Ekin-Su Culculoglu said she lost her sense of self after finding fame on ITV’s Love Island.
The 29-year-old entered the Celebrity Big Brother house on Monday, weeks after announcing her split from Davide Sanclimenti – with whom she won ITV reality show Love Island in 2022.
“If I have sad days, it is hard in this industry to find people you trust,” Culculoglu told fellow housemate and TV presenter Fern Britton.
“But there was a moment after that, everything was too much. The brand deals, the fame, and people wanting me to be a certain person.
“And I just didn’t know who I was.”
Culculoglu said it is the “weak side” of herself that she attempts to hide and said negative media attention was “disgusting”.
Britton said: “It’s a big shock to suddenly find yourself in newspapers and you weren’t prepared for it, presumably.
The 66-year-old former This Morning presenter told Culculoglu to not “hide bits of yourself”.
“There will come a time where you will feel comfortable enough to open up and that will be even better as a role model to show that we all have shit in our lives that we have to deal with,” Britton added.
