Joe Garratt has broken his silence about being accused of 'gaslighting' Lucie Donlan, after his dramatic exit from Love Island on Tuesday.
The sandwich maker, 22, refused to apologise for his behaviour, insisting he didn't 'manipulate or abuse' the surfer, 21, who he was coupled up with on the show, and is 'gutted' about how he has been perceived.
It comes after nearly 800 viewers complained to TV watchdog Ofcom after he told Lucie her friendship with Tommy Fury was 'weird' and she should spend more time with the girls, rather than the boys, which reduced her to tears.
His side of the story: Joe Garratt has broken his silence about being accused of 'gaslighting' Lucie Donlan, after his dramatic exit from Love Island on Tuesday
Upon his arrival in Britain, he told The Sun: 'I didn’t manipulate or abuse her, I am gutted that it has been perceived in that way because it wasn’t like that at all, I always had Lucie’s best interests at heart.
'I promise you I would do everything and anything to help her because she had a hard time in there and didn’t get on with the girls, I was trying to help her and make her experience as amazing as possible, I thought I did right.
Refusing to apologise, he added: 'I am not going to say sorry, I may have worded things wrong and the cameras are on you 24/7, I may have slipped up a bit but I am only human.'
The sandwich maker, 22, refused to apologise for his behaviour, insisting he didn't 'manipulate or abuse' the surfer, 21, who he was coupled up with on the show, and is 'gutted' about how he has been perceived
Joe described himself as 'young' and 'inexperienced', which he believes attributed to 'things coming out differently to what they are'.
He added he hopes the public will see him for who he 'geuninely is', and believes the 'intense nature' of the show is to blame for twisting the way things looked from the outside.
The new-found reality star said problems between himself and Lucie started
