He’s only been in the villa for three days, but new ‘bombshell’ Danny Bibby has got the entire nation of Love Island viewers talking. Sadly, though, the discussions we’re having in our morning meetings and our Whatsapp groups are not giving us good vibes at all.
Just a mere 24 hours since Danny was teased as the new bombshell, it came to light that he had used the N-word on Instagram in 2019. This year, more that half of the Islanders, or any who were in any way business savvy, made sure to clear their Instagram and Twitter history before flying out to Spain. Over the years we’ve learnt that your internet history can come back and haunt you, just like it has to Danny.
ITV later issued an apology on his behalf – a rare move from the show that famously limits Islanders contact with the outside world. Danny stated, ‘I am not a racist person and it’s unacceptable language and ignorant.’
For some, including former contestant Sherif Lanre, who was removed from the villa in 2019, for accidently kicking co-star Molly-Mae Hague in the crotch, it wasn’t enough, and have accused ITV of having ‘double standards’ for not axing Danny.
Danny’s apology from inside the villa got us thinking that we were about to see a lad who might be a little bit more mindful of how he comes across on TV, but Sunday and Monday night’s episode showed us that it was, unfortunately, not the case.
CHECK OUT Love Island rules: everything that could get contestants REMOVED from the villa
Love Island rules - SLIDER RADIO
1 of 8Swipe through to see all of the Love Island rules....
2 of 8No getting drunk
According to 2017 contestant Kem Cetinay, contestants are allowed one small glass of wine or beer a night with dinner.Being drunk's an absolute no-no, so sex while intoxicated is obviously against the rules too.
3 of 8No masturbating
No solo sex acts are allowed in the villa, though obviously allowed to get jiggy with their partner.
4 of 8No nudity
Contestants cannot be naked in front of other islanders, since the villa is technically a public space.
5 of 8No books, phones or magazines
The islanders are given snazzy phones from their sponsor, Samsung (what else would they get their texts on?); but anyone sneaking their own mobile phone into the villa would risk being removed.Same goes for books and magazines, too.
6 of 8No inappropriate language or behaviour
This could cover homophobic, racist or aggressive language and is quite the broad rule. Inappropriate behaviour is again at producers' discretion, and would include violence and sexual harassment.
7 of 8No discriminating against staff
Any Islanders who are rude to crew could run the risk of being booted off the show, and contestants must NOT take their mic packs off unless instructed to.
8 of 8Follow the rule book
Simple. Contestants must obey the rule book they're provided with; which includes information on safe sex, consent and how to know if you're following the guidelines.
WATCH Jordan Hames and Danny Williams on what you CAN'T to take into the villa | Love Island Secrets
Fresh from his dates with Kaz Kamwi and Sharon Gaffka, Danny shocked everyone when he chose Lucinda Strafford to couple up with, completely ignoring the fact that she was currently getting to know Aaron Francis. In his speech, he said he was ‘instantly drawn’ to Lucinda, despite not picking her for a date and having only a few conversations with her.
Danny’s apology from inside the villa got us thinking that we were about to see a lad who might be a little bit more mindful of how he comes across on TV
From the moment Lucinda walked over to Danny and sat down next to him, he made it clear that there was now some sort of unwritten rule that Lucinda couldn’t speak to Aaron anymore.
He even went further and called out Aaron for not ‘respecting’ him when Aaron continued to chat, quite rightly, to Lucinda. He even went as far as calling Aaron a ‘f—king mug’ after he joked about kissing Lucinda in front of him. It made for horrible viewing and was made even worse by Lucinda’s scared face when he appeared angry at her talking to Aaron again. "He's fuming", she whispered when talking to Aaron.
Even when Lucinda made her mind up and decided to pursue things with Aaron, Danny made it his mission make her feel small - from choosing to pie her and snog AJ in the 'Snog, Marry and Pie' challenge (he said he wanted to make her jealous) to telling her 'let's be friends' to cushion his ego and 'one up her' because he didn't want to dent his pride.
Sadly, Lucinda’s supposed fear is something that women contend with in the outside world, in dating situations and in relationships – but after 24 hours of knowing someone? How many more times should it be said that women are not 'prizes' to be won and owned?
After making a scene previously in the night, we saw Danny full of compliments for Lucinda as they got into bed, telling her how nice she looked and making her an iced coffee in the morning. We’ve all seen this behaviour, making a scene and then giving them a load of attention and affection (it’s called lovebombing, fyi) and there’s only one word for it: worrying.
Viewers took to Twitter in their droves to address Danny’s behaviour, with ‘possessive’, ‘angry’, ‘controlling’ and ‘unhinged’ all words that came up.
Personally, I wouldn't want these words to be used to describe any prime time TV show contestant in 2021, especially when the show notoriously has a young audience.
One hit the nail on the head, writing, “Firstly Aaron should have shut Danny down. 1. I was chatting to Lucinda before we knew you existed 2. Did you pick her for a date? 3. Did you ask who was interested in her? 4. You can’t come in here for 5mins and think you own the place? #LoveIsland ”
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Another questioned his reasoning for his behaviour, saying, "why is danny so ANGRY? getting this possessive over gyal you've known for 3 minutes?"
Love Island is coined to be a positive platform for people to find love and this year, producers urged everyone to #BeKind when responding to the show. If you ask any former Love Island star they will tell you that 24 hours feels like three days when you're cooped up in the villa.
However, we’re now having to witness aggressiveness towards one woman (who is completely single and who doesn’t owe anyone anything) in such a short amount of time and in front of an audience of millions. Is that kind?