Michael Owen has finally been brought up in the Love Island villa. Last night's episode saw the footballer's daughter Gemma speak about her famous father to other islanders for the very first time on screen.
Fans of the ITV2 show have been eagerly anticipating when the international dressage rider would finally reveal the identity of her dad and they were not let down as his name was dropped on Thursday night. During a chat with all the other contestants as they were getting ready for the evening celebrations, Gemma was quizzed about her well known parent in a blink and you'll miss it moment.
In the discussion as the girls got their glam on, Antigoni asked: "Sorry if I sound ignorant, but is your dad quite famous and very well known, he played for England right?" Ekin-Su then asked if she knew David Beckham's sons, so Gemma told them she went to nursery with one of the Beckham brothers, with all the Islanders - especially actress Ekin-Su - looking very shocked at the news.
READ MORE: Scots RuPaul Drag Race winner Lawrence Chaney to appear on Celebrity Gogglebox
READ MORE: Brooklyn Beckham and wife Nicola emotional after hearing wedding song on honeymoon
Fans took to Twitter after the revelation - and couldn't believe it had taken her over 20 episodes to mention him.
"Gemma moment has happened they have finally asked about her dad #LoveIsland," one fan said, as another added: "How is gemma just casually saying that #LoveIsland."
A third viewer wrote: "Not them finally mentioning on TV that Gemma’s dad is famous they must not be allowed to mention his name #LoveIsland," as a fourth wrote: "THEY FINALLY MENTIONED MICHAEL OWEN AHAHAHA #loveisland."
Gemma's fellow Love Island star Ikenna Ekwonna claimed the other Islanders became aware that Gemma is the daughter of Michael just days after moving into the villa.
Speaking on Love Island: After Sun where he was joined by Amber Beckford, he said: "You know what's mad? We didn't really know until like the second or third day, but I don't think the girls knew that the guys knew."
Michael has been supportive of Gemma's decision to join the villa - but was mortified when she took part in the heart pumping challenge this week and he had to witness her doing a lap dance for Luca Bish and others.
He posted a single emoji on Twitter, which had a person hiding their face. His tweet quickly got thousands of responses, as fans joked about how it was a bad time to watch the show.
Michael also previously spoke out about how he was unhappy with his daughter swearing so much, saying: "One thing I wasn’t happy about, watching the show, was the amount of swearing - and from Gemma too. She said the s**t word (he spells it out), and I was shouting at the screen there. I don’t allow swearing at home."
However, he insisted she was mature enough for the programme after some fan concerns.
"She’s a mature 19. She’s a bit like me in that regard. I was playing for Liverpool when I was 17, and having to make friends with 23, 24, 25-year-olds. The bottom line is, she’s an adult and I have to trust her to make sensible decision," he shared.
