The episode was going fine; it was a bit lacklustre but sometimes you have to give the dating game show a few episodes to let the group’s dynamics develop, so I didn’t mind. I could see the potential: Ayo and Mimii had a few cute moments; Harriet quickly established herself as the group’s drama queen; and we could see the beginning of a love triangle between Sam, Ronnie and Jess. But then everything changed in the last five minutes.
Joey Essex walked in. Yes, that Joey Essex, the one who is never off your TV. Love Island is now the 17th reality show in which Essex has starred (he shot to fame in The Only Way Is Essex), not including guest appearances.
And I don’t have a problem with the man trying to ride out his 15 minutes of fame — fair play to him — but Love Island? How did he think that was a good idea? Aged 33, Essex is by no means old, but there are contestants in this year’s series who are as young as 21; he has been a household name since they were in primary school. Imagine how awkward it would be if some of the younger contestants didn’t know who he was? It’s unlikely that would be the case, however, because Essex is an established celebrity — he’s literally been on the ITV show I’m A Celebrity..
. Get Me Out Of Here!. But what does he have to achieve from going on a show where the real unspoken prize is a PrettyLittleThing fashion deal and boatloads of Instagram followers? I can only imagine that ITV has paid Essex a pretty penny to appear on.