LOVE Island fans have been left furious after host Iain Stirling revealed a huge change coming to this years series.
Iain Stirling, who arrived in Majorca today, revealed that viewers have been given the power to choose who couples with who during the opening episode.
After the new format was announced viewers took to Twitter to express their fury.
One said: “Noooo the first couple up is always brutal. ‘m sooo disappointed with this!”
Another added: “What’s the point? Stop changing things that don’t need to be changed.. keep it simple, they couple up, we vote out..”
The news comes as star Gemma Owen has revealed her famous footballer father “isn’t happy” about her joining the hit reality dating series.
The daughter of footballer Michael Owen, swimwear company owner Gemma, 19, revealed that she is desperate to ‘score in the villa’.
She told MailOnline: “I still wouldn’t say that my dad is buzzing about me doing Love Island.
“He’s very supportive in whatever I decide to do. He didn’t have a massive tantrum or anything like that. He was pretty chilled, he trusts me not to do anything to embarrass him. He took it quite well.”
Airing on ITV2, the first episode of Love Island 2022 will be a bumper one, starting at 9pm on June 6 and going on until 10.35pm.
Read our Love Island blog below for the latest news, gossip and updates…
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When does Love Island start?
The Sun exclusively revealed Love Island will kick off on Monday June 6, 2022.
This has been confirmed by ITV, with the launch show starting at 9pm on ITV2.
After this, Love Island will air every night at the same time.
The only episode which will be different is Saturday, which is always a highlights show.
An insider told us: “Love Island is coming back with a bang and it will begin on the second full week in June.
“The schedules are being put together now and fans can expect a long, hot summer of fun from the villa from June 6.
“Filming for the promotional adverts is beginning in the next couple of weeks and the ads will start in May.
“This series is going to be the longest ever and it’s from a brand new location so it’s all very exciting.”
A spokesman for Love Island said: “It is too early to confirm scheduling for the 2022 series.”Love Island, which first started in June 2015, is still a massive hit and is the most popular show for 16 to 34-year-olds.
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Striving to be ‘diverse and representative on the show’ this year
Show producer Mike Spencer took part in a Q&A where he was pummelled with suggestions on how to improve the ITV2 show.
One person wanted to know whether the line-up this year would be more diverse, and another begged him to ditch gross food challenges where the Islanders spit food into each other’s mouths.
Mike replied: “We are always striving to be more diverse and representative on the show, and try to cast the net far and wide during the casting process.
“Our application and casting process is inclusive to all, and we are always aiming to reflect the age and diversity of our audience on the show.
“Agreed on the food challenges we will be stepping away from them slightly.
“The most important factor is that our applicants are single and looking for love. We aim to make the best show we can knowing we won’t please everyone but I take on board all of your points.”
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‘Very robust’ selection process for this year
In 2020 Love Island cast its first physically disabled contestant Hugo Hammond.
Meanwhile, show producer Mike Spencer has confirmed the class of 2022 has been finalised after a “very robust” selection process with diversity being key.
Asked about the latest crop of attractive reality TV newbies, Love Island‘s head honcho said: “Yes I have met the cast of 2022.
“They are brilliant and I think we have an exciting year on our hands. I can’t wait to see them in the villa now and all be revealed VERY soon!”
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Love Island’s Luca Bish reveals whether he’ll have sex in the villa
LOVE Island star Luca Bish has spilled the beans on whether he will have sex in the villa – as he admits he’s never gone long without it.
The soon-to-be reality TV star has revealed that he is going into the ITV2 dating show with a “whatever happens, happens” attitude.
Luca, 23, who was announced as part of the 2022 line-up earlier this week, admitted he hasn’t gone longer than “ten weeks” without sex.
It means that while he has no plans to get busy under the sheets with any of the ladies, he may give in towards the end of the show.
“Whatever happens, happens,” he told The Sun Online ahead of his Love Island debut. “I would say no before going in there.
“But if I got towards the end, ten weeks without having any attention would be rare. I would say ten weeks is the longest I have gone without sex for a while, certainly since I was 16.”
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Inside Love Island’s steamiest romps (3/3)
Before Alex came into the villa, Olivia Bowen shocked viewers by having sex with Rykard Jenkins in secret.
What made it worse was that the girl he was getting together with, Rachel Fenton, was sleeping in the bed next to them at the time, and no one had any idea it happened.
It was such a big deal, in fact, that when Rachel was kicked out of the villa by the public, Rykard left with her – but then she was told by Caroline Flack about the night in question on camera.
