Harley Judge has become the first person to be dumped from this year’s ‘Love Island’.
The 22-year-old groundsworker found himself exiled from the villa following the latest recoupling, which left him without a partner.
Following Chris Hughes and Jonny Mitchell’s shock arrival earlier this week, the girls had to decide who they wanted to be in a couple with.
Harley had made arrangements to couple up with Chloe Crowhurst as friends in order to survive, as well as approaching Camilla Thurlow about the prospect of becoming a pair.
But the both women had developed relationships with the newcomers, and in the recoupling ceremony, Chloe chose to pair up with Chris, while Camilla plumped for Jonny, sending Harley home as a result.
Speaking after his exit, Harley admitted he was “obviously gutted” to be leaving, explaining: “I built a great bond with everyone in there.
“I felt like I was beginning to come into my own towards the end. I didn’t get a chance to express any romantic feelings towards anybody, so it’s disappointing I didn’t get a chance to meet any of the future new arrivals.”
Having originally been paired with Amber Davies prior to her flirtations with Kem Cetinay, Harley admitted he thought he was off to “the perfect start” on the Island.
“It was a surprise when Amber went cold on the second day,” he said. “But you quickly forget how long you’ve been there as you’re in the villa 24/7. I think I probably gave her too much space and not the right attention.
“If I was playing the game, I would have pursued one of the other girls after being dumped by Amber. That isn’t me though. There wasn’t any romantic connection to anyone else.”
Harley added he thought Jessica Shears and Dom Lever stood a chance of lasting as a couple, but picked Marcel Somerville as his tip to win the series.
He wasn’t so complimentary about newcomer Chris though, claiming he is playing a game.
“[Chris] came in as a bombshell and has talked to all of the single girls individually and got a feel for how they are and whether they like him,” he said.
“He’s a nice lad one-to-one, but to me it seems like he’s playing a game.”
‘Love Island’ continues on Saturday at 9pm on ITV2.