He caused a stir not once but twice in the villa for his controversial behaviour and cheeky chap attitude. And so Mitchel “Messy Mitch” Taylor knows all too well what it’s like to be wrapped up in the game playing of Love Island. And with this season’s boys already “moving mad”, the gas engineer, 28, sits down with Closer to give his view of the unfolding dramas.
According to Mitch, the boys of this season are following in his messy footsteps. “They’re making me look like a saint!” he laughs. “It feels like the boys hold all the power, and the girls are letting them get away with murder, really.
“We’ve got love triangles left, right and centre. On one side, Ronnie [Vint]’s stuck and unable to choose between Harriett [Blackmore] and Jess [White]. And in the other corner, Ayo [Odukoya] is testing his connections with Mimii [Ngulube] and bombshell Uma [Jammeh].”
And Mitch – who got his “messy” nickname after switching his affections from girl to girl on season 10 – is quick to praise the tactics of Ronnie’s game, and says that the footballer is probably enjoying being caught in the middle of the two girls. “But I think if a bombshell comes in, takes him on a date and she’s more his type, he’ll forget about both!”
When it comes to the other love triangle between Ayo and Mimii, who had a connection at the beginning, and bombshell Uma, Mitch thinks Ayo just doesn’t want to “shut his options off”. Neither of the girls has “put a foot down as much as they should”, he says.
“I think Ayo just needs to look at Mimii and go, ‘We had a connection from day one. Let’s run with it and not let any interruptions get in the way’. It’s just never going to progress if it stays how it is.”
Viewers are still reeling from the shock arrival of Joey Essex, who arrived as a bombshell in the first episode. But while Joey is coupled up with Samantha Kenny, Mitch doesn’t think the former TOWIE star will find long-lasting love on the show.
Mitch admits that he and some other Islanders he’s spoken to were pretty “shocked” when Joey showed up on our screens, saying, “I don’t want to throw shade on Joey. He’s a great human, he’s a gorgeous man, but the proof’s in the pudding.
“He’s been on so many reality shows, I don’t think he’s actually genuinely looking to find someone. I don’t think he’s going to find anyone in there. Don’t get me wrong, he is fantastic TV, and he will get views, and he will do a job.
“But I don’t think it’s genuine enough to actually find someone and settle down, and if it is, it’s probably no one on Love Island!”
Over the years, Love Island has spawned some real-life love stories such as Tommy Fury and Molly-Mae Hague, Olivia and Alex Bowen, and Camilla Thurlow and Jamie Jewitt. And while Mitch didn’t find love in the villa – instead being embroiled in dalliances with Molly Marsh and then Liberty Poole on All Stars – he says he can see one couple going all the way.
“Ciaran [Davies] and Nicole [Samuel] are 100 per cent making it to the end,” he predicts. “I think they genuinely like each other. I want them to be happy and make the final.”
WATCH: Mitch and Ella B: 'The editors couldn't find proof' - unaired rows & days off | Love Island Secrets
Isobel Lewis is a news and entertainment writer for Closer obsessed with all things Love Island.