This just in: the start date for the next season of Love Island has just been revealed and it's coming way sooner than we thought!
Yes, fans who are looking to thaw out the winter blues with all the drama of the famous Love Island villa will only have to wait five more weeks before the show returns.
The winter series, set in South Africa and hosted by new presenter Maya Jama, will begin in under two weeks on Monday, 16 January - which is perhaps not so coincidentally the same day as Blue Monday. That'll surely cheer us all up!
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Speaking to The Sun about the new season, a source confirmed: "Love Island bosses have planned for the show to start on Blue Monday - which is bound to give fans a massive lift on such a gloomy day.
“This year’s contestants will be flown out to South Africa earlier in January and will start filming for the first episode the day before.
“The grand finale will take place eight weeks later on March 13."
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The source added that the South Africa villa is 'absolutely amazing', Maya Jama is 'raring to go' and this series’ contestants are 'looking to be the sexiest ever.'
Sign me up!
It's only been a few months since the summer series of Love Island wrapped and a gang of gorgeous islanders flew home from Mallorca to settle into their new found fame.
Fans agreed that the most recent season has been the best in years, bringing exquisite levels of drama, sacking off the dreaded food challenge, and providing us with the blessing that is Ekin-Su Culculoglu.
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Ekin-Su and her partner Davide Sanclimenti were the source of some of the best talking points this year, constantly going from on-again to off-again.
In fact, fans loved them so much that they went on to win the entire season, and since leaving the villa behind, these two drama queens have been joined at the hip.
Ekin-Su and Davide won the public vote in a landslide, leaving contestants Luca Bish and Gemma Owen in second place. And it's just as well, too, since Gemma and Luca called it quits just three months after wrapping the show.
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Other finalists Tasha Ghori & Andrew Le Page, and Dami Hope & Indiyah Polack have been going from strength to strength so far, too. They, along with Ekin-Su and Davide are the only three surviving couples out of all of this year's contestants.
Let's hope that the winter series has more romance in store.
Topics: Love Island, TV And Film, ITV
Ali Condon