Love Island's Martin accuses his female co-stars of 'double standards'

EXCLUSIVE ‘If the roles were reversed there would have been a riot’: Love Island’s Martin reveals brutal bedroom discovery as he blasts girls’ ‘double standards’ for siding with cheating Tanya who ‘humiliated’ him

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Love Island contestant Martin Akinola has accused his female co-stars of ‘double standards’ after they sided with Tanya Menhenga despite her leaving him ‘humiliated on national TV.’

In his first interview since being dumped from the villa, Martin, 27, told MailOnline that if the roles were reversed and a woman was subjected to the same devastating outcome as him, there would have been a ‘riot’ and complaints made to Ofcom.

The dating show became embroiled in a ‘toxic femininity’ row this weekend after viewers blasted the female contestants of hypocrisy for celebrating their ‘sisterhood’ while behaving in the same way as the men.

Martin was at the centre of the controversy after Tanya, 22, coupled up with him despite being in one of the show’s strongest relationships with Shaq Muhammad, who she had previously cemented her love for by taking their romance all the way and having sex in the villa.

But after reuniting with Shaq, 24, following days of growing close to Martin and kissing the Irishman in bed together, Tanya went back to her original partner and had the full support of her female Islanders.

Love Island contestant Martin Akinola has accused his female co-stars of ‘double standards’ after they sided with Tanya Menhenga despite her leaving him ‘humiliated on national TV’

The dating show became embroiled in a ‘toxic femininity’ row after viewers blasted the female Islanders of hypocrisy for celebrating their ‘sisterhood’ while behaving like the men

Martin was at the centre of the controversy after Tanya coupled up with him despite being in one of the show’s strongest relationships with Shaq Muhammad 

After reuniting with Shaq following days of growing close to Martin and kissing the Irishman in bed, Tanya went back to her original partner and had the full support of her female Islanders

Martin said: ‘There’s a lot of double standards right now… 120 per cent.

‘Do you know how horrible it was having to watch Tanya and Shaq literally snog across from me every day? Every day I saw it.

‘Obviously if the roles were reversed there would have been a riot. I would have had so many complaints to Ofcom.

‘At no point did the girls tell Tanya that she was in the wrong, they literally did not do that. They supported each other. I was thinking ‘what’s going on here?’

The TV star was dumped from the villa last week after his only love interest Tanya went back to her former relationship with Shaq.

Martin knew as a single contestant his days were numbered but he even considered quitting to escape the torment of watching Tanya and Shaq cosy up together.

To add insult to injury, he was left disgusted after discovering three torn condom wrappers in the drawers of the bed he shared with Tanya, knowing they had been used with Shaq when they slept in the very same bed together.

He said: ‘I didn’t cry… I’m a strong guy and I don’t let anything rattle me, but do you know what… when we went back to the main villa, they put me and Tanya in the same bed she shared with Shaq from day one. I was like this is savage… why would you do this?

The TV star was dumped from the villa last week after his only love interest Tanya went back to her former relationship with Shaq

Martin knew as a single contestant his days were numbered but he even considered quitting to escape the torment of watching Tanya and Shaq cosy up together 

He was left disgusted after finding three torn condom wrappers in the drawers of the bed he shared with Tanya, knowing they had been used with Shaq when they slept in the same bed

‘There was a time I opened one of the drawers underneath the bed and I found three torn condom wrappers… I was looking for a space to put my shoes and I saw that!’

While Martin struggled to cope with being in a love triangle, so did his competitor Shaq, who sobbed to co-star Tom Clare after being shown footage of Tanya playing away during the show’s infamous Movie Night.

Meanwhile, concern grew for another male contestant, farmer Will Young, who cried after the girls jumped to the defence of his love interest Australian Jessie Wynter when he kissed another girl in Casa Amor.

None of the women condemned Tanya for her actions, which saw her snog Martin in bed while Shaq remained loyal.

Although Martin didn’t break down in tears, he says his feelings for Tanya were genuine and he was heartbroken when she dropped him, but he attempted to not showing the true depth of his suffering on camera.

He said: ‘My feelings for Tanya were quite strong and they were developing.

‘The connection was real, our vibes were great, from the first day, the first five minutes it was there. We were having pillow talks, it was obvious we had an emotional connection and a lot of sexual chemistry… everything was right.

‘That is why it felt even worse when she went back to Shaq… I was devastated but I’m a strong guy, I’m not going to show that on camera.’

Although Martin, who became a meme for his hilarious popcorn eating during Movie Night, didn’t break down in tears, he says his feelings for Tanya were genuine and he was heartbroken when she dropped him

None of the women condemned Tanya for her actions, which saw her snog Martin in bed while Shaq remained loyal, during Movie Night, where clips from Casa Amor were played 

Martin also feels Tanya deceived him and wasn’t entirely honest with her emotions after she told him she was ‘homesick’ when her behaviour changed in the main villa

Martin also feels Tanya deceived him and wasn’t entirely honest with her emotions after she had bought him back to the main villa to continue pursuing their romantic connection.

The Dublin-born Islander felt Tanya withdraw and even her body language changed as soon as she was reunited with Shaq but says she claimed her sudden switch in behaviour was because she felt ‘homesick.’

He revealed: ‘She said she was homesick and that’s why she backed off from me in the main villa… a lot of lies were being told.

‘I’m being told now she was saying that she wanted Shaq back but she said to me that she was homesick, and I asked her if it was about Shaq and she said it had nothing to do with him or me, but it was a lie.

‘She made me believe I was overthinking everything. Her body language changed, I noticed it, but she denied it and told me ‘no, Martin it’s just in your head’ but I could see it.

‘In Casa Amor she would sit close to me but in the main villa she sat 10 miles away from me like I was some diseased person.

‘She made me look like an idiot in front of everyone and she made out that I was crazy thinking all these things.’ 

He believes Tanya, who left the bed she shared with Martin to sneakily kiss Shaq in the middle of the night, isn’t genuine and doubts the longevity of their romance. 

He believes Tanya, who left the bed she shared with Martin to sneakily kiss Shaq in the middle of the night, isn’t genuine and doubts the longevity of their romance 

Martin, who’s a close friend of 2022 Islander Dami Hope, says he aspires to follow in his footsteps and pursue his love of fashion, and is even open to further TV work

Martin said: ‘I wish them luck on the show because I hope they go far. But do I believe they’re going to work on the outside? Personally, I don’t think we will see that.

‘Feelings are feelings but my personal opinion is that Tanya’s aren’t real for Shaq. She was swayed too easily. I can’t imagine being in love with someone and being swayed with 5-10 minutes of a conversation… I’m not sure her feelings are genuine but I do hope they go far. I hope I wasn’t humiliated on national TV for nothing!’

Martin, who’s a close friend of 2022 Islander Dami Hope, says he aspires to follow in his footsteps and pursue his love of fashion, and is even open to further TV work.

He said: ‘I still want to be an engineer, but I also want to explore fashion.

‘Before Love Island I have always been interested in fashion and I would love to explore that more deeply. I like sustainable items and I hope to get into that circle and go to Fashion Week… basically similar to what Dami has achieved.

‘We have both always looked up to each other, but I hope to do things he has done because I find it very interesting.

I am open to presenting, I want to do everything, acting, I’m a creative person and want to get into it.’

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