Love Island 2017 star Montana Brown has opened up about her last communication with co-star and friend Mike Thalassitis - who tragically passed away on Saturday March 16th aged 26 - on This Morning.
The Celebs Go Dating star and semi-professional footballer - affectionately nicknamed 'Muggy Mike' during his time on Love Island - committed suicide by hanging in woodland near his Essex home last weekend; opening up conversation around post-reality show aftercare and any stigma surrounding male mental health.
Speaking to Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield about her late friend Mike, Montana cried as she discussed their last communication before his untimely death.
Asked how she found out the devastating news of Mike's death, Montana explained: "One of my friends texted me 'I don't know whether this is true, but Mike has taken his life.' I tried to call him and his phone went straight to answer phone."
Montana then revealed she had received a text message from Mike two days before his death.
She continued: "I'm really kicking myself but he texted me and I didn't reply.
"When he was going through a really rough time I was checking up on him every day."
Explaining that Mike was seeing his therapist before his death, Montana added: "He just wanted someone to tell him how to get out of this dark place."
The Love Island 2017 star also claimed that 'work wasn't coming in' for Mike, with him paying a 'massive tax bill' as he attempted to launch his own businesses.
Montana also revealed she's spoken to Mike's 'shocked' family following his death, telling Holly and Phil: "There was no reason for him to do that and I don't know whether it was a spur of the moment."
Our thoughts are with Mike's family and friends at this time.
If you're struggling with your mental health, Samaritans can provide 24/7 confidential support on their free helpline. Dial 116 113.
Mike Thalassitis's 'secret girlfriend' posts emotional tribute to the late star on Instagram.
love island couples heat slider
1 of 25Hannah Elizabeth and Jonathan Clark (2015): SPLIT
Remember when they, like, got engaged on the show? That one didn't quite last...
2 of 25Katie Salmon and Adam Maxwell (2016): SPLIT
Adam claimed he was '100 percent single' shortly after leaving the villa and, um, that was that. #Kadam; gone but never forgotten.
3 of 25Gabby Allen and Marcel Somerville (2017): SPLIT
Gabby dumped Marcel after he was spotted cheating as they holidayed TOGETHER. Blimey.
4 of 25Scott Thomas and Kady McDermott (2016): SPLIT
Scott and Kady managed a year before splitting in 2017.
5 of 25Nathan Massey and Cara de da Hoyde (2016): STILL TOGETHER
They've got their little Love Island baby and everything.
6 of 25Jamie Jewitt and Camilla Thurlow (2017): STILL TOGETHER
An absolute success story of Love Island 2017, Jamie and Camilla and Jamie are still the CUTEST of couples.
7 of 25Sam Gowland and Georgia Harrison (2017): SPLIT
Sam seems to be doing alright for himself on Geordie Shore, so we don't think he's too gutted.
8 of 25Olivia Attwood and Chris Hughes (2017): SPLIT
The couple were plagued with cheating rumours throughout their relationship (who can forget that whole Chris Hughes and Katie Price debacle?). Since their ITVBe show Crackin' On ended, Olivia's confirmed she's back with ex-boyfriend Bradley Dack.
9 of 25Malin Andersson and Terry Walsh (2016): SPLIT
He did date fellow Love Island-er Emma-Jane Woodhams eight months in actual real life before calling it a day. AH WELL.
10 of 25Rykard Jenkins and Rachel Fenton (2016): SPLIT
At least they lasted 18 months. Not bad going...
11 of 25Jessica Hayes and Max Morley (2015): SPLIT
Still fancy Max in a huge way, not gonna lie.
12 of 25Alex Bowen and Olivia Buckland (2016): MARRIED
Alex and Olivia are married and literally as strong as ever. We like to live vicariously through them, to be honest.
13 of 25Jordan Ring and Zoe Brown (2015): SPLIT
Absolutely DID NOT work IRL. Neeext.
14 of 25Luis Morrison and Cally Jane Beech (2015): SPLIT
They had the first ever Love Island baby, but things later took a sour turn, with Cally accusing Luis of 'cheating' on her whilst she was pregnant with their daughter. (Oh dear).
15 of 25Tyla Carr and Jonny Mitchell (2017): SPLIT
Oh it was never gonna last, was it?
16 of 25Kem Cetinay and Amber Davies (2017): SPLIT
The Love Island 2017 winners split in December 2017; five months after the finale.
17 of 25Montana Brown and Alex Beattie (2017): SPLIT
These two split just weeks after returning to the UK. Sad times.
18 of 25Dom Lever and Jess Shears (2017): MARRIE
Jess and Dom are so together, in fact, they got 'married' on Good Morning Britain on Valentine's Day 2017. They then got, y'know, properly married.
19 of 25Sam Bird and Georgia Steel: SPLIT
You know how this one went. Sam accused Georgia of cheating on him with her ex, which she denied. It's safe to say they didn't split on the best of terms.
20 of 25Zara McDermott and Adam Collard: SPLIT
Zara and Adam have called it quits. WAH.
21 of 25Megan Barton-Hanson and Wes Nelson: SPLIT
Megan and Wes did move in together, but announced their split in January 2019 following rumours Wes was getting close to Dancing on Ice partner Vanessa Bauer. Uh oh.
22 of 25Josh Denzel and Kaz Crossley: SPLIT
Josh and Kaz announced their split in February 2019, with Kaz saying: "Sometimes things don't go the way you planned, but you have to be grateful for the journey. Thank you for everything especially showing me how to love myself again."
23 of 25Samira Mighty and Frankie Foster: SPLIT
Frankie reportedly cheated on Samira and that was that. Done. Over. thank u, next.
24 of 25Laura Anderson and Paul Knops: SPLIT
There's no bad blood between Laura and Paul, but they split months after making it to the final of the show.
25 of 25Jack Fincham and Dani Dyer: SPLIT
Although they briefly split in 2018, in April 2019, Jack Fincham announced he was no longer in a relationship with Dani, just hours before her book launch. (OUCH).