The Independent has announced the first contestants for the new Love Island summer series. The 12th season of the popular reality TV dating series is set to return with a string of brand new contestants looking for love amid the drama in a villa in Majorca. One contestant, Kyle, has quit the show already and has been replaced with another newcomer.
Presented by Maya Jama since 2023, Love Island will celebrate its 10th anniversary this year, with many of its most memorable personalities set to return for a reunion special. In its first trailer for the 2025 summer season, Jama demanded something “bigger” and “bolder”, and promised “more twists”, “more bombshells” and “more drama” than ever before.
According to The Independent, here are the contestants that have already been announced for this year:
Sophie, a 29-year-old “CEO of empowerment” from Manchester, is a motivational speaker and author. She has one mission: “I want women to feel beautiful and validated in themselves and feel their best self.” Sophie works as a motivational speaker and author in Manchester. Despite her optimistic approach, she’s only found men “draped in red flags and ‘do not cross’ signs” so far. She’s looking for someone who is “fun, spontaneous, who has a lot of jokes and who is attentive.”
Dejon, a 26-year-old Londoner, is a personal trainer and the son of former professional footballer player Gifton Noel-Williams, who played for Watford, Stoke City and Burnley. Dejon has met David Beckham “and all kinds of famous people” through his dad. In the villa, the personal trainer is looking for something fairly straightforward – “someone who is beautiful on the inside and out, looks after themselves and is healthy.”
Meg, a 25-year-old payroll specialist from Southampton, describes her love life as “bankrupt, right now”. She’s not asking for much, only that the prospective love of her life be “tall, with a nice tan, nice eyes and a nice small”, with “a good fashion sense” and “a really good, funny personality that I can get on with.” The 25-year-old is optimistic about her chances in the villa, saying: “We’re going to make sales and get on that corporate ladder and be booming. Profits, profits, profits!”
Tommy, a 22-year-old landscape gardener from Hertfordshire, takes “hours” to do his perfectly-styled hair. He hopes he isn’t “asking for too much” but his ideal woman is “very ambitious, with a big personality, caring, but also someone that doesn’t take themselves too seriously.” His one concession is that he doesn’t have a specific type in terms of looks. “I want a bit of everything,” he says.
Alima, a 23-year-old wealth management client services executive from Glasgow, has a very clear image in her mind of what she wants her man to look like: a Disney prince, which she describes as “a tall man with a handsome face.” The Glaswegian has a clever trick to flirting, which filters out the guys she fancies and the ones she doesn’t. “I always ask guys on a night out to guess which country I’m originally from,” she says. “If they get it right, they can get my number. But they never guess correctly so it works really well if you don’t want to give a guy your number. I’m originally from Guinea Bissau. If they’re close and I really fancy them, I’ll give them my number anyway.”
Ben, a 23-year-old private hire taxi driver from Gloucester, describes his love life as “bankrupt” too. “I’d have been out of business a long time ago,” he says. “That’s exactly why I’m here.” The private-hire taxi driver is looking for someone “sexy, good looking, good chat, good vibes, nice teeth and good eye contact – they’re all the traits I look for. Oh, and also a cute smile, I just look at you and know I can be around you all day, every day.”
Helena, a 29-year-old cabin crew member from London, has been all around the world but prefers guys from the other end of the country. She describes her ideal type as: “Somebody funny or Northern.” Why? “I feel like Northern people have much more banter than Southerners,” she explains. “If you look through my previous dating history, you’ll see I clearly go for personality. You can pretty much laugh me into bed.” The 29-year-old says Maya would hire her for flirting skills “but then quickly fire soon after”. She adds: “It would only be a temporary contract.”
Megan, a 24-year-old musical theatre performer and energy broker from Dublin, who now lives in Brighton, sometimes gets stopped in the street, but it might not be in the way you think. “Me and my friends made a Derry Girls TikTok for Halloween and it went a bit viral around Brighton,” explains the musical theatre performer. Her ideal man may not be the conventional Love Island archetype, as she’s swerving tanned and muscly bods for something a bit different. “I love a boy that’s a bit pasty, like Timothée Chalamet,” she says. “I don’t mind scrawny, or a bit of a ‘dad bod’. I’m 5ft1 so any height really.” She adds: “Someone who doesn’t take themselves too seriously and has a sense of humour. If they’re not bad looking, that’s always a plus.”
Blu, a 26-year-old project manager from London, appears to be older than his years as he’s looking for “someone who is family oriented, has a lot of love to give and a lot of love to receive.” He adds: “Personality goes a long way.” The 26-year-old from London says his Spanish-language skills are a hit with the girls when flirting. “I’ve got the charm to smooth things over with a girl,” he says.
Shakira, a 22-year-old marketing professional from Burnley, hopes there’ll be someone in the villa who’s “tall, charming, witty, with big arms, a good smile and just really funny”. She describes her current love life as “booming” except there’s one catch: “They’re all frogs.” She explains: “It’s a busy love life but I’ve not found ‘the husband’. I’m looking for ‘the one’. I’m looking for the ring.”
Harry, a 30-year-old from Guildford, is a gold trader, semi-professional footballer and model. He’s also a body double for England footballer Declan Rice: “When he does a shoot, any body close ups will actually be me. You’ll never see my face, but you’ll see my shoulder or chest, that kind of thing.” His type? “The girl next door that makes me laugh and can hold eye contact with me. I don’t think I’d go for the most obvious girl, I like a real sweet girl.”
Conor, a 25-year-old professional rugby player from Limerick, is an Irish contestant. His ideal partner is someone who doesn’t need him too much, or it seems, want to be around him, as he says his icks are: “Being too needy, or needing to do everything together.” He explains: “I like someone to be independent and do their own thing and then we come together and do our thing.” And, in case there’s any doubt he says: “I don’t like to answer to anyone else. I like to do my own thing. It’s something I’m working on for a relationship.” The self-described CEO of “mischief” says he’s the “class clown” of a group and plans on bringing that energy to the villa.
Kyle, a 23-year-old water operative from Stafford, quit the show before being replaced. A man of few words, he hailing from Stafford, describes his flirting technique as follows: “I just go with it, find something to compliment a girl on and go from there.” His perfect woman is “someone that’s fun, confident and just themselves.”
Love Island will air on ITV2 and ITVX. According to The Independent, the new season promises to be bigger and bolder than ever before, with more twists, bombshells, and drama.
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