How the Love Island mobile phones work and which…

How the Love Island mobile phones work and which Islanders get to keep their villa selfies

Love Island's iconic "I've got a text" line is a huge part of the ITV2 dating show. Much like the famous Love Island water bottles, every year the contestants get issued a mobile phone with their names emblazoned on them.

For every big event, including explosive recouplings, brutal dumpings, and fun challenges, the Islanders will get sent a text informing them of what's about to come, which they often read out loud to inform the rest of the group and viewers at home. The mobile devices replace the stars' real phones, which are whisked away before the start of the show to prevent them from communicating with the outside world.

The phones have no internet access but the Islanders can text each other, as well as take selfies and videos, many of which are posted on the official Love Island social media pages. However, it's been revealed that many contestants don't get to see their pictures after the show is finished as they don't get to keep their smartphones.

Former contestants Anna Vakili and Amber Gill, who both starred on the ITV2 dating show in 2019, revealed what happens to the phones during a Q&A session for Closer magazine. When asked about the selfies on the phones, Anna said: "We didn't get to keep any of the photos that we took."

Davide Sanclimenti gets a text (ITV/REX/Shutterstock)

But Amber, who won the show alongside Greg O'Shea, actually got to keep her phone as part of a "winners pack". She said: "I actually got a lot of the photos that we took. Because I got my Samsung phone after I finished.

"It was part of my... like I got loads of gifts as like a 'winner pack', and I got one of the phones. It had the pictures we took."

Fellow former Islander Zara McDermott has also revealed more about the phones, as her boyfriend Sam Thompson recently asked her about the texts the contestants receive from producers, reports Liverpool Echo. Sam, 29, who often does a running Love Island commentary on Instagram, asked: "Are you told you have to say, 'I've got a text!' because everybody says it, or is it just the done thing?"

Zara replied: "It's just the done thing." She added that the Islanders are somewhat aware of when a text will be coming. She said that the producers suggest to them: "Maybe you should all have your phones near you".

Love Island continues at 9pm on ITV2 and ITV Hub. Episodes are available the following morning on BritBox. For more showbiz and television stories get our newsletter here.

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