The Tommy, Conor, Megan Love Island Triangle: Why Megan Hasn't Done Anything Wrong
Season 12 of Love Island started on 9 June. Today is 25 June. The contestants have known each other for just over two weeks and, as they keep telling us, no one is 'closed off' yet. So why is there so much uproar whenever someone in a couple gets to know someone else? It all came to a halt in last night's episode when Megan Forte Clarke, who is currently coupled up with Tommy Bradley, kissed fellow Irishman Conor Phillips on the terrace after days of flirting. Given that they are all young, single and spending the summer on a popular ITV dating show, you'd be forgiven for questioning whether a crime has been committed.
One article has gone as far as to call Megan a 'gaslighter' and reports that there are cries from fans to send her home for her crimes. 'Usually I'll be happy with a woman being in men's fields but Megan has continuously called out other women for getting to know guys. Just straight up hypocritical,' reads one post on X. 'Megan you are a hypocrite and you will soon be out this villa,' posits another.
To be fair, a lot of the backlash stems from the fact Megan has always been vocal when she thinks her fellow islanders are stepping out of line. When Dejon Noel Williams was getting to know Malisha Jordan after she picked him for a date, despite being coupled up for a few days with Meg Moore, Megan (they all have the same names) was the first to object. The same occurred when Harry Cooksley seemed to pie off Helena Ford for Yasmin Pettet and then Shakira Khan. Megan made it well known that she did not approve of Harry's behaviour.
On these grounds alone, it's fair to call her a hypocrite, but that doesn't mean anyone in any of these situations has actually done anything wrong. Fans might love Tommy at the moment, especially if he's been 'wronged' by the girl he likes and is on the back foot, but we don't know much about him yet. We shouldn't feel too sorry for him until we've seen how the situation plays out, or how he responds when a hot girl guns for him the way Conor has for Megan. This is Love Island after all.
I'd also make a case for the fact Conor has not received anywhere near as much criticism for pursuing Megan when he is also coupled up with Emily Moran – someone who recently admitted she has strong feelings for him. However, he has at least been a bit more transparent with Emily. Despite telling her she's still his priority, he has attempted to pedal back on their relationship and has made it very clear that he is interested in Megan. Megan hasn't really done that. In fact, when Conor and Tommy had a show down about loyalties, Megan was visibly enjoying it. Who can blame her? She was living out her Daniel Cleaver vs Mark Darcy smashing through the windows of a Greek taverna fantasy!
The crucial difference is that Conor seems sure he prefers Megan to Emily, whereas Megan still seems quite torn between the two. What exactly is she supposed to do? She is sharing a confined space with two men who fancy her and they are all being watched 24/7 by an ITV film crew. Other than chat to both of them and hopefully make her mind up before the whole saga backfires, she should be free to behave as she pleases.
Who knows, Megan might end up going home soon – there are always new twists and turns on the show – but simply participating in the premise of the dating show should never be the reason. As the saying famously goes: It's Love Island not Friend Island. Let a single woman enjoy some attention in peace!
Nikki Peach is a writer at Grazia UK, working across entertainment, TV and news. She has also written for the i, i-D and the New Statesman Media Group and covers all things pop culture for Grazia (treating high and lowbrow with equal respect).
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