21 Love Island Facts About The Original Series Reveal Just How Different It Was

Back then, "muggy" only referred to how humid it was.
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The Celebrity Love Island logo
ITV

While the version of Love Island we know today made its debut in 2015, the show is actually a lot older than you might think. 

The franchise actually started life on May 2005 in a very different form.

In celebration of Love Island’s return to our screens, here are 21 facts about the original series that reveal just how different it was to the show we’ve come to know and love...

1. Love Island was originally titled Celebrity Love Island and ran for two series in the summers of 2005 and 2006. 

2. Rather than being on ITV2, it aired on ITV, in a primetime 9pm slot. 

3. The show was set much further afield than Mallorca or even Cape Town, with Fiji acting as the titular Island.

4. The first series came from Armstrong Island, but the location changed for series two, where they used Nadi Island.

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The original location of Celebrity Love Island in Armstrong Island, Fuji
ITV
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The show moved to Nadi Island for series two
ITV

5. Patrick Kielty and Kelly Brook were the original hosts, with Fearne Cotton stepping in to replace Kelly for the second series in 2006. 

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Patrick Kielty and Fearne Cotton presented series two
ITV

6. The show had a similar format to I’m A Celebrity, with the hosts doing live links in between each segment of villa action from the previous day. 

7. There was no narration, let alone the comedy tones of Iain Stirling, who would have been just 17 when the original series aired. 

8. The presenters hosted the show from a little jetty into the sea, just a stone’s throw from where the Islanders were living. 

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Patrick with original co-host Kelly Brook
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9. Each week, the public voted for who they wanted to send to the Love Shack (aka The Hideaway, as we know it today) together, as well as voting to evict one contestant from the Island. 

10. The evictions took place in a live setting, like Big Brother, with the contestants receiving an interview afterwards. 

11. There was no coupling-up or recoupling, and the contestants certainly weren’t receiving texts on the Island. It was 2005, after all. 

12. Despite entering as celebrities, the winning couple won £50,000 between them, which is actually the same amount the non-celebrity contestants win today. 

13. The villa was much more rustic than the sleek and vibrant one we see on TV today.

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The original 'Love Island' villa
ITV

14. There was even a real-life fish tank in what we know today as the Beach Hut. 

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Kate Lawler in the old Beach Hut
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15. The contestants in series one were Jayne Middlemiss, Fran Cosgrave, Calum Best, Paul Danan, Michael Greco, Lady Isabella Hervey, Du’aine Ladejo, Rebecca Loos, Liz McClarnon, Lee Sharpe, Judi Shenkoni, Abi Titmuss and Nikki Ziering. 

16. The series was won by Jayne and Fran, despite the fact they were not romantically linked. 

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The series one 'Celebrity Love Island' cast
ITV

17. The contestants in series two were Bianca Gascoigne, Kéllé Bryan, Brendan Cole, Kate Lawler, Chris Brosnan, Sophie Anderton, Lee Otway, Colleen Shannon, Shane Lynch, Emma and Eve Ryan, Emily Scott, Lady Victora Hervey and Alicia Douvall. 

18. In series two, Paul Danan and Calum Best returned as late entrants, with the latter going on to win the series with Bianca. They went on to have a short-lived relationship in the outside world, and were reunited on Celebrity Big Brother in 2017.

Calum also popped up on the first series of the revived Love Island in 2015, taking the male Islanders on a lads’ night out in Mallorca. 

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The cast of Celebrity Love Island series two
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19. There were also house guests in the form of Abs from Five, Dennis Rodman and Steve-O. 

20. The current spin-off series Aftersun actually originated from the 2006 series, and it was presented by series one winner Jayne Middlemiss and Matt Brown, airing on ITV2. 

21. The original Love Island theme tune was taken from Wish I by Jem, although a specially-composed theme was used for series two.