‘We’d love to get married next year’
As the new series gets underway, Love Island legend Amy Hart exclusively invites us into the home she shares with boyfriend Sam Rason
When the world first met Amy Hart in 2019, she was just a 26-year-old air hostess on a quest to find The One in the Love Island villa.
Her heartbreak over her failed romance with Curtis Pritchard resonated with viewers up and down the country. But fastforward three years and the star has achieved more than she could have ever dreamed of. Amy starred in Celebs Go Dating, made her panto debut and even bagged herself a role as presenter of Channel 4’s Embarrassing Bodies.
While her career has flourished, one thing has remained the same – her passion for love. Which is why it’s no surprise that merely two months after her relationship with entrepreneur Sam Rason began back in August 2021, she gave him a key to her West Sussex home.
“Just come whenever you want,” Amy, 29, told Sam, 33, at the time. But it wasn’t long before the former model packed up his belongings in Hertfordshire to move in with her full-time after spending hours travelling back and forth just to be together.
“It was very natural,” the couple say, inviting us in for an exclusive first look into their home.
Here, Amy and Sam talk all about their new chapter together, how they’re compromising over wedding plans and Amy’s advice for the new cast of Love Island...
Hi, both. Congrats on the move! How did you decide to take the plunge?
Amy: [To Sam] I used to tell you quite early on, after a few wines that,“I don’t want to rush you, but whenever you want to move in, you can.”
Sam: I think you gave me a key after about two months and said, “Just come whenever you want.” Amy: We had the perfect storm – for me anyway – of two amazing weeks together in Mexico. Then I went to Florida for two weeks without Sam and I had two weeks of him missing me. So then he was like,“I’m going to stay here more,” and then he was suddenly telling everyone,“I’m just moving in.” Sam: It just felt natural.
What’s it been like to live with a partner for the very first time?
Sam: It’s the first time I’ve lived with a woman, so I thought there would be more teething problems, but we get on great.
Amy: It’s the first time I’ve ever lived with a boy, too... Having been so independent and doing what I want, when I want – obviously I can still do that – I do also have to take into consideration someone else’s feelings now.
Sam: If Amy does a long weekend job, for me, it’s quite nice. I can go see family and friends as well. So that works out really well.
Did you have to sacrifice anything for Sam to move in?
Amy: Yes, half a wardrobe and one drawer.
Sam: All my stuff fit into one car when I was moving in.
Do you have any pet peeves about one another?
Sam: Amy’s biggest pet peeve is when I don’t park how she wants me to. I’m a bit of a free parker. Amy’s like,“Move the car!” Amy: I would like to stay friends with our neighbours! I’m quite messy… Sam doesn’t like me being messy.
Sam: I do get stroppy when someone is messy.
How was meeting the parents?
Amy: My parents love Sam. My grandparents love him, too.
Sam: My parents love Amy, too. Amy: Sam hadn’t actually told his mum that he was moving in, she read it on my Instagram.
You went on holiday to Mexico together recently. How was that?
Sam: When I saved Amy’s life was an important part of this holiday... Amy: Basically, we went on a boat trip and it was really, really windy, so the waves were huge. They were like,“Only go snorkelling if you’re a really strong swimmer.” I jumped into the water and my life jacket broke. The waves were so huge, and I thought,“I’ve got to get out of here.”
Sam: She just had a bit of a panic. I jumped in and swam over to her and I was trying to like kick her in but I swear she was milking it as she was not doing anything so I was kicking my legs hard.
Do you both think you’ve found The One?
Amy: Yes, this is definitely my happy ending.
Sam: Yeah, it definitely feels that way. That’s why I suggested that I move here, away from friends and family. It was a big thing for me.
Amy: I told my friends just before our third date that I was going to marry Sam. They were like, “You’ve only met him twice,” and I just told them to trust me.
Sam: I think the first conversation you had with my mum was,“I’m going to marry your son!”
Do you have an idea of when a wedding might be on the cards?
Amy: My family, we are very impulsive people. My mum and dad got engaged after eight weeks, got married within a year and had a baby the following year. So everyone is like,“He’s nice, marry him!”
Sam: I’m just a little bit slower. I don’t have a timeline in mind... I said to Amy that I want it to be a surprise, I want it to feel like a special moment for us.
Amy: Meanwhile, I’ve got the tick, tick, tick in my head.
Sam: Life doesn’t always work to plan and with Amy’s fertility [she has a low egg count], we don’t quite know yet whether we’re going to have to
‘We don’t have time to enjoy travelling as a couple’
switch things up and whether we focus on having kids first.
Amy: I’d love to get married first, just because I think then you can be truly selfish with your wedding. Once you have children, all your priorities change. I’d love to get married next year.
And what about children?
Sam: I definitely want children. I’m not as precious about having children first or getting married. I totally see where Amy is coming from though.
Amy: We don’t have time to enjoy being a couple and go travelling for the next five years, like some couples do. We’ll need to make a decision at some point about what we’re going to do first, but we’d like at least two. That doesn’t leave us a long time and it’ll have to be back to back.
Sam: That excites me because I do want to be a dad and build a family with Amy. We’ll definitely try in the next four years. Amy has been open about her fertility and in some ways that creates time pressure.
What
was it like to watch Amy go through the egg-freezing process?
Sam: I was supportive and it was insightful for me. All I wanted for Amy was for it to be successful.
Amy: I’ve got 12 more [eggs] than I would’ve had. I would’ve liked more for the amount of medication I had, but I’m grateful for that.
Some people thought you were pregnant due to the swelling...
Amy: Someone came up to me in the street in Brighton and touched my belly. We’d been out for roast dinner as well, so it was extremely protruding.They were like,“Oh my God, you’re pregnant.” I was steaming drunk. I was like,“No, I’m really not, I’ve had loads of fertility medication.”
Sam: Sometimes people feel the need to make a comment that they know could be taken negatively. I remember that situation, I was just a bit further up the road. The woman said to me that Amy was pregnant. I was like,“She’s not pregnant. Why would you go up to a stranger on the street and say that?”
Love Island is back. Are you watching it?
Amy: Yes, we sit and watch it together every night. If I had to give some advice, I’d tell them to brief their friends and family about their Instagram and make sure they know exactly how they want it. Also, don’t sweat the small stuff.
Do you think it’s changed since you were on the show?
Amy: I don’t think so, no. I think everyone has a reason to go in whether it be for love, career, fun. I think some stay true to why they’re going in there. As long as they don’t hurt anyone else along the way...
What do you make of the new Love Island villa?
I felt so lucky to see the new villa and do the tour for This Morning. It is fabulous, huge, lots of spaces to be pulled for a chat, loads of gold and bling – a perfect paradise for a summer of love.