In one of the biggest twists in Love Island history, we were left, frankly, gobsmacked earlier this month when 2018 Islander Adam Collard returned to the villa as the ultimate bombshell four years after he first appeared on the ITV2 dating show.
Given his controversial first stint in the villa when he brutally dumped Kendall Rae Knight and Rosie Williams, prompting Women’s Aid to issue a statement, fans were expecting Adam to live up to his love rat reputation, however he quickly settled down with Paige Thorne.
Adam even resisted the charms of Brazilian influencer Nathalia Campos who laid it on factor 50 thick when she entered as a bombshell and instead decided to make things official with Paige, surprising viewers once again. But according to another 2018 Islander, Niall Aslam, Adam’s bad behaviour on his first series was actually engineered by producers.
Speaking on the Murad Merali podcast, Niall said, “[Adam] was quite a quiet guy, which I don’t think people know.
“He used to get took off to production and then he’d come back and have a chat with someone. He’d be off, out, off, out because they wanted him to be like a villain. That’s what they cast him for. Honestly, he was just a quiet guy. I was like, ‘You alright?’ and honestly, he wouldn’t say that much.”
He added, “I know he got portrayed to be that [villain]. People would be like, ‘Producers, step in and stop Adam’ and I was like, ‘Producers caused Adam to do the stuff he was doing!’”
Paige and Adam (Padam? Aige?) are now the second favourite couple to win series eight behind frontrunners Ekin-Su Cülcüloğlu and Davide Sanclimenti.
BetVictor spokesperson Sam Boswell said, “Paige and Adam Collard are currently second favourite to win at 3/1, after Adam made his second appearance in the villa following his initial stint on the show back in 2018. The couple have already said they’re 'exclusive' and they seem quite smitten together.”