Turning up the heat on Love Island
Can much-maligned reality show win us over once again?
ITV2’s award-winning reality show is back on our screens – but has the show had its time in the sun? The drama-fuelled, lust-induced relationships had us glued to our screens when the programme started in 2015. But six years on, after an 18-month long pandemic, viewer numbers have dipped significantly, leading us to wonder if the Love Island’s once-loyal fan-base has got ‘the ick’. In National World’s new eight-episode video series and podcast, Sunburnt, journalists
Iain Leggat and Chelsea Rocks delve into some key issues related to the show – such as diversity, mental health and sexual taboos – and debate whether sea- son seven has what it takes to win us over again. “Love Island is, at face value, a show about great looking young peo- ple with raging hormones and a lust for love and the £50,000 prize, coupling up, cracking on and getting tanned in the process,” says Chelsea.
“However, executing the format of drama, dumpings and entertainment while also being considerate, ethical and representative of real life is no easy task.
“Iain and I will, across eight weeks, discuss whether the show is as relevant and engaging as it once was – or if we should swipe left on Love Island in 2021.”
Iain added:
“It’s easy to forget Love Island used to be the
most talked about TV show in the UK a couple of years ago – it even won a BAFTA!”
“The two of us will be unpacking what it takes for a reality show to be that successful, and whether a show with such a complicated relationship with mental health, body image, and diversity, can ever be the hit that it once was.”
■ Listen to or watch Love Island: Sunburnt on NationalWorld.com, Spotify and Apple podcasts.