Love Island is back for another series and for the second time ever, Islanders will be looking for romance in South Africa for the winter instalment.
Following the reveal of the new batch of singletons, show bosses released a first look at the sprawling mansion in Cape Town that they’ll call home.
The property, which reportedly cost more than £5 million, boasts an Olympic swimming pool, rugby pitch, a zip line, and 400m running track. Although a press contact for ITV would not discuss or confirm the details, other sources have said it costs £1.2m to hire the villa for the five weeks the Islanders will be calling it home.
The 17-bedroom home, aptly named Ludus Magnus after Rome’s ancient gladiator school, also has its own private lake and palm-tree-lined beach.
Although the property sports the same bright colour scheme and neon slogans as the summer villa, the luxury pad is a breakaway from their Majorca offering, with views of Table Mountain surrounding the 25-acre home.
There are also outdoor showers, a swimming pool with purple loungers, the iconic fire-pit, and an outdoor kitchen, much like the summer villa.
As well as the bold colour scheme, this year’s hideaway is softened by cloud-themed decor, while the bed sits under a sign that reads: “Get Sexy”.
Away from the confines of the hideaway, the communal bedroom is packed out with a number of large double beds at the eco-retreat.
As well as a new location, the upcoming series will welcome Maya Jama as host, after Laura Whitmore announced her departure from the show last year.
Speaking about her new gig, Jama shared: “I’m a massive fan, I’ve watched pretty much all of the series. I’ve tried not to do too much research because you want to still be yourself, don’t you?
“You want to ask all the questions you want to know but, as a fan of the show, I feel like I’m going to approach it how I’ve screamed at the telly for years.
“I’m just going to be like, ‘Why did you kiss her and what happened then?!’ But we’ll see.”
Show bosses revealed the new line-up of contestants on Monday (January 9) ahead of the series’s January 16 kick-off.
The fresh batch of singletons included the show’s first-ever partially sighted entry Ron Hall, influencer Tanya Manhenga, former KSI ring girl Olivia Hawkins, and TikTok farmer Will Young.
Love Island starts at 9pm on Monday, January 16 on ITV2 and ITVX.
