NEARLY three years ago, Dave Bates became one of the many young Brits who moved to Thailand in search of a better life – and that’s exactly what he found.
But fast forward to today, and the 36-year-old has lost it all – his home, his job and even his Thai girlfriend after he made the ‘worst decision of his life’ – to appear in Zara McDermott’s latest documentary.
Zara McDermott’s latest documentary has sparked outrage[/caption]
Zara has become a documentary maker after finding fame on Love Island[/caption]
Love Island star turned doc maker Zara, 28, and the BBC targeted Thailand for their latest “investigation” and Dave – known online as ThaiTok – is one of the men who was approached to take part, unaware of what lay ahead.
Dave says: “The backlash has been unbearable; this has turned my life upside down.
“Because of this documentary, I’ve lost my job. I’ve lost my villa that I’ve worked so hard to get. I’ve lost my girlfriend.”
Since Thailand: The Dark Side of Paradise aired, other contributors have also come forward to slam the doc that visits Bangkok and Pattaya, claiming it was ” full of lies and staged events”.
The programme sees Zara explore the country’s seedy underbelly of drugs and prostitution, talking to several sex workers while branding the Brit holiday hotspot as “Benidorm on Steroids”.
Zara has since said she did “lots of research” before travelling there, but “nothing could prepare me for what I was about to see”.
It sparked backlash from visitors who said they found Thailand to be “one of the safest and friendliest places they’d ever been”, with locals fearing it could have a negative effect on tourism.
Others claimed the documentary was “misleading”, but no one is more upset than the contributors who took part.
The Sun caught up with Dave amid the backlash back in the UK, as he struggles to come to terms with what happened and condemns the BBC for ‘blindsiding’ him and others with such a negative narrative.
He tells us he was first contacted by a woman over TikTok, who told him the series would be “to show people why everyone’s moving to Thailand and why everyone loves to visit Thailand”.
Dave, who is known for his very positive content about the country and is still considered one of the top creators there, says it was a no-brainer.
He explains: “So immediately I was like brilliant, I’d love to do it, I’d love to be part of that, it’s kind of what I do on my social media.
“All my content is focused on showing people how amazing Thailand is, so I was like, ‘Great, if I have the opportunity to do that in a documentary, fantastic’.”
He was told Zara would be fronting the doc but knew nothing about her work beyond Love Island and Made In Chelsea – living in Thailand meant he had never seen her documentaries.
If they had told us the direction that they were going to take, I can guarantee you not a single one of us creators would have taken part.
ThaiTok Dave
But two weeks before it aired, Dave started to feel concerned when he was told the title, and things quickly went downhill from there when he saw what it actually entailed.
He says: “Thailand does have some dark sides, just like every other country, but there wasn’t an indication that would be all they were focusing on.
“It’s only when they put it on TV and people watch it that you literally see it’s just about the dark side of Thailand, and that’s it. Nothing positive.”
‘We’ve been blindsided’
Dave isn’t the only one who claims to have suffered at the hands of the doc; others have also spoken out on social media to slam it.
A YouTuber called Mac, known for his channel Mac TV Travel Learn Inspire, also condemned the documentary after he was asked to appear in it.
He alleged that the doc was “full of lies” and that “false scenes were staged”.
Mike Yu, 29, also addressed the doc and said he felt “annoyed, upset and sad,” and accused producers of “trying hard to find the bad part of Thailand”.
Dave insists: “Everyone just feels we’ve been blindsided.
Dave has lived in Thailand for nearly three years[/caption]
She is almost arrested at one point with her team for filming in the wrong place[/caption]
“If they had told us the direction that they were going to take, I can guarantee you not a single one of us creators would have taken part.”
Dave says he’s lost out on a string of lucrative brand deals because of his involvement in it and now fears it could impact his travel agency, which he has set up with a friend, to help drive tourists to the country.
Despite the documentary being unavailable to watch in Thailand, various clips have gone viral – leaving Dave’s girlfriend deeply upset and causing them to split.
The social media star says: “She’s Thai. She’s with someone who was involved in this documentary, so it’s very hard for her and for me to explain. It was totally out of my control, and I can’t get her to understand that.”
I was just totally blindsided. We all were, but it’s not just the creators – they’ve done Thailand dirty as a country and that’s what people are mad about. They’ve portrayed it as something it’s not.
ThaiTok Dave
He says he filmed with Zara, who is now dating Louis Tomlinson, for hours, but very little was actually shown, and he believes at points his answers from other questions were used, creating what he believes is a false narrative.
He says: “Just because of my involvement in the whole series, it has tarnished me with the same brush as everyone else. It’s shown me in a negative light.
Dave is concerned about the way he and other contributors were portrayed[/caption]
“I was just totally blindsided. We all were, but it’s not just the creators – they’ve done Thailand dirty as a country, and that’s what people are mad about. They’ve portrayed it as something it’s not.”
It’s not the first time that Zara’s docs have raised eyebrows.
Last year she released Ibiza: Secrets of the Party Island, which again sees Zara blown away as she “investigates” crime and drug use there.
Insiders have told us that again, the contributors and clubs were promised something rather different, instead becoming part of a convoluted drugs exposé.
We’re told things came to a head during filming at Ocean Beach, and bosses ended up having an explosive row with producers over the content.
And insiders tell us that Zara won’t be welcomed back there anytime soon – and it seems that now Thailand is following suit.
After everything that happened, Dave says the fury has reached the media there, adding: “She definitely won’t be allowed back. That’s 100% sure, I’m positive.”
Zara has said she thought it was “important” for her to meet Brits who are now living in Thailand and she was keen to show the reality of living abroad.
Speaking about her doc, she said: “I hope it questions what consequence looks like when you are thousands of miles from home.
“I hope that audiences will see that actions do have consequence, and you can’t just leave your inhibitions on the plane. Sometimes these consequences can be unpredictable.”
A rep for the BBC said: “This contributor was fully briefed before participating, fully consented and understood the nature of his contribution and the series as a whole.
“Zara McDermott has explored a range of sensitive issues in multiple documentaries for BBC Three over the past five years. “
Dave owns a travel company and helps people get the most out of Thailand[/caption]
