ITV CEO Carolyn McCall Says This Year’s ‘Love Island’ Is In Doubt As Pandemic Rages On

ITV chief executive Carolyn McCall has cast doubt over whether the UK version of Love Island will go ahead this year, as the coronavirus pandemic rages on across Europe.

ITV was forced to cancel last year’s summer season because the logistics of producing the show in Mallorca were complicated by travel restrictions and safety protocols had yet to be fully implemented. Eight months on, we have protocols but travel is still far from easy.

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In this context, there are reports that ITV Studios is thinking about moving the show to the UK, as it did with I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! last year. McCall said everything is being considered, but the show remains in the balance.

She told BBC Radio 4’s Media Show: “We will want to put Love Island on air because it’s been off air for a little while [after] we didn’t do it last summer. We’re looking at all our options at the moment because the pandemic makes that hard.”

Another cancellation would represent a huge blow for ITV’s youth channel ITV2, which has built Love Island into a cash cow, thanks to its engaged young audience.

The concern over the UK edition follows better news in the U.S., where ITV Studios has scored a third season renewal with CBS. Love Island’s American series is in the middle of casting ahead of summer production in Hawaii.

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