When Akonne Wanliss ripples his oiled-up abs, he has the power to make men and women scream in delight. However, there’s one person who steadfastly refuses to lap it up — girlfriend, Daniella Hemsley.
His career as a stripper has long caused tension between Akonne, 33, and his partner of four years, who believes that it isn’t a job a future husband should do.
In fact, Danielle, a 24-year-old content creator, was so desperate for him to pack away his pants for good that she came up with an extreme plan: secretly sign him up for the second series of Olivia Attwood’s Bad Boyfriends — the ITV reality show that sends men to a training camp designed to ‘transform’ them into better partners.
With the show taking place in Tenerife, a plan had to be hatched to get Akonne to board the flight to the Canary Isles. Producers managed to persuade him that it was all for a (fake) show called ‘Hot Shots’, where he would be competing to be known as the best party starter. After spending the day posing poolside in minuscule gold pants and grinding on other women in a nightclub at night, Akonne was confronted by Daniella, and the real purpose of the show was finally revealed.
Recalling the moment that the penny dropped, Akonne admits to Metro that he felt betrayed. ‘You don’t expect to go on something that’s a setup by the person you love. All I had on was an apron and bow tie, as we were told it was what we needed to wear for our next challenge,’ he explains.
‘I’m not shy, but it felt exposing. I didn’t know where to hide myself. I had a lot of issues with the whole process of being lied to. I needed to sleep on it to decide if I even wanted to stay.’
Akonne was also shocked that Danielle would even consider him a ‘bad boyfriend’. ‘I’m attentive, protective, and I make her laugh,’ he says in defence.
Plus, he adds, he’s been a stripper for the last 12 years, alongside content creation and MMA fighting. ‘For me, it has never been that deep. It’s quick, easy cash for a couple of hours’ work. I’ve had many girlfriends who’ve had problems with it, but they need to trust me,’ he says. ‘I don’t want a partner who tries to change who I am. If I want to end my career, I will do it on my terms, and I didn’t like Danielle thinking that a husband couldn’t be a stripper, too.’
However, Danielle argues that the real issue is that Akonne regularly crosses a line when he’s working and doesn’t respect boundaries. ‘I’ve seen him take it too far with my own eyes,’ she tells Olivia on the show, describing how she’s seen women grabbing his penis and Akonne doing nothing to stop them. ‘I have to sit there as his girlfriend and then go home with that,’ she adds.
Do you think Akonne should stop stripping for the sake of his relationship?
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Yes, it’s disrespectful to his girlfriend
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No, it’s his career and choice
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They need to find a compromise
When Metro raises this point with him, Akonne admits: ‘I’d rather her be honest and put it on the table, but it’s my job. I can compartmentalise. What I’m doing on stage is part of my performance. I put on a magic show. If the choreographer is telling me to do something, then my hands are tied.’
Not quite, it turns out, as Danielle complains on the show that her partner still loves to strip even if he’s not getting paid. On the first day of filming, one of her fellow disgruntled girlfriends spies on her boyfriend as part of the show and reports back that he ‘got his d**k out three times’.
Akonne’s response? ‘If I’m working or not, I’m living for the applause and don’t think about anyone else apart from that.’
With such a difference of opinion, some might wonder why the couple even bother staying together; however, Akonne explains that they have something very special between them.
‘We’re very similar in a lot of ways — two very crazy, colourful and confident characters,’ he insists. ‘She’s like the female version of me, so it can be beautiful when it works.’
It’s the reason he decided to stick out the reality show where boyfriends are banished to live in ‘Brozone’ – essentially a park full of dirty caravans with rules like no sex or going out, while the women camp out in a luxury villa.
![This image and the information contained herein is strictly embargoed until 20.00 Tuesday 2nd September 2025 From Optomen Olivia Attwood?s Bad Boyfriends: SR2 on ITV2 and ITVX Pictured: Olivia Attwood and the cast of Olivia Attwood?s Bad Boyfriends [l-r]: Akonne, Chaynie, Joe, Miles, Dillon, Max, Italo, Dan, Antony, Daniella, Jacinta, Veronica, Shay, Mia, Izzy and Ellie. This photograph is (C) ITV Plc and can only be reproduced for editorial purposes directly in connection with the programme or event mentioned above, or ITV plc. This photograph must not be manipulated [excluding basic cropping] in a manner which alters the visual appearance of the person photographed deemed detrimental or inappropriate by ITV plc Picture Desk. This photograph must not be syndicated to any other company, publication or website, or permanently archived, without the express written permission of ITV Picture Desk. Full Terms and conditions are available on the website www.itv.com/presscentre/itvpictures/terms](https://metro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/SEI_264371991-36ce.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=646)
Controversy surrounding Olivia Attwood’s Bad Boyfriends
Some viewers question whether Bad Boyfriends is sending the wrong message that women need to change men, rather than picking men who treat them how they want to be treated from the outset.
A Reddit Thread was set up to discuss the series, with one person writing: ‘Bad Boyfriends feels like it’s suggesting that you can change a guy for the better, which doesn’t feel like the best message to put out?’
‘It’s so sad and hard to watch! Some of the ‘boys’ on this show are so toxic to the poor girls. Not everything can be fixed,’ another commenter added.
Host Olivia Atwood has previously defended it to Metro: ‘My philosophy is that humans are flawed, and humans make mistakes.
‘But I don’t want the narrative to be misconstrued that people should fight for anyone. This experiment was very much about seeing if exposing the boys to their bad behaviour would impact them in a way that they would want to change.
‘I’m not encouraging people to stay with some horrible person who isn’t nice to them. Not the case at all. There is scope for human error, change and development.
‘We’re living in an epidemic of violence against women, and misogyny is at an all-time high and actually, for quite a lot of these guys, seeing themselves was a very sobering experience. There’s a deeper route that the show takes.’
The men are then given tasks designed to help them grow, including group therapy-style chats with Olivia, games assessing how well they know their partner, and movie nights to show clips of their behaviour. The most improved is then given £20,000 for their efforts.
While Akonne is staying tight-lipped about whether he wins or not, he says he is grateful to the show for changing his relationship and helping him become more introspective in just three weeks. ‘On this journey, I definitely have to think deeper. It was a pretty intense experience,’ he explains.
‘I was able to take myself out of my own shoes and to see how my actions can affect other people, especially people close to me.
‘I used to think that if you love me, you need to do it unconditionally, especially if I’m just working, my intentions are not anything malicious, and I’m just having fun being me. I have more emotional intelligence now.’ In terms of whether Akonne is still stipping, he teases that a decision has been made, which will be revealed in a later episode.
New episodes of Olivia Attwood’s Bad Boyfriends air at 9pm on ITV, and are available to watch on ITVX
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