Love Island’s Reuben Collins has broken his silence on his shock split from Grace Jackson.
Reuben, 23, is a semi-professional footballer who was looking for the one in the Mallorca villa this summer.
And while it looked like he had been successful, Reuben and Grace, 25, struggled to make things work on the outside world due to their busy schedules and long-distance relationship.
Speaking exclusively to MailOnline, Reuben confirmed their relationship is over and revealed things haven’t been easy since leaving the ITV2 show as he has been dealing with the death of his beloved grandad.
He explained: ‘I can’t speak for her, but since we came out it has been quite busy and there’s a lot to deal with.
‘And for myself, before I went in we were caring for my grandad who was living with us as he had a terminal cancer. When I came out I had a week with him before he passed.’
Love Island’s Reuben Collins has broken his silence on his shock split from Grace Jackson
Reuben, 23, is a semi-professional footballer who was looking for the one in the Mallorca villa this summer
‘So coming out and dealing with the new environment and dealing with the stuff at home, there was a lot going on and we were both very busy.
‘I’m quite mentally strong and try to remain as positive as possible but coming back, I’ve had a lot to deal with.’
Reuben was still with Grace when his grandad passed away and said she was ‘very supportive’ and sent him flowers.
He added: ‘We’ve both been very busy and with the long distance it was difficult. I wish her all the best, she wishes me all the best. There are no bad feelings. We had a great experience together.’
Speaking on his aim to find love on the show, Reuben said: ‘My family and grandad wanted me to go on it. My grandad said go do it as it was a once in a life time opportunity and he was watching and cheering us on.
‘The aim of the show is to find love, but I think the most important thing for my family was that I had a great experience and if I could find love on top of that it would be a great bonus.
‘Even for myself, I’m a hopeless romantic, so of course I want to find love.’
While it looked like he had been successful, Reuben and Grace, 25, struggled to make things work on the outside world due to their busy schedules and long-distance relationship
Speaking exclusively to MailOnline, Reuben confirmed their relationship is over and said there are no bad feelings
Reuben is now focusing on spending time with his family, who are grieving the loss of his grandad and planning his funeral, after his health rapidly reclined when he was in the villa.
Rueben added it was challenging not being able to talk to his family during the show: ‘I’m very family orientated. I’m very close with my immediate family and friends.
‘I talk to them every day, I’m around them every day, so it was difficult and it is quite an intensive environment.’
He continued: ‘Luckily we had Macmillan really supporting us, a massive shout out to them. They were supporting my mum and sister so much and the St. Catherine’s hospice, they were very supportive because it’s difficult caring for your family member at home.
‘As soon as I got back, I just wanted to take the reins and help as much as I can because obviously I know that they’ve had a difficult experience.
‘I wasn’t afraid to talk about it in the villa and everyone was sort of going like, “how do you remain so positive?”‘
Reuben is now back on the pitch with Chertsey FC, adding this has been ‘really good for his mental health’.
The footballer teased he has ‘a lot of opportunities’ coming his way and wants to now focus on ‘growing as a person’.
Reuben revealed things haven’t been easy since leaving the ITV2 show as he has been dealing with the death of his grandad
‘I wasn’t afraid to talk about it in the villa and everyone was sort of going like, “how do you remain so positive?”‘
Reuben is now focusing on spending time with his family, who are grieving the loss of his grandad and planning his funeral
It comes after Grace sparked rumours of a split after she was spotted looking cosy with Omar Nyame, 25, who were briefly coupled up on the show, at a showbiz party last month.
A string of videos emerged from the GRM gala showing the blonde bombshell Grace dancing with Stormzy’s pal Omar inside the bash last month.
In one clip circulating on TikTok , the pair were seen very close to one another in the middle of a packed dance floor, while another video shared showed the pair filming a TikTok video together on the terrace.
A third clip obtained by The Sun, showed Omar and Grace standing together alone with his arm around the stunning Manchester beauty, as she dances next to him.
During a dramatic game of Couple of Sorts, Grace and Reuben were deemed the couple who were least likely to work on the outside by the public and were therefore dumped from the island.
The challenge saw the islanders rank themselves, and then discovered if the public voted the same way, with the final question being: ‘Which couple is least likely to work on the outside?’
It comes after Grace sparked rumours of a split after she was spotted looking cosy with Omar Nyame, 25, (pictured) who were briefly coupled up on the show, at a showbiz party last month
The contestants debated and then took their positions on the podium, ranking Grace and Reuben at the top – with viewers agreeing that the pair were least likely to last in the real world.
Grace had already laid into ex Joey Essex, 33, as she reflected on the series of rows he instigated during their time together on the reality show.
She was partnered with Joey for six days after he dumped Samantha Kenny to be with her. Grace and Joey already knew each other as they briefly dated in 2023.
Joey then left Grace to get with Jessy Potts – sneaking to the terrace to kiss her and leaving lasting animosity between himself and Grace.