Despite this, Rachel and Rykard stayed together – however they split up 18 months later.
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Inside Love Island’s steamiest romps (2/3)
They’re married now, with their first baby on the way, and it seems it was lust at first sight for Alex and Olivia Bowen – nee Buckland.
They had sex 30 times in the second series of the show – despite the fact Alex wasn’t even in the villa for 30 days!
Their former housemate Terry Walsh revealed they had sex so much that producers had to keep topping up the condom supply.
He said: “They were the top sh*****s by far. They were at it all the time. There was condoms everywhere.
“The producers were re-stocking them every morning.”
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Inside Love Island’s steamiest romps (1/3)
All the way back in 2015, Love Island’s first couple to have sex were Hannah Elizabeth and Jon Clark – who ended up getting engaged in the final, before splitting up soon after.
After announcing they were an official couple two weeks in, they “christened the house” in the Hideaway – and then didn’t stop for the rest of their time in the villa.
They even took to going at it in the bedroom in front of their mortified housemates, while they were trying to sleep.
During one session, Jon shouted at one of his fellow islanders: “I can’t stop, guys, you’ll just have to deal with it.”
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Fans reckon they’ve already figured out who will win new series
LOVE Island fans reckon they’ve figured out who will win the new series.
One contestant already stands out for fans in a line-up that features models, a fishmonger, a footballer’s daughter and a microbiologist.
It is the dancer from Yorkshire, who was born deaf, that has already won the hearts of fans and they’re rooting for her to find love, and nab the £50,000 prize.
One person tweeted: “I already want Tasha to find love and win.”
Another shared their predictions for a few of the new Islanders heading into the villa on Monday, and said: “Luca: going to be in multiple triangles Tasha: producers fave. Will probably win.
“Ikenna: surprising fan fave, Davide: possible villian or villa’s sweetheart.”
Another commented on a photo of Tasha: “She’s going to smash it on Love Island.”
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Love Islanders’ exes reveal all (2/3)
Winter Love Island star Callum Jones, 25, was spared a nasty shock after his former girlfriend Lou Dewar threatened to go into the villa.
She posted a poll on her Instagram after seeing the scaffolder couple up with Shaughna Phillips, 28, in the South African villa.
The stunning brunette wrote: “Might go and spice up the island”.
It seemed her followers were up for stirring the pot with 85 per cent voting for her to try it.
But Love Island producers didn’t seem to agree and she never showed up.
Lou and Callum appeared to be dating as far back as 2014 according to photos on their social media but it’s unclear when they split.
Callum is now loved up with fellow islander Molly Smith, 25, after meeting her in Casa Amor.
The pair now live together and celebrated their two year anniversary in April.
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Love Islanders’ exes reveal all (2/3)
When surfer Lucie Donlan, 24, headed into the Majorcan villa, two of her exes had some not so nice things to say about her.
Former partner Freddie Hare was left devastated when he found out about her cheating thanks to a game on the ITV show.
He said: “I’m devastated. Lucie never admitted it to my face, she did it on national TV.
“I had my suspicions but it was heartbreaking to find out I was right all along.”
The shocked photographer said Lucie blamed their split on him refusing to collect her from the airport – but he says they hadn’t spoken for a month before she returned.
And the bloke she had the romps with in Australia was revealed to be YouTuber Alex Boulton.
He said: “We spent a month together in the same house in Australia.
“I’m sure you can imagine what we got up to even if it’s not Love Island.”
But that all seems to be left in the past as Lucie has settled down with fellow former islander Luke Mabbot, 27, and the pair are set to tie the knot.
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Love Islanders’ exes reveal all (1/3)
Winter Love Island contestant Connor Durman, 27, set his sights on Sophie Piper, 23, the little sister of Saturdays star Rochelle Humes‘, 33, when he got into the South African villa.
But fans were left shocked when it came out that he had fired off a string of racist text messages to his former girlfriend Stevie-Leigh Pitch.
In texts seen by The Sun, he branded Stevie having sex with black men as “rank” and “grim” and labelled the make-up artist, 24, a “slut” and a “slag” for sleeping with them.
A friend of his furious ex said: “It’s disgusting that he can send messages like that given who he’s paired up with on the show.
“He kept telling Stevie that it made him sick that she’d seen the guy and was really nasty.”
The former roofer later issued a grovelling apology for the messages and to his Love Island flame.
He wrote in an Instagram post: “Firstly I would like to say I’m extremely sorry for my inappropriate and racist remarks written in the message.
