Love Island’sMaura Higgins was “pressured” into staying with her former boyfriend Curtis Pritchard in order to continue working on their brand, it has been claimed.
Maura and Curtis left the famous villa last summer and despite being one of the unlikely couples, they stayed together for eight months before the Irish star called time on the relationship with the dancer in a shocking Instagram story announcement.
However, recent claims suggest that the former lovers only stayed together in recent months for their “brand” with their respective management firms telling them to keep up appearances as they had commitments they needed to carry out.
It’s believed Maura and Curtis were “forced” to stay together (Image: Mirror Screen Grab)
Curtis, 24, and 29-year-old Maura allegedly split three months ago, but appeared to put on smiles in public so they could keep jobs that they had previously been booked for.
A source told The Sun: “Maura felt pressured to stick with him. They had booked jobs together, parties they had to attend.
“When they met on Love Island it was genuine. But when the showbiz treadmill started on the outside, it was a sham.”
The pair allegedly split three months ago but had to carry out work commitments (Image: WireImage)
It’s believed that the National Television Awards in January – when they were delivering gossip from the exclusive red carpet – was one of the deals the couple had already signed before splitting up.
Later that evening, The Sun claimed that the pair ended up rowing after Curtis allegedly had one too many to drink.
Maura allegedly exclaimed: “He said I only got the NTAs gig because of him. It was actually my management that sorted it,”
Curtis and Maura allegedly had to carry out their role at the NTA’s despite splitting up (Image: Doug Peters/EMPICS Entertainment)
She then added: “He likes to think that he is the one people are after him, not me.”
Love Island star Montana Brown has also spoken out about the pressure that is put on Love Island contestants once they leave the villa to ensure they don’t split too soon.
The Irish beauty announced their split via Instagram (Image: Instagram)
There have also been rumours circulating that Curtis’ head had been turned by other women and he was also linked to a fellow dancer after a video emerged of the pair grinding on one another.
Daily Star Online has contacted a representative for both Maura Higgins and Curtis Pritchard.
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
