Luca Bish’s sister has insisted his recent behaviour on Love Island is “very out of character”.
The fishmonger faced major backlash after Sunday night’s show, which saw him explode after watching Gemma Owen “flirt” with Billy Brown during Movie Night.
He said: “If she wants to f***ing play it down to me, I will f***ing explode.”
He then said to Billy: “You were f**king cracking on with her. Mate, that was f**king flirting, don’t deny it, you were f**king flirting.”
“I don’t care, you can crack on, it’s Love Island but it was flirting and I was made out to be a f**king idiot for it!”
Luca then turned to Andrew, and whispered: “Billy started saying, ‘oh mate there’s nothing here’. Mate, you were trying to crack on, shut the f**k up!”
Luca then pulled Gemma for a chat and said: “You were entertaining it” to which Gemma replied: “No I wasn’t”.
He then called Billy over to the fire pit to join them and asked: “Did you feel like she was flirting with you?” to which Billy answered: “Yeah, it was just flirty banter.”
Gemma interjected: “Did we have a flirty chat? Yes.” Luca replied: “But just a minute ago you said you didn’t have a flirty chat, you literally said I wasn’t flirting.”
Gemma added: “I don’t think any lines have been crossed.”
After the explosive interview aired, fans called on Gemma to ditch Luca, describing his behaviour as “jealous” and “toxic”.
Viewers also called for Luca to be dumped from the show after Monday night’s episode, as they accused him and Dami Hope of “ganging up” on Tasha Ghouri.
Luca’s sister, who is running his social media accounts while he is in the villa, has since defended her brother in a statement shared on his Instagram Stories.
Alongside a screenshot of a DM from ex Islander Jazmine Nichol praising Luca, his sister wrote: “Nearly everyone that has left the villa have messaged almost straight away to tell us how Luca has been such a lovely, genuine friend to them during their time.”
“People that spend 24 hours with him (as opposed to an opinion based on a condensed episode) are the opinions we take most comfort in,” she added.
“His behaviour on Sunday’s ep was very out of character for Luca. Flowers grow through dirt, and I just know he will grow positively from this experience.”
It comes after Luca’s sister apologised on his behalf for his behaviour.
She wrote on Monday: “I want to apologise on behalf of Luca for his insensitive reaction on last night’s episode. I know that when he watches it back, he will be embarrassed and deeply apologetic.”
“We as his family don’t condone his behaviour last night, but we do understand he is in an intense environment where his actions are heightened. Last night was not reflective of the boy we all know and love at home.”
“Please be aware death threats and nasty comments totally overstep the mark and something we has a family should not have to ensure, for this reason we have turned off the comments and messages.”
“For all those who have sent messages checking in on us, we would like to thank you very much and we see you.”
Love Island continues tonight at 9pm on Virgin Media Two.
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