Axed Love Island contestant Coco Lodge has called out the behaviour of some of the boys on the ITV2 dating show after they made derogatory comments mocking her appearance.
The 27-year-old shot girl fought tears as she described hearing that one of the original boys on the show had described her as a “four out of 10” when comparing her to other girls in the villa.
Speaking on The Murad Merali Podcast, Coco said: “There was comments made when the filming was off that I was a four out of 10 by some of the boys.”
When asked who had made the remarks, she replied: “I don’t know who said it, Summer heard it.”
Coco said it had been one of the “original” boys talking about her, as Coco described the comments as “sexist”.
She said: “Yeah, you’re a four out of 10, Paige is a 12. I think they said it to Paige, I don’t really know.
“These comments were made and I had a really hard time in there as it was. I was crying a lot for the first few days.”
Coco went on to talk about the negative comments she received online from viewers regarding her appearance, which she became aware of after she left the villa and admitted she had not expected to face.
She said: “I didn’t expect it… it hurts to see because it’s about your appearance.
“How I was perceived on the show isn’t my personality, they’ve edited me to look a certain way. But to comment about my appearance is honestly hurtful… They don’t choose the most flattering stuff.”
This comes after Women's Aid said it got in touch with ITV after being tagged in "a stream" of social media posts highlighting concerns on social media - and told producers it was "vital" they should "know when to intervene".
Many viewers have criticised the show on social media this year over the behaviour of some of the male contestants.
Teresa Parker, head of communications and media relations at Women's Aid, says the charity speaks out about the programme as so many young people "are influenced by the show" and are "learning what is acceptable in relationships".
In response to Women's Aid speaking to ITV producers about 'controlling and misogynistic behaviour' in the villa, Coco said: “I think being in there, it's very different to the edited version of the show you see.
“And I think people could take some of the controlling behaviour however, when you're in there, and you see how someone is like 24/7 I think like that is not the case personally. Everyone gets on really well.”
