Love Island star Jacques O’Neill has broken his silence over his exit from the ITV2 dating show, following heated scenes in the villa.
Jacques left the villa after a heated exchange between him and Paige Thorne, as he clashed with new boy Adam Collard.
Things got emotional for Jacques on the show, as he broke down and explained his decision to quit the show to Paige and his other co-stars.
Now, Jacques has spoken out about the decision and he revealed the show "broke" him, and that he "couldn't cope" with life in the villa.
Revealing he was "sobbing" constantly and that he "got in a rut", Jacques opened up about his ADHD and said doing the series was "the worst decision of his life".
Speaking to The Sun in his first interview, Jacques said: "I was ready to break down. I was feeling so mentally drained, I just wanted to go home and get myself right.
"It broke me and I was already broken. I was crying my eyes out. I couldn’t cope. I was literally feeling awful. It was the worst I’d ever felt in my life."
He added that he "couldn’t cope" in the villa, and said: "Doing Love Island was the worst decision of my life."
On heated moments on the show, Jacques admitted: "Any little thing in the villa, in the end, started bothering me and I was just getting in so much of a rut.
"I know the way I spoke to Paige was wrong. I tried to apologise and she kept asking why I did it. ADHD isn’t just about not being able to concentrate. It’s also about feeling anxious quite a lot, being on edge a lot."
Jacques went on to reveal that show bosses knew about his ADHD before he entered the villa, while he also claimed that bosses convinced him to stay when he expressed a desire to leave the series.
ITV have responded to Jacques' comments, and a spokesperson told The Mirror: "We cannot comment on any individual's medical records owing to confidentiality and our own duty of care towards the Islanders, however we have rigorous and extensive checks in place to assess Islanders' physical and mental health in advance of being cleared to enter the Villa.
"This is something we take extremely seriously. As we said at the time, Jacques made the decision to leave and we respected that decision.
"Islanders are welcome to leave should they choose to do so and we would never put pressure on someone to stay in the Villa."
Love Island airs every night at 9pm on ITV2 and ITV Hub.