“I completely failed to think about my words and ended up saying something hurtful and insensitive when I was in an angry and emotional state of mind, talking privately with someone close to me.”
Unfortunately, Connor and Sophie didn’t last after they left the ITV show.
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Molly Mae Hague shows off new sofa as she moans about lack of furniture
MOLLY-MAE Hague shared a rare photo of her huge living room last night, revealing Tommy Fury sitting on their giant sofa.
Yet the 23-year-old star has claimed her £3.5million mansion looked like a “warehouse” because of a lack of furniture.
She posted a photo of her impressive lounge with floor to ceiling windows and white marble floor tiles, and penned: “PS, still no furniture in the warehouse.”
And former Love Island stars Molly and Tommy, also 23, have already spent around £12,000 on sofas to go in the large kitchen and bedrooms in their dream house.
The star said she had her heart set on getting everything in a ‘bouclé’ material earlier this year during a trip to a furniture store.
She said in a Youtube video: “Today has consisted of walking up to every piece of furniture and asking if I can have it in bouclé.”
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Hosts touch down in Majorca
Love Island host Laura Whitmore and boyfriend Iain Stirling have touched down in Majorca ahead of Monday night’s launch show.
The celeb couple managed to dodge the flight chaos that has engulfed Europe as airlines struggle to put on flights due to staffing issues.
Snapped on arrival in Palma, Laura wore a black Fleetwood Mac T-shirt under a denim jacket and tie-dye trousers.
Comedian and show narrator Iain dressed in a black T-shirt and jeans, a denim jacket and had a face mask over his chin.
Love Island fans think Laura teased a brand new theme for the series last week when she posed as female version of Greek god Eros – the god of carnal love.
Dressed in a golden feathered minidress and with gold leaf in her eyebrows, she was ready to help singletons realise their desires.
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Harsher rules this year
ITV said ahead of the 2022 series of Love Island: “Ahead of this series, contributors on the show will be offered video training and guidance covering inclusive language around disability, sexuality, race and ethnicity, behaviours and microaggressions.
“The inclusion training, which Islanders are offered prior to entering the Villa, consists of conversations chaired by BCOMS (Black Collective of Media in Sport) founder Leon Mann MBE and including DEI (Diversity, Equity & Inclusion) consultant Hayley Bennett, disability specialist Shani Dhanda and broadcaster Sean Fletcher.
“These discussions will tackle topics including inclusive language, behaviour, creating safe spaces and being a good ally.”
It comes as 2019 Islander Sherif Lane was booted from the villa after accidentally kicking fellow Islander Molly-Mae Hague in the groin and calling it a “c*** punch”.
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Love Island’s Tasha Ghouri in music video for major pop star
LOVE Island’s Tasha Ghouri will become a household name when the new series kicks off on Monday night.
But she’ll already be a familiar face to fans of pop star MNEK having starred in his and Sleepwlkers’ More Than Words music video.
Poignantly, the song was a celebration of the deaf community and every dancer featured is deaf and hard of hearing.
Ahead of the series, Tasha said: “That was my first major music video. Surprisingly enough it was about him celebrating the deaf community. It was such a great, exciting opportunity.”
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Rachel Finni: ‘These are the hacks to make it to the final’
LOVE Island’s Rachel Finni has shared useful beauty tips on how to survive in the Majorcan villa.
The 30-year-old appeared on the ITV2 reality show as the first black bombshell ever last year, but she never reached the final.
She took to Instagram last night and shared advice on how to handle the long hours filming in the sunshine, and what to pack for Love Island, in a post titled “to my melanated beauties”.
Rachel said sunscreen is a necessity because “you never film in the shade so you will catch that sexy sun.
Another tip she said was to “buy foundation up to 3 shades darker than your skin tone.
Read the article in full here
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Where to buy the new Love Island water bottle
On Thursday, May 26, the Love Island official shop revealed a new version of the Love Island water bottle for the launch of season 8.
The new bottle features a gold font on the side and is only available during the show.
It was first launched on This Morning by duo Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby.
The new bottle is only available from the Official Love Island shop along with new products like personalised robes, eye masks, passport covers and luggage labels.
Returning favourites include tote bags, suitcases and the original water bottle designs.
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Love Island 2022 start date
After months of guessing, we finally know when Love Island is coming back!
Love Island 2022 will begin on Monday, June 6 at 9 pm on ITV 2 and ITV Hub
The news was confirmed on the official Love Island Twitter account, with the caption: “Here’s your first hot date of the summer”.
