It’s summer, which means our lives are filled with unbearable heat, pub garden drinks, and of course, Love Island.
Gen Z’s guilty pleasure is back, and as usual, full of drama, romance, and comedy. And with the return of Britain’s most beloved dating show, many of us sat there wondering how to actually wrangle our way into the villa.
We’ve all joked about applying, you’ve maybe even signed your mate up for a laugh but how do you really get on Love Island?
Well, let’s take a look at the application stages and how to pass them.
There’s an application form
The first stage really separates the wheat from the chaff as more than 100,000 people are thought to send in applications to ITV every year.
In this stage, applicants are expected to list their bad habits, likes and dislikes and unsurprisingly, their type.
They’re also asked about their relationship status and previous romances they’ve had, as well as “bonus info”, which is sort of like a fun fact.
Once they’ve filled in the form, applicants are also expected to make a video about themselves.
The video should be one minute long and be all about yourself. Millie Court did 30 seconds talking, then 30 seconds of fun, drunken videos, whilst Olivia Atwood spoke to the camera about what she’s looking for in a partner.
But, how do you actually pass this first stage?
Well, according to former Islanders, it’s pretty much down to confidence and originality.
Laura Anderson didn’t follow the usual path with her one minute video, and went for a day in the life vlog.
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She credits this for her successful application, telling Radio Times: “My job was interesting, and also that I’m Scottish but lived in Dubai. So I just used that in my video initially. Although I had a good life in Dubai, I felt I wasn’t moving forward and I knew it wasn’t forever. I’m so glad I took the leap of faith and just applied for the show, it’s definitely paid off.”
Sharon Gaffka also iterated that originality is key. She told The Tab that applicants should focus on their own lives, not the lives they want to have, saying: “Contestants have stuff going on in their lives. There are other things about them that makes them different from other people and, in your application, you really should focus on that as opposed to why you want to be on the show.”
If you pass the first round, you’ll have a phone audition
via ITV
A student from Goldsmiths, University of London spoke to The Tab about the time she applied for Love Island.
She applied during her summer holiday and then heard back from ITV producers in October when they randomly called her up.
The anonymous student said they asked her about her life, what she’s looking for in a guy, and whether she’d been on TV before.
Producers also supposedly asked her about her degree, any funny things about her, and what kind of person she would say she is.
Following the call, producers then invited her to a face to face audition in London.
However, despite this student’s experience, some Islanders said they had a call via Zoom or went straight to having a face to face audition.
Surely that’s the last round? Nope, you’ll have a face to face audition
Right, so next you’ll have a face to face interview, as mention above, but before we get into how you can pass this part, let’s look at two people who fell at this hurdle.
TikToker Summer Fox applied for Love Island a few years ago, and managed to get through to the in-person interview stage.
In a video on social media, she explained that she was asked by producers to dress as if she was going on a date, and that when she arrived, she entered a room full of other hopefuls.
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“They look at you like you’re a new person walking in, like judging and it feels like you were back at school again,” Summer said.
“You all go into this canteen room and sit down and you have to fill in the forms – it’ll ask you what’s something secret that not one knows that you’ve done and I think those are what they use later on in the show in the challenges.”
Summer then explained that one by one, the hopefuls were invited into another room for their interviews.
Once inside the room, you’re faced with producers and a camera, recording the interview.
Summer said, during this part, she felt like she “had to be really over the top, enthusiastic and put on a show. I told my stories and everything went well”.
However, following the interview, the TikToker claims she was completely aired, and never heard from the producers again.
Our Goldsmiths student had a similar experience but added that the women in the waiting room were “unreal” and looked like “Instagram influencers”, noting that she “didn’t know people’s bodies looked like that in real life”.
She also mentioned that she thinks producers weren’t just watching potential Islanders in the audition room, but in the waiting room, telling The Tab: “I think even within that space where they were holding all 30 of us, I think they were deciding from there.
“It determined which room we went into, because some people went the way that I went and some people went this way where they’d sit on sofas and they’d have kind of group discussion with a group of producers. Maybe that was another level of auditions.”
But, just like Summer, the student was also rejected at this round.
On the other hand, what have successful Islanders said about this part of the process?
Well, Scott Thomas from season two said: “It’s a dead relaxed and chilled process. They ask you about some of the crazier things you’ve done. The casting directors are definitely looking for people who will go in there and wear their heart on their sleeve.”
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Biggs Chris also spoke out about his interview, advising candidates to be cheeky with the producers.
“Don’t overthink, go in the audition with high hopes, and remember it’s normal to be nervous – we are human beings,” he said. “Don’t worry about making mistakes, go in and smash it, have fun and flirt with the person casting – it always helps, that’s what I did!”
And that’s it! If you’ve made it this far, you’ll no doubt smash the application process and we’ll for sure be seeing you next year in the villa.
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Featured image via ITV/@megann.moorree/@sportyris/@helenaforddd
