Love Island All Stars’ Georgia Steel battled suicidal thoughts after she and her family were sent death threats and cruel messages from ‘vile trolls’ following her time on the reality show
Georgia Steel had suicidal thoughts after she and her family received death threats and abuse from cruel internet trolls following her stint on Love Island All Stars.
The reality star, 26, appeared in the ITV2 series in January and February this year and finished in fourth place with ex-boyfriend Toby Aromolaran.
Her time on the show was turbulent and after leaving the villa she revealed she had been subjected to ‘vicious trolls’ and ‘death threats’, causing her to briefly quit social media.
She credits her loved ones with keeping her on track, but admits she struggled with the nasty messages, which prompted her to consider leaving reality television for good.
When asked if she had suicidal thoughts, Georgia said The sun: ‘I don’t want to use that term lightly at all, as so many people are affected by suicide and my heart goes out to them, but there were times when I thought, “What’s the point? Everyone hates me.”
Georgia Steel had suicidal thoughts after she and her family received death threats and abuse from cruel internet trolls following her stint on Love Island All Stars
The reality star, 26, appeared in the ITV2 series in January and February this year and finished in fourth place with ex-boyfriend Toby Aromolaran
“That’s literally how I felt, like everyone hated me, and if it wasn’t for my family and my very, very close friends and their support, who knows, I could have gone down the road of suicidal thoughts.”
Georgia said she lived in fear, wondering if the people who sent her “death threats” would attack her personally and try to harm her off the internet.
She admitted that at one point she had not left her house for a week, saying: ‘I could walk down the street and think, ‘Oh God, is she the one who wants to kill my family?’ That’s the worst.
‘And when people would come up to me and ask for a picture, I’d be like, “Are you one of the trolls?”
Last month, Georgia spoke to Sky News about the impact of online trolling on her and her family, saying: ‘My family and my friends received death threats. My mother received messages: “How can you raise a girl like that?”
“Yes, that’s terrible, because just like in reality… I want to make the people who support me and love me proud.”
Georgia then challenged the trolls about their actions, asking if they would dare say those things to someone’s face – and if they had thought their comments could be the thing to ‘tip someone over the edge’.
The influencer split from her Love Island boyfriend Toby Aromolaran last month, less than a month after the pair reached the final of the All Stars series together.
The influencer split from her Love Island boyfriend Toby last month, less than a month after the pair reached the final of the All Stars series together (pictured during the show’s final in February)
It was revealed that Toby had been the one to end the relationship, which had ‘blinded’ Georgia.
Weeks earlier, Georgia had taken a break from social media following the backlash she received during her time on the ITV2 show.
She dubbed herself ‘Britain’s Most Hated Woman’ and admitted she was afraid to leave the house after her divisive time in the villa.
Georgia, who first hit screens in the show’s fifth season in 2018, caused a stir in the villa as she vied for the affections of eventual winner Tom Clare before reuniting with former flame Toby.
After her actions were revealed to her castmates at the ‘PDA Awards’ – a new take on the show’s always eventful Movie Night – Georgia revealed that her social media was ablaze with trolls, mainly from women, leaving her feeling ‘ felt hated.
Speak with The sun, she explained, “I felt like the most hated woman in the country. I had no idea it would be this bad.
The Love Island All Stars couple, who finished fourth in the final, ended their whirlwind romance just a month after leaving the villa together
“I’m 25 and I wanted to meet the right person for me, and the only way to do that was to get to know people.”
Georgia added that she had been afraid to leave her home amid the backlash.
At the time of the trolling, an ITV spokesperson said at the time: ‘We always urge our viewers to be kind when taking part in social media conversations about our islanders, and to remember that they are real people with feelings.’
She later returned to social media in early March, before she and Toby split, to share a slew of photos of the couple.
Georgia revealed that she had been the target of death threats, writing: ‘I’ve been taking some time off from social media to decompress and process some of the reactions I saw during my time on the show.
“It really took some time to recover, hence the reason I took a break from social media. I tried to find a way to show them in a positive light.”
Her Love Island: All Stars journey was undoubtedly bumpy, as she was initially rejected by Toby – who she had previously had a fling with on Love Island: The Games – before the duo hooked up and left together.
She caused division on the ITV show after becoming embroiled in a love affair with Toby, Callum Jones, 27, and Tom, 24, and admitted she has feelings for them all.
Her attempts to woo former flame Tom caused the biggest stir, after she discussed how she liked the footballer despite his pairing with Molly Smith.
Regarding the negative reactions, she said: ‘I don’t see the boys receiving the same hate that I do. It’s actually mainly women who make fun of me and I didn’t expect that. It’s all very confusing and difficult for me to figure out.’