With the first episode of Love Island finally landing on our screens last night, we’ve finally met our first singles of the season.
We were introduced to five boys and girls, who coupled up immediately, and one ‘bomb’ who followed the rest a little later.
It didn’t take long for the drama to start, with cheating occurring halfway through the episode, and couples beginning to make swaps.
Meet the dramatic gaggle of contestants below!
Jess, 23
Dubbed ‘The Intimidator’, Jess is a ‘Macedonian party girl’ who hails from the beachy NSW suburb of Cronulla.
“I’m not just beautiful, I’m powerful as well. I say what I want to say, and I do what I want to do,” Jess is quoted as saying.
“I’m not just a prize to be won, once you’ve got me you need to keep putting that effort in, otherwise you won’t keep me” she can be heard saying in her first promo video.
“I feel like when I walk into a room, I am the brightest light in the room, and I don’t even try to.
“A lot of people don’t like that. I can’t dim my light, and I feel like in the past I’ve had to dim my light,” she admitted tearfully.
Rachael, 21
The ‘Hot Geek’ of the season, Rachael also hails from the Gold Coast.
“I am an old soul and a nerd at heart,” she told Channel Nine.
“I love Lego, Star Wars, movies, and I love going to bookstores. I’m not someone who sleeps around and goes to bars all the time,” she asserts.
In her first appearance in a promo released over the weekend, she can also be seen saying “would I steal their man? Maybe.”
In one that followed, she listed her best traits as ‘funny, quirky, and tall’.
Tina, 25
PR consultant Tina is always the life of the party and has a big, bubbly personality. She’s struggled to find long-term love in the last few years, and her last relationship was four years ago.
“I think my disastrous dating history has been comic relief for most of my friends,” she jokes.
Ari, 25
Fiercely independent Ari works in web content, but is also an avid traveller, having moved out of home at 18. She is proud to be on the show as a brown woman and bring diversity to the cast.
“What would my life be like with someone else? My girlfriends all have partners and are settling down, so I feel it’s my time.”
Courtney, 23
Courtney can apparently talk anyone underwater, and loves a chat! A student at the moment, she is keen to get working as a qualified nurse. She’s looking for a man who is funny, someone she can have an intellectual conversation with, and can listen.
“I find I like guys I can find a spark with very quickly. If it’s not there at the beginning, it probably won’t work for me,” she says.
Lexy, 20
Bartender and student Lexy is the first bomb of the season, and is set to turn heads in the villa! As a young girl, Lexy was a champion athlete in throwing events, and is now studying exercise science.
“I feel like it’s going to be so much fun, and I’m going to make friends from all over Australia. I get the feeling that I might fall in love, but I don’t want to jinx anything.”
Chris, 25
Riot squad worker Chris is coming to Byron from the Gold Coast and is hopeful that he might find love.
“I do get a lot of attention when I head out. Being good looking is a curse,” he says.
“To fall in love, that would be pretty cool. I can’t wait to get in the villa.”
While he rated himself 9/10 for looks, he claimed a 14/10 for personality.
Taku, 24
Rugby player and ‘naughty boy’ Taku is headed to Byron from his home in Wollongong, on NSW’s south coast.
“I want all the smoke, if you know what I’m saying. I’m a confident guy, I bring the fun and the party. I can’t wait,” he is attributed as saying.
In his promo appearance, he tells the audience that “if she’s like me, but a girl, perfect!”
Ryan, 25
A carpenter based on the Central Coast of NSW, Ryan is apparently a hard worker, and proud of it. Outside of his work, he loves the gym and his mates, and is keen to make new friends in the villa, too.
“A lot of my mates are having kids right now. I’ve always loved kids, but I’ve never really been able to find someone, so I thought I’d give this a try.”
Aaron, 24
Hopeless romantic Aaron is a smooth talker with a unique hairstyle, which he thinks the girls will be into. Aaron currently splits his time – he works for the NBN and has also modelled streetwear for some time, which is something he hopes to continue.
“I have come to a point in my life where I felt like I needed a bit of direction … I just want to make genuine connections,” Aaron says.
Ronni, 21
Personal trainer and student Ronni loves to go on as many dates as possible, sometimes up to three in one week. A lover of all things Spanish, he hopes to travel overseas as soon as the borders open, hopefully with a Love Island-found girlfriend in tow.
“I came on this show with an open mind. I know I’m not going to rush into a relationship because I don’t feel I need one,” he claims.
Jordan, 28
The oldest Islander in the villa at 28, Jordan has never had a long term relationship and hoped to change that. Although a corporate worker nowadays, he has been a hen’s night stripper in the past.
Unfortunately, Jordan was the first hopeful to be dumped from the villa.
Mitch, 25
Mitch has entered the villa as one of two ‘bombs’ who dropped last night. The ex-AFL player had the girls swooning immediately, given his height and muscles.
Mitch is after a girl who is funny and enjoys a bit of banter, but he hasn’t actually had a serious relationship before.
“It’s tough being in a boys’ club footy environment, then opening up and being vulnerable and putting yourself out there,” he said of joining the villa. “I think the boys at home will be giving me a bit of stick, but it’s something I want to do because I don’t want to be single forever.”
Emily Ward
The fourth ‘bomb’ of the season, Emily, will arrive shortly to shake things up. The content creator already has a massive following on Instagram and Tik Tok, but also a double degree in geological science and sociology – meaning she can do it all! She’ll enter just after Jordan was dumped from the villa, making the numbers delightfully uneven again, meaning things are set to be shaken up once more.
Nicolas Love
Another week, another bomb! Luxury yacht operator Nicolas has arrived to stir things up further in the villa. Growing up in the western Sydney suburb of Auburn, Nicolas has always been surrounded by women. He has sisters, and has claimed that his mother is his hero! Although he was a party boy in the past, he has shifted his focus to his fitness nowadays, and calls himself a softy when it comes to love.
In the past, he has had his heart broken at the end of a three-year relationship, and is now looking for a beautiful girl he can take home to his mum.
Zoe Clish
Fellow bomb Zoe is a warehouse worker from the sunny Gold Coast, who has come to the villa to get serious about the dating game and, hopefully, find her prince charming.
Describing herself as a bit of a party girl, Zoe lives to light up a room. Born in Townsville before making the move to Brisbane, she has most recently relocated to the Gold Coast, where she enjoys the laidback lifestyle. While she hasn’t had much success in the dating world, she apparently is always the one to break up with the men she’s dating, never the other way around.
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