Jake Quickenden has urged people to "be nice" to reality stars on social media.
The 30-year-old singer – who shot to fame when he competed on ‘The X Factor’ in 2014 and went on to come second on ‘I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here’ that year and won ‘Dancing On Ice’ in 2018 – can understand why wannabes can find life "hard" after achieving sudden fame because the sudden scrutiny and cruel comments online can bring down the "strongest" of people.
Speaking following the tragic death of ‘Love Island’ star Mike Thalassitis – who seemingly took his own life on Friday (15.03.19) – Jake said: "Before I did reality TV, I was just a bricklayer and you get thrown into this public spotlight, everything is scrutinised. If you’re painted in a certain way on these reality shows, it’s so hard to get rid of that.
"The abuse you can receive on social media can make anyone down, no matter how strong you are.
"I’ve been in horrible places before, luckily not from social media, because I don’t care what you say, my friends and family love me for who I am, I don’t care about your opinion of me because you don’t know the real me,
"After my brother and dad died, lucky enough I was open enough to talk about it but I could easily have gone down a downward spiral.
"So I can’t say enough how important it is to be nice."
‘Love Island’ bosses have spoken out to defend themselves following criticism they don’t support the contestants once the show ends, and Jake has urged them to do more.
Speaking on ‘Jeremy Vine’, he said: "They do provide help but it’s obviously not enough."
ITV have insisted they take caring for the contestants "very seriously" as they offer psychological support both before and afterwards.
They said in a statement: "Care for our Islanders is a process the show takes very seriously and is a continuous process for all those taking part in the show.
"We ensure that all of our contributors are able to access psychological support before, during and after appearing on the show. The programme will always provide ongoing support when needed and where appropriate.
We also discuss at length with all of our Islanders, before and after the show, how their lives might change and they have access to support and advice to help with this."
Jake Quickenden calls people to ‘be nice’
