Maura Higgins’ attempts to kiss Tommy Fury was the incident on Love Island that sparked the most complaints to Ofcom this series, the watchdog has said.
Some 709 viewers took issue with the episode, claiming that the Irish grid girl sexually harassed the boxer by trying to kiss him on multiple occasions.
Ofcom assessed the complaints about the June 14 broadcast but determined they did not warrant investigation, saying: “While we recognise that many viewers disapproved of a contestant’s behaviour in this episode, we took into account the context in which it occurred, including the nature of Maura and Tommy’s relationship, before and after.”
The watchdog received a total of 3,094 complaints about this series of Love Island.
Some 700 viewers complained about the treatment of Lucie Donlan by her partner Joe Garratt and other female contestants while she was on the show.
Joe left Lucie in tears after telling her to stay away from other boys on the programme.
This led to domestic violence charity Women’s Aid to speak out about his “abusive behaviour”.
Ofcom also assessed these complaints but did not investigate, saying in a statement: “We assessed complaints about the treatment of one of the contestants by her partner and others.
“While we understand some viewers were concerned for her well-being, we think most viewers would expect to see emotionally-charged scenes in a programme which shines a light on people’s relationships.
“We also took into account that the contestant received support from others, particularly following her partner’s departure.”
Ofcom also decided not to investigate after 288 viewers complained that Anna Vakili and Amber Gill bullied Danny Williams and Arabella Chi after he chose to couple up with the model instead of their friend Yewande Biala.
The watchdog said: “We recognise that a number of viewers disapproved of some contestants’ behaviour in these episodes, and were concerned about its effect on the others.
“We think most viewers would expect highly-charged, confrontational scenes as the contestants explore new friendships and relationships.”
The fourth and fifth most complained about incidents concerned Michael Griffiths’s treatment of Amber.
On July 15, 169 people complained about his behaviour towards the eventual winner, after Joanna Chimonides was dumped from the show.
The mother of all plot twists has arrived… 😱 #LoveIsland pic.twitter.com/0HYZUcWcZJ
— Love Island (@LoveIsland) July 14, 2019
After Michael made it clear he would not rekindle their romance despite the exit of Joanna, she told her friends: “It’s really starting to upset me and wear me down. I just feel really angry.”
Those complaints about being assessed, Ofcom said.
On July 3, 143 people complained about the way Michael treated Amber after the post-Casa Amor recoupling, which saw him dump her for newcomer Joanna.
🧘♀️ @carolineflack1 taking deep breaths on behalf of the nation right now. #LoveIsland pic.twitter.com/8TsfObovVg
— Love Island (@LoveIsland) July 3, 2019
Those complaints are also being assessed.