When does Love Island All Stars start? New launch date confirmed

14 January 2026, 16:15

Love Island All Stars has finally resumed production after its launch was cancelled due to raging wildfires near the South African villa (pictured). Picture: ITV/Getty

By Giorgina Hamilton

After wildfires halted filming near the villa in South Africa, Love Island All Stars is finally back in action and we know have a launch date.

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Love Island All Stars has finally resumed production after its launch was cancelled due to raging wildfires near the South African villa.

Maya Jama and the ITV2 production team have officially confirmed a new start date, along with an extra bonus episode to make up for lost time.

The Love Island “legends” edition was set to debut on Monday 12th January but came to a sudden halt as wildfires swept through the Western Cape, forcing ITV bosses to postpone filming and evacuate cast and crew.

Firefighters in Wemmershoek, around a mile from the villa, spent days tackling a blaze that spread rapidly through the area.

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Photos showed emergency workers battling charred terrain as production crews stood down and ITV faced mounting costs, estimated at around £15,000 per hour.

Now, after the site was deemed safe, we have an official release date for the start of Love Island All Stars 2026.

When will Love Island All Stars be on TV?

While filming is now back underway, ITV has confirmed All Stars will air on Thursday 5th January at 9pm.

Due to the delay in filming, producers have also confirmed Saturday will air a Love Island episode too, rather than the usual Unseen Bits show.

Confirming the news on Instagram, presenter Maya can be seen in glam getting ready to head to the villa to start filming. She said: "We are back up and running. Love Island All Stars is back!"

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The Love Island All Stars contestants have been on standby as they waited for filming to resume. Picture: ITV

Why was Love Island All Stars postponed?

The disastrous fire struck just days before the Love Island All Stars launch show, with ITV confirming the first episode had been cancelled after wildfires caused road closures near the villa.

Local reports revealed that emergency workers fought through the night to contain the flames. A spokesperson for a local fire association told SABC News the biggest challenge was finding water to fight the fires.

Due to the villa’s remote location, crews relied on cars, trucks, and helicopters to transport large volumes of water — but each time supplies ran low, the fire spread further inland.

ITV later confirmed that filming had been postponed, issuing a statement that read: “Health and safety is our greatest priority and will always come first, and therefore the transmission of Love Island: All Stars will be delayed until a date to be confirmed.”

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An insider told The Sun that filming was expected to resume on Wednesday, with crews returning to the villa once the area was declared safe enough for production to continue: “Bosses have no choice but to wait for the area to be deemed completely safe. The desire is to be back as soon as possible, but risk and health and safety assessments are still ongoing.”

In the meantime, crew members, including camera operators, runners, caterers, and psychologists, were kept on standby in nearby hotels and apartments, continuing to receive their daily rates.

Returning Islanders such as Belle Hassan and Charlie Frederick are reportedly earning around £2,000 per week, while host Maya Jama, 31, is said to be on an £800,000 deal for the series.