Love Island announce hit reality show will now have TWO series per year

24 July 2019, 08:30 | Updated: 24 July 2019, 08:33

Fans of the explosive reality show are in for a treat as producers confirm a 'winter' version in a luxurious new location

Love Island fans no longer have to wait a whole year between seasons as producers have revealed the hit dating show is upping to two series per year.

ITV have confirmed a 'winter' version of the super-popular show, which means we'll only have villa withdrawal symptoms for a few months in between each explosive series.

Show bosses decided to drop details of the off-season stint early this morning after rumours of Caroline Flack hosting an extra yearly series emerged last night.

But before you worry about how the cast will top up their tans in the Spanish rain, it has been revealed the second annual instalment will jet Islanders off to a brand new holiday home in South Africa.

The "luxurious" new villa and its sexy singletons will be gracing our screens just after Christmas in 2020, according to an ITV statement released today.

Then, just a few months later, the summer of love will make its return to Mallorca for the original format, which has broken records this year with over 6 million viewers watching the drama unfold.

Paul Mortimer, Head of Digital Channels and Acquisitions at ITV, said: "Off the back of a record-breaking year, we're delighted to be bringing an extra series of our biggest and sunniest show to the 2020 schedule.

"Love Island has proven yet again to be the perfect format that engages younger audiences.

"In response to this viewer appetite, a new batch of young singletons will deliver some highly anticipated post-Christmas romance and drama from our new and luxurious location."

Angela Jain, Managing Director ITV Studios Entertainment, added: "We love making Love Island for ITV2.

"The show's success is testament to the magnificent production team that decamp to Mallorca every year to deliver the award-winning show with its trademark warmth, wit and wide-ranging appeal.

"And now 2020 is going to have even more love than before."

While it hasn't yet been confirmed whether or not The Flack will take on the extra presenting duties, sources last night claimed Caroline was the only person for the job.

The insider told The Sun: "Caroline is now synonymous with the show so it wouldn’t seem right to have anyone else hosting it. They’ll use the same production crew too so it should all run like clockwork.

"ITV bosses have been thrilled with the popularity of the show this year and enjoyed bumper viewing figures so it seemed like a no brainer to fill the January reality TV slot left by Celebrity Big Brother."

The call to add a fresh show to the bill each year comes after producers found that Love Island was "the most watched programme of the year for adults aged 16-34, across any channel".

Its huge surge in popularity means viewers just can't get enough, spilling over to social media to get their fix.

The proof is in the pudding as 2019's show has had over two billion impressions on Twitter and their Instagram account now tips three million followers.

Love Island continues tonight at 9pm on ITV2.