Ex Hollyoaks star and OG Love Islander Paul Danan has revealed he was suffering from withdrawal while filming the show in 2006
Long before Dani and Jack graced our screens (RIP), the very first series of Love Island put 13 celebs of the day on an island in Fiji in the hope of finding their soul mates, and Paul, who was at the time best known for starring as Sol Patrick in teen soap Hollyoaks.
Speaking to Berkhamsted Revisited: A Teenage Diary Podcast, Paul revealed that show bosses provided him with Valium after his withdrawal from various drugs left him hostile and aggressive with other contestants.
“I was fine mentally, it was more just asking, ‘Do you have any problems,’” he explained. 'At that time I didn’t realise that I probably did have a few issues with addiction. I suppose [producers] must just have thought, ‘You seem alright'.
“I was kind of realising all this in front of the nation. When I first got there I was actually going through some serious withdrawals and I remember actually crawling to the Beach Hut in the first few days and I was shivering and shaking going, 'Oh my god, I don’t know what’s going on with me?'"
CHECK OUT Love Island 2006: Where are they now?
Love Island 2006: Where are they now? stacked
1 of 19Bianca Gascoigne
Bianca won the 2006 series with Calum Best, and has since appeared on The X Factor (YUP) in 2012 and Celebrity Big Brother in 2017. She's also recently started dating Katie Price's ex Kris Boyson.
2 of 19Calum Best
Calum's barely been off our screens since Celebrity Love Island, tbh. Recently, he took part in E4's Celebs Go Dating and Ex on the Beach. He also spends a lot of time in the gym, as you can probably tell.
3 of 19Kéllé Bryan
Eternal star Kéllé Bryan has since appeared in panto and almost got back with her old Eternal bandmates for The Big Reunion before pulling out. Since 2018 she's starred as Martine Deveraux in Hollyoaks and been a Loose Women panelist.
4 of 19Abs Breen
Where do we start with Abs, eh? Since Celebrity Love Island the 5ive singer's rejoined the band (through ITV2 show The Big Reunion), left the band again (via Twitter) and appeared on everything from Celebrity Big Brother (2013) to Country Strife: Abz on the Farm (2014). This year he appeared on Celebrity Come Dine With Me too. Oh yeah, and his name's spelt with a 'z' now.
5 of 19Sophie Anderton
Sophie went on to appear in Celebrity Big Brother 2013, alongside fellow islander Abs. She's also into yoga, "wellness" and general peace and love vibes according to her Instagram.
6 of 19Lady Victoria Hervey
Lady Victoria Hervey joined Channel 4 telly show The Jump in 2015, on the condition her dog could join her in Austria. Obvs. She's currently living her best life in LA, being an animal activist and running a swimwear brand.
7 of 19Lee Otway
Former Hollyoaks star Lee went on to star in panto. Oh, and in 2015 he won a Royal Television Society Student Award for his work directing the pilot School on Report. Lee appeared in Doctors in 2019, but doesn't appear to have been up to much since then.
8 of 19Colleen Shannon
Colleen's since appeared in How I Met Your Mother and in Miss Cast Away and the Island Girls. She was also arrested in 2012 for smuggling her Canadian boyfriend into the US and she was sentenced to 4 months in prison.
9 of 19Shane Lynch
Shane's still very much in Boyzone - with the band currently working on their last ever album - and he came third in Celebrity Big Brother winter 2018. He's recently split up with his wife, Sheena White, after 13 years.
10 of 19Steve-O
Jackass star Steve-O took part in a protest against SeaWorld in 2015, and was consequently convicted of two misdemeanors and sentenced to 30 days in jail.
11 of 19Paul Danan
Paul 'Dangerous' Danan was known for his rather erratic behaviour on the show; he went on to star in spin-off show Calum, Fran And Dangerous Danan. He appeared in Celebrity Big Brother in 2017, and he now runs the Paul Danan Drama Club in London.
12 of 19Alicia Douvall
Alicia Douvall obviously went in to the Celebrity Big Brother house. There's a recurring theme here, eh? She also became a self-confessed plastic surgery addict after her time on the show, going on to warn other celebs about the consequences of going under the knife.
13 of 19Chris Brosnan
Call us lazy af but there's very little information as to what on Earth Chris has been up to since Love Island. Like, literally nothing.
14 of 19Brendan Cole
Brendan went on to compete on BBC show Strictly Come Dancing for 15 years; before being sacked in 2018 for breaching protocol and waltzing with Camilla Parker Bowles at Buckingham Palace.
15 of 19Dennis Rodman
So, um, Dennis Rodman went on to become one of the first Americans to have met North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in 2013. He's since described Kim as 'a friend for life.'
16 of 19Emily Scott
Model Emily Scott went on to participate in Dancing with the Stars Australia (2009) and I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! (2011). She now describes herself as a "music maker and creator" in her Instagram bio.
17 of 19Leo Ihenacho
Leo - aka Leo the Lion - left The Streets to join Love Island and has since appeared on The Voice. He joined Kylie Minogue's team in the third series in 2014.
18 of 19Emma and Eve Ryan
Sorry, WHO? The identical Stockport twins were chucked into the island in a bid to save the 'stuggling' TV show (who's laughing now?) and their most recent tweet was back in 2012. Here's an old picture of 'em, though.
19 of 19Kate Lawler
Big Brother 3 winner Kate Lawler joined Bauer radio post-Love Island; presenting on Key 103 and Kerrang! Radio. In August 2019, Kate moved to present Drivetime on Virgin Radio
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“Then they gave me some Valium and it just chilled me out and the next day I was fine and that was it. That was the end of my kind of cluck. I didn’t even know.”
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The admission comes in the wake of severe criticism of Love Island’s mental healthcare procedures after the second suicide by a former contestant in the past year.
Later on in the interview, Paul said that he thought upon reflection it was wrong of show bosses to ply him with alcohol during his time in Fiji after it became clear he was suffering from addiction.
Speaking to Jeremy Kyle earlier this year, Paul said, “[Rehab does] work, they're amazing, they've saved my life plenty of times but it's maintenance and it's about maintaining that recovery and not putting anything before that recovery, even my little boy who I love to death."
Closer has contacted Love Island for comment.