More on KentOnline
More on KentOnline
Casa Amor bombshell and Love Island series four contestant Ellie Jones has told KentOnline what life is like one year after leaving the villa.
Last year Ellie, who is from the Davis Estate, in Chatham, entered Casa Amor, an extra villa created to shake things up on Love Island.
Before appearing on the show, Ellie dated Swanley boy and eventual Love Island series four winner Jack Fincham.
Ellie's arrival caused Jack's then girlfriend Danni Dyer to breakdown in tears on TV - it prompted hundreds of complaints to broadcast regulating authority Ofcom.
Out of the blue, producers approached Ellie and within days she was on a flight to Majorca to enter the biggest reality show on TV.
Ellie said: "I think the producers must have seen a post with Jack and I on Instagram, so they messaged me and I was really shocked.
"Within five days of them asking me I had to get on a plane and go on the show.
"I said to my work, I'm leaving today, I've got to go on Love Island.
"I had to prep, I was not ready to go on telly.
"I was stressing, I had to ask all my friends if I could borrow their, clothes, I had to bring all my hair stuff.
"You don't know how long you're going to be in there, so I brought loads of stuff."
Ellie entered Casa Amor with a group of new five girls, who were brought in to see if the original boys might be tempted to stray from their couple.
Ellie said: "I was so nervous going in but luckily I got to go in with a big group of girls.
"If I had to walk in my own I don't think I would have physically been able to do it."
With the nation watching, Love Island is an advertisers dream, the show has many clothing and beauty sponsors.
Ellie said: "We were sponsored by Missguided so every week or so we'd get a bag of clothes, it was like Christmas to me.
"I'd taken all my hair stuff but I wasn't allowed to use any of it, we were only allowed to use GHDs."
"Every week or so we'd get a bag of clothes, it was like Christmas to me."
She said: "I left so many clothes in there and didn't manage to get them back.
"So much of my swimwear was gone.
"They did a lost property box at the end but all my stuff had gone, so one of the other girls must have taken it."
Despite the swimwear scandal and not managing to find love in the villa, Ellie still enjoyed her time on the show.
She said: "It's a great experience, it's like going on holiday with all of your friends."
Entering Love Island can bring overnight fame and success.
Ellie said: "I didn't have that many followers until I came out of Love Island.
"I didn't get to have my phone for a few days but when I did my Instagram had blown up.
"So many people who stayed in the show for longer than me got millions of followers. That was mad.
"I was on the plane home and the couple in front of me were reading a magazine and the page they were on had a picture of my head on it.
"It was really weird, I was like can I have a look at that.
"It doesn't happen so much now, but when I first got back it was mad, I couldn't even go shopping without people recognising me."
"I was on the plane home and the couple in front of me were reading a magazine and the page they were on had a picture of my head on it. "
Now Ellie is a lash technician and since leaving Love Island, has gained 155,000 followers on Instagram, so she is regularly approached by brands to promote their products on her social media.
Speaking on the negative side of shooting to fame through reality TV Ellie said:"I do get positive and negative comments on social media.
"I think I'm quite strong minded so it doesn't bother me but I can see how that would effect other people.
"I do get it it's not nice, but that's life, people are going to do it and you have to get over it.
"I think I'm glad I've done it (went on Love Island).
"Some people are more fame hungry than others, but not everyone gets that big but that doesn't matter to me.
Ellie warns that people thinking of entering Love Island, "need to remember things might not turn out as they expected".