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Bookies CAN’T SPLIT Liam and Luca
Liam and Luca can’t be seperated in the Love Island betting as things stand, according to Ladbrokes.
The bookies have revealed the latest odds ahead of the new series starting, and it’s Liam and Luca who lead the way for the boys at 3/1 apiece.
Elsewhere, Michael Owen’s daughter, Gemma, now leads the way for the girls at 5/2, ahead of Tasha (3/1) and Paige (4/1).
Alex Apati of Ladbrokes said: “It’s all change in the betting for the girls, with Gemma leapfrogging Paige to now lead the way.”
He added: “However, it’s proving much more difficult to predict the top boy, with Luca and Liam neck-and-neck in the betting as things stand.”
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Gemma Owen says dad Michael ‘isn’t happy’
Football legend Michael Owen said it is “every father’s worst nightmare.”
He told sports correspondent Chris Hall he was worried about her joining this years cast.
Gemma is the youngest to go on the show this year at just 19 years old. Despite her age, her dad said she is a “sensible girl.”
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Georgia Steel teams up with Domino’s
The ex-contestant also reveals her secrets to a hot bod.
Georgia has announced that this year’s Love Island couples will be given a Loyalty Card which entitles them to pizza, for as long as they are together.
24-year-old Georgia shook up the villa in 2018, and now tells new Islanders to be authentic.
She said she maintains her banging figure by Pilates, yoga, and eating the occasional pizza.
Pizza fans can also get their hands on the very special Loyal Card by staking their claim on Twitter @Dominos_UK with a stand-out display of loyalty.
Credit: Domino’s / BEEM
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Huge Love Island star looks unrecognisable in throwback
MOLLY-MAE Hague looks almost unrecognisable in an unearthed snap from her teen years.
The Love Island favourite is one of the show’s biggest success stories, racking up 6.5million Instagram followers and landing a string of high profile brand deals.
Over the years Molly altered her look with fillers and Botox.
The 23-year-old began getting many of her cosmetic procedures reversed in hopes of achieving a more natural look last February.
In March, experts estimated that the social media influencer spent over £8,000 on regular procedures and paid thousands more to have them reversed.
The PLT creative director explained she no longer recognised herself in the photo and wanted to do something about it.
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Love Island star hits out at ITV calling her pictures ‘the worst in history’
LOVE Island star Millie Court has slammed ITV for making her look 40 in press pictures ahead of her stint in the villa.
The 25-year-old – who went on to win the show with her boyfriend Liam Reardon – was trolled at the time.
Sharing it on social media ahead of the new series launch, millionaire Millie said: “This pic will haunt me until I die…
“Sorry but this just isn’t it. Worst press picture in the history of Love Island award goes to me.
“WHAT IS MY HAIR AND MAKEUP!!!!!!!”
Millie added: “Naaaaaaa my friends told me when this pic launched everyone was saying who the f**k is this 40 year old looks like a mum dropping her kids off at the gate”
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Love Island’s Andrew reveals what his secret surgery was
LOVE Island singleton Andrew Le Page has revealed he went under the knife for a cosmetic procedure before entering the villa.
The 27-year-old real estate agent, who lives in Dubai, previously didn’t say what the surgery was for, but has now told how he decided to have some glands on his chest removed.
Speaking to The Sun during a roundtable interview, he said: “It was surgery on my chest, it was a day procedure to take out glands that were in my chest.
“It was something that I had always wanted to do and I thought it was something I may as well do before I come on the show.
“It was a cosmetic procedure, it wasn’t something I needed to do, I just wanted to do it.”
Discussing how else he got body ready, Andrew continued: “When I had my surgery two months ago I couldn’t train for six weeks, so that was frustrating.
“Now I am training in the morning -a hit session and then in the evening I do a resistance, weights training.”
Andrew admitted he is a huge fan of the show and applied to be on it after his mates insisted he would be great for it.
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Rachel Finni: ‘These are the hacks to make it to the final’
LOVE Island’s Rachel Finni has shared useful beauty tips on how to survive in the Majorcan villa.
The 30-year-old appeared on the ITV2 reality show as the first black bombshell ever last year, but she never reached the final.
She took to Instagram last night and shared advice on how to handle the long hours filming in the sunshine, and what to pack for Love Island, in a post titled “to my melanated beauties”.
Rachel said sunscreen is a necessity because “you never film in the shade so you will catch that sexy sun.
Another tip she said was to “buy foundation up to 3 shades darker than your skin tone.
Read the article in full here.
