Yahoo Finance Love Island's Olivia Attwood condemns influencers who call going on holiday 'work'
Love Island star Olivia Attwood has criticised fellow influencers who justify going on holiday by calling it “work”.
The reality TV star and influencer – who has 1.9 million followers on Instagram and is engaged to Blackburn Rovers footballer Bradley Dack – said in a video on her Instagram Stories: “There is a difference from being able to earn money wherever you are, to being there for work.”
Attwood, 29, began the video with a tongue-in-cheek moan, saying: “Being an influencer is actually really hard and I can't create content for you guys here, so I am going to have to go on holiday but don't worry I will keep referring to it as 'work’.”
She then explained: “Oh my god I sound like an actual hater... it's just this meme that's been going around which is making influencers, and it's not all of them it's only a few, look so bad.
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“It's the constant ‘I'm working, not on holiday’ shout.
“There is a difference from being able to earn money wherever you are to being there for work.”
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Attwood – who competed in the ITV2 dating show in 2015 – said: “Whenever I go on holiday I'll post content which I can monetise. I'm still on holiday.”
She complained that those who did refer to promoting their luxury travel on social media as “work” were giving influencers a bad name.
She said : “And on top of that you've got the ones going, “Oh we're all in this together, this is our struggle.” No, it's not.
“You're on holiday and to be fair I don't f***ing blame you...
“I just feel like it's giving a whole load of people a bad reputation when actually some people have just gone away and put their hands up and been like, ‘Yeah I'm on holiday’.”
Attwood – who has also appeared on The Only Way Is Essex – said influencers complaining about the pressures of lockdown amid the coronavirus pandemic undermined the very real suffering many have experienced as a result of COVID-19.
She said: “People are losing their family members daily, people can't pay their rent, people's lifelong businesses are crumbling around them and you're on your Stories on the beach telling us we don't know how hard it is.
“I'm not saying my pandemic has been a genuine struggle, I still have a roof over my head.
Read more: Zara Holland avoids jail after being accused of breaking COVID quarantine rules
“If I decide to bail out of this s***show in a few months. don't all hate on me. I'm not gonna say I'm never going away again, but I won't be telling you I'm going for work, I'm just gonna be honest.”
Attwood revealed at the beginning of the year that she has had coronavirus.
Her comments come after fellow Love Island star Zara Holland avoided jail when she was accused of breaking quarantine rules on holiday in Barbados, but did receive a £4,417 fine.
Holland was in Barbados with her boyfriend Elliott Love. Police said the star was tested for coronavirus and told to remain in quarantine at her hotel, but when a COVID-19 unit checked, she had left.
Watch: Olivia Attwood accepts footballer Bradley Dack’s proposal
