TV & Showbiz

Love Island 2023 lineup announced – including Michelle Keegan’s ‘body double’, and a Manc PE teacher

The smash-hit ITV reality is show is back for its 9th series.

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant - 9th January 2023

Michelle Keegan‘s ‘body double’, and a PE teacher and part-time rugby player from Manchester, are just two of the contestants heading into the Love Island villa.

Yes, whether you can believe it or not, it’s that time again.

Just less than six months after Davide and Ekin-Su stole the nation’s hearts, smash-hit reality competition show Love Island is set to return to screens for its 9th series, and it’s second Winter edition, and ITV has today revealed the lineup of hopeful singletons who will be making the trip to South Africa in the look for love.

The show is returning for the first of two series this year on Monday 19 January.

With brand-new host Maya Jama taking over presenting duties, ITV says contestants will be guided through the “twists and turns of coupling up” in a jaw-dropping villa.

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Love Island is back for its 9th series on Monday 19 January on ITV2 / Credit: ITV

Greater Manchester and the North West has always been well represented on Love Island over the years, and this series looks set to be no different – with 24-year-old Kai Fagan from Manchester revealed as one of the lads heading into the villa.

Claiming to have three different degrees from three different universities, Kai works as a PE and Science teacher, but also plays semi-professional rugby for Burnage RFC.

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He describes himself as “chilled, caring, and very impulsive”.

“I’m single by choice,” Kai explained in his ITV Love Island cast announcement bio, “I’m looking for the right girl. I feel like I have quite high expectations. I don’t feel I should commit to someone unless I’m absolutely buzzing over them, because it’s not fair on them.”

While Kai may be the only person actually from Manchester on the lineup so far, the region is somewhat also represented by the fact that another one of the contestants is 27-year-old ring girl and actress Olivia Hawkins – who says one of her claims to fame is the fact she has acted as the body double for Mancunian actress Michelle Keegan.

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“I did a film with Jason Statham and had a nice 10-minute convo about life,” Olivia said.

“I’ve been a ring girl for KSI, I played a waitress in James Bond with Daniel Craig, and I’ve also been a body double for Michelle Keegan and Emma Watson.”

The Love Island 2023 lineup / Credit: ITV

A farmer, a TV salesman, an airport security officer, and a hair stylist are just a handful of the other contestants taking part in the new series.

Love Island is back on ITV2 and ITVX on Monday 19 January at 9pm.

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Featured Image – ITV

TV & Showbiz

Benson Boone has announced a headline gig in Manchester – and it’s a big one

Danny Jones Danny Jones Benson Boone Manchester gig tickets

American pop sensation and unrivalled king of unnecessary front flips, Benson Boone, has just announced his first-ever headline Manchester arena gig as part of a new arena tour.

The solo artist and acrobatic chart-topper has seen a meteoric rise in the US and, as is usually the case across the Atlantic, he’s become increasingly popular over here too.

Benson may have performed here in Manchester before as part of the 2024 MTV EMAs and for a small show at The Deaf Institute, but now big fans have the added Boone of getting to watch a standalone show at one of Europe’s leading indoor entertainment venues.

Announced on Friday, 30 May, the 22-year-old will be making his way across the pond from Washington for a limited run of UK concerts, with a date at Co-op Live arena being one of just five dates.

Extending his ‘American Heart Tour’ ahead of the release of his eponymous sophomore record, with this autumn leg, Co-op Live will mark his individual visit to 0161.

The Grammy-nominated artist has earned several nods of recognition already for his first album, Fireworks & Rollerblades, which was released just last spring.

He has been described as among the current trend of male singers who fit into the American Idol and ‘Voice audition pop’ genre (a term recently coined online), along with the likes of Teddy Swims, Shawn Mendes, Alex Warren and others.

Regardless of the slightly tongue-in-cheek term, he’s become a huge hit around the world and landing him is still a big coup for the venue that has already welcomed similarly massive pop contemporaries like Swims, Sabrina Carpenter, Olivia Rodrigo and more.

In case you’re wondering just how big a deal he is over in the States, even this early in his career, his domestic headline dates sold out in seconds, quite literally…

The last time he visited Co-op Live was to perform at the most recent MTV EMAs

Benson Boone is coming to Manchester on Monday, 27 October and will be playing just two other British venues: The O2 in London (two nights) and the Utilita Arena in Birmingham.

Safe to say you don’t want to miss this one if you like soaring vocals and lots of flipping.

General admission tickets go live at 10am on Thursday, 5 June, but Co-op Members can gain access via the arena’s official pre-sale window from the same time on Tuesday (3 Jun).

You can get ready to grab yours HERE.

We’re pretty excited by the pending arrival of another trending pop name very soon as well.

The UK’s 2025 Eurovision act Remember Monday has announced a Manchester gig

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Featured Images — Press Shots/Audio North

TV & Showbiz

More adult virgins needed for next series of Channel 4’s hit reality show Virgin Island

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant

Channel 4 is back looking for more adult virgins to take part in the potential next series of its hit reality show Virgin Island.

You may remember that early last year, we brought you the breaking highly-important news that Channel 4 was currently in the process of producing a new reality TV series that, at the time, had the working title of ‘The Intimacy Retreat’ and was looking for a group of adult virgins to apply to take part, if they were brave enough.

But now, well over a year on, we all know that show turned out to be the hit show Virgin Island – which has just finished airing its first series this week.

Virgin Island
Channel 4 needs more adult virgins for the potential next series of its hit reality TV show Virgin Island / Credit: Channel 4

If you’re unfamiliar with Virgin Island, it’s unlike anything ever seen on TV before, as it follows the journey of a group of adult virgins who are whisked off to a Mediterranean island retreat to learn life-changing skills in the art of intimacy.

Working with leading international therapists, the aim is to help the young people overcome their fears and insecurities when it comes to intimacy and sex.

Channel 4 said it chose to commission the show after a recent study into intimacy found out that one in eight British 26-year-olds is, apparently, still a virgin.

Virgin Island
Virgin Island aims to help young people overcome their insecurities around intimacy and sex / Credit: Channel 4

A casting call for the new series on the Channel 4 website reads: “Are you a virgin and do you need help and guidance with your fears and insecurities around intimacy and sex? Double Act Productions is casting adults for a potential second series of Virgin Island.”

You just need to be over 21 years of age to take part in the show.

Fancy it then? Or know someone who may be up for the ride? Applications for the potential next series of Virgin Island are now open, and there’s still plenty of time left to put your name down.

Read more:

You can find out more and register your interest here.

Featured Image – Channel 4

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