Cape Town - The new host of the award-winning UK dating show “Love Island” landed in Cape Town on Sunday ahead of the upcoming 9th season.
New host Maya Jama takes over the reins from Laura Whitmore, who departed the show last year.
“Love Island”, which starts airing in the UK from January 16, sees good-looking contestants locked into a luxury property and competing for R500 000 for each person in the “winning” couple.
The show, when filming in South Africa, is touted as its winter edition due to it airing during the UK’s winter season.
As the official love motivator, Jama will be encouraging both this year’s islanders as well as the fans at home to go and grab love by the horns.
The new host took to Instagram (IG) and Twitter on Sunday announcing that she had caught an overnight flight to make it to Cape Town.
overnight flight , ello South Africa 🇿🇦 ✌🏽 pic.twitter.com/g8D31ddWQu
— Maya Jama (@MayaJama) January 8, 2023
Jama has been keeping busy with pre-production in Cape Town, with her IG story giving glimpses of her getting glammed up and dining out at various restaurants, before she gets to meet the new islanders and get the ball rolling as they search for everlasting (or fleeting) love.
Speaking about her new role in an interview with Gossie, Jama confessed: “It feels amazing, it’s really, really exciting.”
“It’s been a weird feeling because you find out and then it’s the wait and the build-up. I just can’t wait for it to start. I’m counting down the seconds and the days to get to South Africa.”
Her arrival comes after UK tabloids reported that the show’s production had been moved from Constantia to Franschhoek over fears that its crew and stars could be “kidnapped” and exposed to other crime due to proximity to the Cape Flats.
In recent months, kidnappings and extortion have dominated the news, with children and adults held captive for ransom.
ITV Studios, which produces the franchise, was contacted for comment, but declined.
The new islanders for the 9th season of the UK show were revealed late on Monday evening on social media, and like prior islanders, they certainly have confidence and attitude for days.
Seasons 5 and 6 of “Love Island” are available for streaming on Showmax.