Love Island fans can expect to see a lot more of Maya Jama, the new host of the ITV2 reality series, with ITV bosses already giving her nearly double the screen time compared to former presenter Laura Whitmore. It's reported the star has racked up more than 19 minutes of screen time in the first week of the 2023 winter series.
Maya, from Bristol, has been on our screens for a total of 19 minutes and 55 seconds so far, which is six minutes and 29 seconds more than Whitmore, who hosted the 2022 summer series of Love Island. It's also 6.9 per cent of the total airtime so far. By the same point long-running host Laura, 37, had only racked up 4.6 per cent.
OK! reports that ever since Caroline Flack, who sadly died in February 2020, presented her first series, fans of the popular dating show have always kept track of the host's screen time.
Read more: Love Island's Iain Sterling in awkward exchange with GMB host Ed Balls about Maya Jama
A TV source told The Sun: “For whatever reason, viewers always note how often Love Island’s host appears and for how long.
“Laura really came under scrutiny because during the first four weeks of series eight last year, she only featured for that 13 minutes. “Of course, it remains to be seen how often producers will call on Maya, but so far viewers seem thrilled by the extra airtime for the host.”
Earlier in the week, former Love Island contestant Danica Taylor also told OK! she would have liked Maya to have presented her season in 2022.
Danica, who featured in last year’s show with Gemma Owen and Luca Bish, took part in the show when its former host Laura Whitmore was still at the helm.
Speaking on an Instagram live with OK! to discuss the current season, she said: “I’ve met Maya so many times now. She is absolutely sensational, she just has it. When you think of Love Island, you stereotypically think of the beautiful looking people.
“She, for me, fits that better than anyone could fit it, and I’m actually very much gutted that she wasn’t the host of my series.”
“No disrespect,” she added before saying, "but it’s bloody Maya Jama.”
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