harry’s behaviour only became out of order when he made things exclusive with Helena Ford (left) – before confessing his feelings for Shakira Khan (right) mere days later
On this year’s show, contestants Dejon Noel Williams, Harry Cooksley, Ben Holbrough and Harrison Solomon all came under fire for their treatment of prospective partners
Adam, who is currently starring on the seventh series of Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins (Pictured), went on to share his theory on why the attitudes between the girls and boys is different
Love Island viewers flooded Twitter throughout the show’s four week stint to criticise the male stars following shocking moments with their female cohorts.
At the helm was Dejon, who was paired with Megan Moore from day one and was blasted for ‘manipulating, lovebombing and gaslighting’ his partner.
Ben meanwhile was scolded by host Maya Jama for a scathing joke aimed at Toni Laites about her union with Harrison, leading to praise from viewers – many of whom lashed out at the stars of the show for their ways.
Fans were keen to point out the issues facing the villa due to the behaviour of the male stars, with fans detailing how this year has seen serious problems.
It comes after news of the release of a book detailing Dejon’s alleged ‘gaslighting and abuse’.
The former semi-professional footballer and personal trainer, 26, came under fire in the villa for his treatment of now-girlfriend, with whom he failed to reach the final of the show earlier this month.
Dejon is the subject of a book – entitled Surviving Dejon – penned by Niah Sienna, who is said to be his brother’s sister and no blood relation to the star.
In announcing news of her book, Niah said: ‘Dejon is a narcissist, he’s manipulative. I’ve been telling everyone this for the past 10 years now but no one believed me.’
It comes after news of the release of a book detailing Dejon’s alleged ‘gaslighting and abuse’ (Dejon pictured on the show)
Following the announcement, Dejon took to Instagram to share a trio of images alongside a caption defending himself against the allegations.
In his caption, Dejon penned: ‘I’ve stayed quiet, but that doesn’t mean it hasn’t affected me. I hold my self accountable for my communication and everyday I’m growing as a person, so thank you for those who see the good in me…
‘I’m not just a character on an entertainment reality tv show I’m also a human being with real emotions, some of the stuff I’ve seen said about me has been hard to deal with and they are the furthest thing from the truth…
‘I questioned why people would do these things and it was getting me nowhere as I couldn’t understand and is something I would never do to somebody else but what’s kept me grounded is movement…
‘Running, training, pushing myself when everything in my head feels heavy. It clears my mind, helps me breathe, reminds me of who I am outside of the noise.
‘If you’re struggling mentally, I get it. I really do. You don’t have to have it all figured out just find that one thing that brings you back to yourself and take it one step at a time.’
The Daily Mail contacted Dejon for comment at the time.
