‘Gaslighting, possessiveness, and manipulation’: Women’s Aid calls out Love Island’s Danny over his behaviour towards Lucinda

‘These are all tactics used by perpetrators of abuse,’ says domestic violence charity

Women’s Aid has issued a statement in response to Love Island contestant Danny Bibby and his behaviour towards fellow contestant Lucinda Strafford, accusing him of “gaslighting” her.

In Monday’s episode, Bibby, who was coupled up with Strafford complained that she had been ignoring him to talk to fellow contestant Aaron Francis.

In another clip, Bibby was seen mocking Strafford’s voice and laughing at her.

Later, in a self-described attempt to “treat ‘em mean, keep ‘em keen”, Bibby took one of the show’s challenges as an opportunity to throw a pie in Strafford’s face for “not chatting to him” despite the fact he’s been making her iced coffees in the morning.

“I’m not the type to chase you like a little dog. I’d rather take you down a peg and have banter with you,” he told Strafford later that evening.

“I feel like you give nothing back to me. I’m not asking for a kiss, I’m asking you to come and ask me am I alright. I can sense you gravitating towards Aaron more than me.

“I need to just nip it in the bud I think,” Danny said, to which Lucinda agreed: “You need to nip it in the bud.”

The following day, Women’s Aid, the national charity working to end domestic abuse against women and children, called out his behaviour as abusive and urged producers to take action.

“Last night, we saw the development of Danny and Lucinda’s relationship and became increasingly concerned with his behaviour towards her on screen, including what looked like gaslighting, possessiveness, and manipulation,” it said.

“This is not what a healthy relationship looks like. These are all tactics used by perpetrators of abuse.

“Gaslighting is a form of psychological abuse which makes someone question their perception of reality. It is a form of coercive control, which has been a criminal offence since 2015.”

The statement continued: “We urge the producers of Love Island to recognise coercive control when it is happening on the show, as this is not the first time it has happened. Producers should step in when any form of behaviour is abusive, as abuse should not be used for entertainment.”

Bibby left the programme on Wednesday after his fellow Islanders chose to vote him out along with AJ Bunker.

It’s not the first time Love Island contestants have faced accusations of gaslighting.

In 2019, contestant Joe Garrett was called out by Women’s Aid for his manipulative behaviour towards fellow contestant Lucie Donlan. Meanwhile, in the previous series, the charity issued a statement about the behaviour of Adam Collard towards Rosie Williams.

A spokesperson for ITV2 said: "We take the emotional well-being of all the Islanders extremely seriously.

"We have dedicated welfare producers and psychological support on hand at all times who monitor and regularly speak to all of the Islanders in private and off camera. All the Islanders are therefore fully supported by the professionals on site and by their friends in the villa.

“Islanders are always able to reach out and talk to someone if they feel the need. We will of course continue to monitor all of our Islanders in line with our robust protocols.”