For the first time in three years, Love Island Winter Sun returns to South Africa as reigning champions Paige Turley and Finley Tapp are ready to give up their crown.
West Lothian stunner Paige, who appeared on Britain's Got Talent at just 15 years old, coupled up with Finley on the fifth day of their series and the rest is history. Reminiscing on their time since leaving the villa in 2020, the couple praised the ITV experience and opened up about life in the public eye.
Finn told the Daily Record: "It's felt like it's flown by, but also been a lifetime if that makes any sense. Looking back on it, it's been three years ago, but it also just feels like it was yesterday."
He continued: "It's been amazing since then, we're very fortunate now to be in a position where we can meet amazing people with different events and stuff like that. So we're very, very fortunate for having the opportunity."
The couple left the South African villa and enjoyed their new life for all of three weeks before the coronavirus pandemic hit. Speaking of the experience, Paige said: "I mean, you would think that we had got good lockdowns given that we were in the villa for two months, but it's much easier when you're in South Africa, you've got a swimming pool."
Paige continues: "We ended up isolating in Scotland didn't we?," while Finn chimed in: "Yeah and you don't get summer there."
Reminiscing on their experience in the villa, both Paige and Finn couldn't praise ITV and their welfare department enough as they championed their experience on the show. In fact, the couple compared the welfare team to 'second mums' during their stint on the show for their persistent efforts in checking in.
Paige said: "We had a welfare team that was actually there, they were lovely, but they were borderline annoying. In a nice way. But we would get a text every two or three days like 'How are you? How are you doing? So you've done this blah, blah, blah' and you were like, 'I'm fine, thanks. Don't worry', but they were like a mum."
Finn added: "That was sort of doing everything over and above to make sure we're still well, and you were sort of taken in stride and stuff like that. So you got to give full credit to them for doing that," as Paige continued praising the team for going 'above and beyond' adding: "That was just like having a second mum text me every two days."
As the new series of Winter Love Island airs, the contestants on the ITV show are following a new social media rule which prevents them from using their social media pages when on the show. ITV bosses announced that the new stars must agree to pause their handles for the duration of their time on the show.
Speaking of facing the realities of social media after leaving the show, Paige said: "I think as long as you've got a good support network going about you. And you make sure to take time to snap out of the digital world and think 'I've got people around me who love and care for me', that's all that really matters."
Paige stunned fans last year after being unveiled as the guest on Scots Drag Race UK winner Lawrence Chaney's new show Homecoming Queens. Appearing unrecognisable on the show after three hours of hair and make-up, Paige gushed over the experience: "We had the best laugh. It was great to go back to my hometown and see people who knew me but they didn't recognise me as a drag queen."
The couple previously appeared on Celebrity Coach Trip in early 2022 alongside Linda Robson and Lesley Joseph as well as Geordie Shore stars Sophie Kasaei and James Tindale. Both Paige and Finn seem keen to try their hand at a few other reality projects, with a clear favourite in mind.
"I would love to do the hunted show with Paige where we go on the run from the police," said Finn. " I think it would cause like absolute drama between me and Paige because she'll want to go somewhere and I'll tell her no, let's go this way. And then we'll probably end up on two different sides of the country.
"But I think it'd be a really fun fun one to do and it is the show that I always watching quite arrogantly go 'This is easy. I can easily do this'. So I'd like to actually just give it a go."
Adapting to life in the public eye and gaining a huge platform overnight can come with a whole host of pros and cons. Unfortunately one of the downsides can be the rumours and speculation that come along with your relationship, as Paige and Finley both joked that whenever they spend a weekend apart people worry they've split up.
"Every time I heard like 'Oh, they've split up' it's like, 'Oh f*** off', we live together, we sit on the couch every single day together one weekend apart not does not mean we've split up," Paige laughs.
She continues: "I think that kind of goes for a lot of Love Island couples, people can assume if you're not with each other 24 hours a day, then it's over."
Finley adds: "We've got a lot of support from sort of the outside world, and they're very invested in what Paige and I are doing as a couple and as part of our relationship, we love the fact that we can share stuff with them. But we equally, you know, don't need to share every single bit."
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