Love Island 2021 review: Faye’s reaction to Teddy’s tape was one of the hardest scenes to watch in the show’s history

Normally when I write these reviews, I do so in bed; hair pulled up, face bare, in my normal and very average rented room in Zone 3. Today, this is not the case. Why, you might ask? Well, this girl is on a sleeper train, hurtling towards the North for a change of scenery and to access the sweet, delicious nectar that is soft water. So why then, am I lying in my booth, watching Love Island. Well, like you, I am obsessed.

With all obsessions, there is a honeymoon period of love, light and laughter before the obsession takes a darker and more complex turn. Passion merges into strife until eventually it dissipates away entirely. Tonight’s Love Island episode certainly felt like that, a show I usually craved and looked forward to turning into something that gave me pangs of dread the more I watched.

With last night’s Night At The Movies still rolling, it was now time for Jake’s double bill. On Thursday evening the nation collectively winced as Jake’s early misgivings about Liberty were relayed for all to see. Experiencing a nightmare made flesh, Liberty remained composed despite the sincere and unnecessary pain inflicted. However, it was the second film that had heads rolling, Jake’s master manipulation in Casa Amor finally coming to light. But the evening was about to take a more disturbing shift.

As nervous tension filled the atmosphere of the villa, it was Teddy’s turn for his tape to be rolled. With Faye already snarling in anticipation, there was nothing that could be done as the film played, throwing us back to Teddy’s brief suggestion of interest in Clarisse. In spite of nothing that untoward taking place (even with a partner, it is human nature to find other people sexually attractive), their fate was sealed. The cruelty here is not so much in what the tape revealed, but in how this feeds into a deep-seated confirmation bias that Faye seems to have. Already we know that Faye might have had relationships that have involved men being unfaithful. We’re aware that she can be defensive and lash out when she feels vulnerable. All of this felt resolved somewhat by their reunion earlier in the week, with Faye finally allowing herself to believe in Teddy and trust in the relationship they had. Yet all this has been undone, and for what?

Simply put, these were the hardest scenes I’ve ever had to watch in Love Island history. So ready to believe in her role as the spurned woman, Faye twisted her anger and hurt towards Teddy into something more unpleasant.

After much attention has been paid to contestant aftercare, the constant fanfare of #BeKind ringing dully in our ears, it felt strange that this challenge had been allowed to air. This is, after all, a show that supposedly no longer broadcasts the classic Headline game or Kiss Contest for fears over mental health impact. But even if we blame the producers, it doesn’t stop the fact that we’re all in some way culpable. In our tweets about the show, the column inches we provide, are we also feeding the beast, allowing the machine to churn and for people to get hurt in the process?

This is where I stop. Tonight, I’m not going to write anything more about what happened between Faye and Teddy. Words were said, a relationship ended and over the coming days I just hope that both of them are provided the care and assistance they need to make this right.