Love Island star says he wanted to end his life after homophobia allegations

Love Island‘s Mitch Taylor has opened up about wanting to end his life after facing “false” allegations that he made homophobic comments and threw money at a homeless man.

The reality star, who appeared in season 10 of the show, came under fire in last year when an influencer who attended an event hosted by Space NK alleged that Taylor and fellow contestant Zachariah Noble showed up uninvited and acted “extremely homophobic” before being kicked out.

The influencer also alleged that a homeless man outside the event, who asked for change, had money thrown at him by the Love Island stars. Taylor has denied the incident and the allegations of homophobia.

Apologising, he admitted that he hadn’t conducted himself well at the event, but insisted that he wasn’t homophobic. He later claimed that he had lost out on “tens of thousands of pounds” after the allegations were made public.

Appearing on the Tom’s Talks podcast on Wednesday (9 October), Taylor revealed the accusations of homophobia had “crushed” him, adding that that he had to deal with suicidal thoughts, and claimed that his management had “turned their back” on him after the incident.

“I’ve never spoken about it, this time last year I got cancelled for a false accusation,” he said. “I don’t want to sound like a bad person when I say this but I never took mental health seriously.

“Until it happened to me, I felt I [was] bulletproof. But, around this time last year, an influencer put a story accusing me of something that wasn’t true, and one of their friends, who’s a big influencer, backed [it] up.”

He had never had “dark thoughts” until the incident, he went on to say. “It absolutely crushed me. The thoughts I had, I wanted to kill myself, seriously, I thought: ‘I can’t do it’.”

Taylor went on to appear in Love Island: All Stars in January.

Addressing the allegations of homophobia, he admitted his words “can come across as being homophobic”. He had reportedly approached an influencer – he was a fan of hers – at the event and told her: “I fancied you when you were straight.”

He admitted that he “got it completely wrong”.

Share your thoughts! Let us know in the comments below, and remember to keep the conversation respectful. 

Suicide is preventable. Readers who are affected by the issues raised in this story are encouraged to contact Samaritans on 116 123 (www.samaritans.org), or Mind on 0300 123 3393 (www.mind.org.uk). ​Readers in the US are encouraged to contact the National Suicide Prevention Line on 1-800-273-8255.

The post Love Island star says he wanted to end his life after homophobia allegations appeared first on PinkNews | Latest lesbian, gay, bi and trans news | LGBTQ+ news.