MIKE Thalassitus parents have shared their agony five years on from the death of their son.
Shirley, 66, and Andy Thalassitis’, 68, world collapsed when Mike took his own life aged 26 after appearing on the hit ITV2 show.
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Half a decade on, Shirley said: “Whoever said time heals has obviously never lost a child.
“There isn’t a day that goes by when we don’t think about him. We love and miss him so much.”
Speaking on the fifth anniversary of Mike’s death, Shirley revealed that ITV didn’t offer any support after the Love Island star left the villa.
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She said: “Mike never received any support after he came out of the show, although ITV bosses were supportive when he passed.
Mike struggled to come to terms with his new-found fame, according to his mum.
He first appeared on our screens in series three of Love Island 2017.
A year later, he went on E4’s Celeb Go Dating.
His grief-stricken parents, who live in Edmonton, North London, said Mike couldn’t walk down the street without getting recognised or “strangers calling out”.
Before making his TV debut Mike had around 15,000 followers on Instagram but when he came out of the villa it reached a whopping 500,000.
This took a huge toll on Mike’s mental health as he didn’t want to expose his family to the same level of media attention he was getting.
His mum added: “He rarely posted photos of us as a family and used to tell us there are a lot of ‘haters’ out there.”
The semi-pro footballer’s father, Andy, said there is more awareness and safeguarding now than when his son went on the show seven years ago.
Moving tribute paid to Caroline Flack in Love Island finale
Mike’s body was found in a park near his home in North London in March 2019.
Less than a year after Mike’s death, Love Island host, Caroline Flack, 40, also died by suicide.
This prompted the broadcaster to introduce a new duty of care policy towards contestants.
Caroline’s mum, Christine slammed ITV for “not protecting” its talent after former This Morning host Phillip Schofield admitted he was “in a very bad way” after his affair with a younger colleague was revealed.
Now, Mike’s parents have revealed they would like to meet with Caroline Flack’s family.
The pair takes some comfort from knowing their son’s death could help others open up about anxiety and depression.
They hope his passing will spread awareness of men’s mental health and have urged those struggling to “confide in your family and friends”.
An ITV spokesman said: “Welfare and duty of care towards our contributors is always our primary concern, and we have extensive measures in place to support the islanders before, during and after their participation on the show.”
