Love Island: Former contestant Niall Aslam claims lack of autism adjustments resulted in psychotic episode

Aslam alleges he only ever hears from ITV’s welfare team ‘when someone passes away’

Niall Aslam has accused Love Island bosses of failing to help him avoid a stress-induced psychotic episode by not making reasonable adjustments for his autism.

The 26-year-old was a popular contestant on the 2018 series, but left the reality show after nine days when his mental health began to deteriorate.

Aslam, who has Asperger’s Syndrome, has claimed he wasn’t given the help he was promised to manage his autism in the villa, including being given plain food at mealtimes and having music played to calm him.

In an interview with The Mirror, he claimed the food he had requested did not appear until four days into his stint, and that a crew member played one song to him, “Look Down” from the musical Les Miserables, aloud from their phone. Aslam also alleged he wasn’t given the option to take time off alone to nap, which helps him manage his stress levels.

“I wanted to get time out but [there was] more stress, more stress, more stress, and by the seventh day in I was segregating myself from the group,” he said.

He added: “I couldn’t sleep and one of my coping mechanisms is talking to myself, that’s how I cope with it. I started talking to myself and they [the producers] got worried.”

Aslam claimed that after he started talking to himself, he was “put in a car” without being told what was happening. He was then assessed by a doctor in Palma and medicated, and Aslam’s UK doctor then told producers he needed to come home for specialist psychiatric help.

Aslam was taken to the private Nightingale Hospital in London where doctors told him he was experiencing a psychotic episode. ITV paid for his care at the facility.

After being discharged from hospital, Aslam suffered from depression. His mother contacted ITV and they suggested a follow-up meeting to discuss their concerns around his aftercare.

“It isn’t necessarily aftercare [that’s the problem], it’s pre-care,” Aslam told The Mirror, arguing that ITV should be “completely transparent” about what the show entails.

He said he felt as if his autism was not regarded as a disability when he was on Love Island: “Just because what happened to me doesn’t fit a perfect picture, doesn’t mean it didn’t happen. Hiding it and everyone basically acting like I didn’t exist on that show is harmful for people with autism.”

Aslam claimed he only ever hears from ITV “when someone passes away”, and the last time he received a phone call from the team was in February 2020 after Caroline Flack’s suicide. He alleged that these incidents of contact are a “box-ticking exercise”.

Aslam is now an ambassador for the National Autistic Society and is looking to break into stand-up comedy and writing children’s books.

In response to Aslam’s allegations, an ITV spokesperson told The Independent: “We fully supported Niall during and after he left Love Island and in line with his and his family’s wishes. Our medical suppliers are contracted to look after the health and wellbeing of our Islanders.

“Welfare and duty of care towards our contributors is always our primary concern, and we have extensive measures in place to support the islanders before, during and after their participation on the show.

“We have continued to evolve our process with each series, as the level of social media and media attention around the islanders has increased, which includes enhanced psychological support, more detailed conversations with potential Islanders regarding the impact of participation on the show, bespoke training for all Islanders on social media and a proactive aftercare package.”

According to Love Island’s latest welfare measures for contestants, Islanders are taught how to handle the “potential negativity” of social media.

Participants are offered “comprehensive” psychological support as opposed to the “enhanced” support they were previously given.

In the lead up to filming, contestants are given “detailed explanations” of the “positive and negative implications” of appearing on the show and they will be required to “fully disclose any medical history that would be relevant to their inclusion in the villa and the production’s ability to provide a suitable environment for them”.

If you have been affected by this article, you can contact the following organisations for support: actiononaddiction.org.uk, mind.org.uk, nhs.uk/livewell/mentalhealth, mentalhealth.org.uk.