Rosie Williams hits out as ‘problematic’ ex Adam Collard returns to Love Island

"The man so problematic that Women's Aid had to write a statement on his abusive behaviour..."

love Island's Rosie Williams and Adam Collard

by Ben Pulsford |
Updated on

It's just not the one, is it?

You're tucking into a takeaway after a long, sweltering day in an unair-conditioned office (future people, Google 'UK weather July 2022'), the uncomfortable shoes are off, the face is finally makeup-free and then SUDDENLY, your ex is teased as the next Love Island bombshell... ffs.

Not only that, but you were also on Love Island and said ex is none other than Adam Collard.

Hardly an ideal evening in.

We are feeling for 2018 Love Island contestant Rosie Williams right now, we have to say. That being said, we also admire her; many of us would vanish into a hole with no wifi if our "problematic" ex suddenly reappeared on the nation's most popular dating show, but not Rosie Williams. In fact, she needed all the wifi she could get to take a public swipe at former fling Adam Collard on Instagram, shortly after the bombshell re-entered the Love Island villa, after previously appearing on the show in 2018.

Instagram / @rosieawilliams

Rosie took to Instagram to share a fan-made edit of quite-frankly iconic Rosie's Love Island faces 'reacting' to her ex's 2022 villa entrance.

In ICONIC style, Rosie added her own caption to the video, writing, "Chop out the first five seconds and I love this!" - alluding to Adam's appearance in the video.

Rosie even commented on Love Island's official Instagram post about Adam's return with an acronym that spoke a thousand words, "Lol".

In the 2018 series of Love Island, Adam entered the villa as the first bombshell of the series. While on the show, after initially getting together with Kendall-Rae Knight, he re-coupled with Rosie Williams on day six, and with Zara McDermott on day 20. He entered Casa Amor single after Zara was dumped from the show and returned to the villa with Darylle Sargeant on day 30. He was then dumped on day 32 – dated Zara for several months after that – and then re-entered the current villa on day 35 of series eight.

It's safe to say Adam's return to the villa has certainly caught social media's attention, with many pointing to his "problematic" behaviour in series four, with many – including Women's Aid – reminding fans of former "gaslighting" claims.

One fan tweeted, "Not Love Island proving to us once again again that misogyny PAYS by bringing back Adam Collard. The man so problematic that Women's Aid had to write a statement on his abusive behaviour the last time he was on national tv. #loveisland."

Another social media blasted Love Island, writing, "Eh! Love Island is begging to be cancelled at this point. Adam back???? ADAM. The ONE participant that was so mentally abusive that women's charities were releasing statements about him?????"

Domestic abuse charity Women's Aid released a new statement to remind viewers of Adam's "unacceptable behaviour" in the 2018 villa (something they previously commented on four years ago), writing, "In the 2018 series of Love Island, we saw Rosie rightly call out Adam for his unacceptable behaviour, which included gaslighting and emotional abuse. We hope that ITV recognise how serious this issue is and that it must be learned from, considering they have asked Adam to return to the show.

"It can be dangerous when relationships are aired as entertainment, making it hard for viewers to separate what is healthy from what is not. A healthy relationship is centred around love, support, validation and respect.

"LoveIsland is an influential show with mass viewership, making it a popular topic of conversation. Producers must make sure there is support for contestants throughout, and intervene if relationships become unhealthy or abusive."

While series four was airing back in 2018, Women's Aid released this statement about Adam's behaviour, "Love it or hate it, there’s no denying that Love Island is a great medium to start a national conversation about healthy relationships. This week we called out some warning signs in Adam’s behaviour towards Rosie - turning things around to blame the other person for your behaviour, trivialising their feelings, or questioning their memory of events are forms of gaslighting, an aspect of emotional abuse. We think it’s great Rosie called out his unacceptable behaviour and let him know it’s not on 👏🏻"

The charity added, "We are not accusing Adam of being an abuser, but it’s important to be able to spot warning signs and patterns of behaviour that can lead to abuse, and call it out when you see it. Gaslighting is such a subtle form of abuse, often a person won’t know for a long time that it’s been happening to them."

Rosie Williams appeared on Love Island in 2018 (ITV)

What is Rosie Williams' job?

Before she went on the show, Rosie was a solicitor, which was a far cry from pen-selling Jack Fincham or Luca Bish's fishmongering (no shade), let's be honest. Rosie now makes her money as an influencer and founder of office-wear brand White Collar.

Speaking to Wales Online during lockdown, Rosie said, “Being a solicitor was quite a strenuous job and I missed using that part of my brain.

“That’s why I decided to become an entrepreneur and businesswoman and invest in my own company and set up White Collar, which is an office wear brand."

How old is Rosie Williams?

She's 30, having celebrated the big 3-0 on 26 September 2021.

Where's Rosie from?

Glamorgan, South Wales.

Who was Rosie Williams coupled up with in the villa?

Before entering the villa as the third female bombshell on day six, Rosie said, "I want someone who makes me laugh. I don’t like a boring guy who takes life too seriously. I like to experience all life has to offer, so I want someone that I can do that with. And then your typical nice body and nice eyes!"

She went on to couple up with Adam Collard but was dumped from the Island on day 20 when he coupled up with Zara McDermott.

Rosie Williams and Adam Collard 'gaslighting'

During the 2018 series Adam Collard sparked a LOT of criticism for his behaviour toward Rosie when he moved on with Zara - resulting in Women's Aid releasing a statement about how to spot signs of abusive behaviour and Gaslighting, a term used to describe a form of emotional abuse whereby a perpetrator causes the victim to question their sanity by undermining their memories and experiences.

Is Rosie Williams on Instagram?

Yes, you can check out Rosie at @rosieawilliams.

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