Love Island has taken off with the jaw-dropping revelation that The Only Way is Essex star Joey Essex, 33, would be taking part in the ITV show as its first-ever celebrity contestant. While we were shocked, the show ended on a cliffhanger before the villa could react to their new bombshell islander. Get a sneak peek of their reactions here…
Speaking about the revelation, Nicole joked: “No, this isn’t happening!” Maya Jama, who hosts the show, replied: “He’s not a passing visit, he’s actually here.”
Joey confirmed that he was “staying here for good baby,” before praising the islanders, saying: “I do like what I see… I can see a little twinkle in someone’s eye for sure.”
Joey will have one day to steal one of the girls from their couples, and the villa still couldn’t get over it, with Mimii telling the camera in the Beach Hut: “Joey Essex might be the biggest plot twist to happen on Love Island.” However, will any of the girls actually want to date him?
© PhotographerSpeaking about his game plan, he said: “My game plan is just to get to know everyone really, I want to get to know all the girls on a personal level and who I vibe with most… Obviously, I’ve got to keep my cards close to my chest.”
He later spoke about selecting one of the girls that will leave one of the boys single, saying: “It’s obviously been tough because I have got to know all of you girls on a nice level. And obviously got to know all you boys on a cool level - I feel like we’re tight and we’re getting on well but this is Love Island.”
© PhotographerThe new group will get to know each other better in a game of phone roulette, where each Islander will pick a phone out of the box and whoever’s phone it is will have to complete a dare, leading to some snogging. Mimii kissed Ayo, who is the Islander that she’d ‘rather be coupled up with’, later saying: “I’ll give him his accolades - it was a good kiss.”
Harriett also performs a lap dance for Ciaran, while Joey was dared to kiss three islanders of his choice, with the TOWIE star selecting Samantha, Harriett and Nicole.
© PhotographerMeanwhile, there is already some drama in the villa as Ronnie was dared to kiss the two Islanders who he thinks has the best bodies, and chose Jess and Harriett, leaving Samantha less than impressed.
Taking to X, formerly known as Twitter to discuss the show’s opening episode, one person wrote: “joey essex’s agent never stops… he has literally been on every reality show in the UK.” Another person added: “Joey Essex coming in as a bombshell in love island was not on my 2024 bingo card.” A third person wrote: “Joey Essex turning up in the Love Island Villa as a fully-fledged contestant has sent me into orbit. Fair play however desperate it is, that was a TWIST.”
