Love Island's Shakira denies she and Harry are 'official' amid reports they are together

9 September 2025, 16:31

By Hope Wilson

Love Island star Shakira Khan has opened up about her connection with Harry Cooksley and where they stand today.

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Love Island runner-up Shakira has exclusively told Heart where she stands with Harry after they left the villa together last month.

This summer viewers watched Shakira and Harry's love story on the show, which certainly involved a few bumps on the road. From Harry's dalliance with Helena to Shakira's romance with Conor, these two didn't have an easy journey to love.

However after finding their way back to each other in the final weeks, Shakira and Harry have been making a go of their relationship, with the 22-year-old star telling us what they have been up to since exiting the show.

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It looks like things are rosy between herself and Harry, with Shakira telling us: "So we've just had a really nice weekend in Burnley, actually. So he came up to visit, showed him the ropes show showed him the town it was great. It was nice to just have a bit of R&R and like, get away from all the noise."

Shakira and Harry are working on their relationship. Picture: Instagram/Harry Cooksley

She continued: "Because it's been a lot, I think when I had such a normal life before, to be thrown into such chaos it's important just to have time to ourselves and just spend some quality time together. So, yeah, it's been really good."

The star went on to confirm that she and Harry are not officially boyfriend and girlfriend saying: "Still taking things slow, it's been a month. Everyone forgets it's been like a month and a week, so yeah, just going at our own pace."

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Harry and Shakira left the villa together. Picture: Instagram/Harry Cooksley

This clarification on their relationship comes amid reports Harry confirmed he and Shakira were 'official' after replying to a TikTok comment.

According to The Sun, a fan wrote under Harry's video, "Are y'all official?", with Harry allegedly replying, "Correct."

This is in stark contrast to what Shakira said to Heart about their connection, however she did hint that things are going in a positive direction for the pair, with the long-distance between them not being a negative factor in their partnership.

Watch Shakira's interview here:

Love Island's Shakira reveals where she and Harry stand today 👀

Currently Shakira is based in Burnley and Harry lives in Guildford, however they have been with each other recently.

The 22-year-old said: "You know what, we actually spend a lot of time with each other because we're both in London quite a bit at the minute.

"I'm definitely just thinking about it, just thinking about the move because everything's here at the moment, but's not really been a problem. I think we both have been very understanding of when each other are working or doing things."

She also opened up about their age-gap as Shakira is 22 whereas Harry is 30-years-old, stating: "I don't think it's an issue at all. I don't think it's that big of an age gap either, I think people have been a little bit dramatic on that."

Shakira and Harry are navigating their long-distance relationship. Picture: Instagram/Shakira Khan

The influencer also credited besties Toni and Yas for supporting her in the villa, saying: "I think if I wouldn't have had Toni and Yas, I would really struggle at times. Just having people who are like minded with yourself.

"I feel like we're telepathic, like, we think the same thoughts and it was just so good to have them and to find like such an amazing friendship in the villa amongst all the chaos was just absolutely amazing. I love them to pieces."