Love Island's cracking on! So what is it actually like in the villa?

A number of singles made their way into the Love Island villa at the start of this week where they've already started cracking on with one another.

The reality TV show has just returned for a 13th series but don't worry, you can definitely catch up if you've missed anything so far.

Fans might remember the relatively small number of contestants from Northern Ireland who have appeared on the show.

So what's it like being on Love Island?

Downpatrick man Matthew MacNabb appeared on series seven.

Speaking to BBC News NI about his experience, the 31-year-old said it was fun and he "did enjoy it" but "it's otherworldly in a sense".

"It's just so mad seeing the inner workings of it," he said, adding: "It was really cool actually doing it."

He got married to professional dancer Laura Nolan last weekend.

And no, they didn't meet on the show. They met later on Dancing With The Stars.

MacNabb said he had just returned from San Diego when someone reached out to him on Instagram, urging him to apply for Love Island.

"I wasn't an influencer or anything. I only had 1,500 followers," he said.

He credits his friend, who is a photographer, for being the reason he was noticed and asked to go on the show.

MacNabb explained how the experience of being on the show was "definitely different".

"You're locked up in this place for a month or whatever and you're sleeping in a room with 15 other adults".

"And then you're getting told what to do over the speaker by the sound of God."

He explained that's what contestants used to call it when producers gave them instructions over a speaker in the villa.

He also said that "talking about relationship stuff" so publicly was strange because it's usually something you would do in private.

MacNabb laughed about his time on the show and joked that he still holds the record for the fastest ever break up with his iconic "we're done" line.

MacNabb said he watches Love Island "here and there", but "when you've been on the show, you look at it in a different way".

He said that there haven't been too many contestants from Northern Ireland and "it would be good to see more people from the north on it because we're actually very naturally funny in our own way".

Pro wrestler Adam Maxted from Belfast appeared on series two of Love Island.

He made his mark as a bombshell, otherwise known as a new arrival, on the show on day 11, and grafted his way to fourth place alongside fellow islander Katie Salmon.

He then returned to the villa in 2024 for series one of Love Island All Stars and was coupled up with Arabella Chi.

They came sixth and left the villa just one day before the show's final.

Maura Higgins is probably the most famous contestant from the Republic of Ireland.

And it's pretty undeniable the County Longford woman provided viewers with some pretty iconic lines. Let's take a minute for "why are you asking her that?".

She rose to fame in 2019, when she was a finalist on the fifth series of Love Island.

Now, she is a reality television personality, presenter and model who has appeared on Dancing on Ice, I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here! and The Traitors US.

Other Irish contestants include:

• Rob Lipsett and Shannen McGrath, series three
• Greg O'Shea, series five winner
• Yewande Biala, series five
• Salma Naran and Kaila Troy, series seven
• Dami Hope, series eight
• Jack Keating, series eight and series three of Love Island All Stars (And yes, he's Ronan Keating's son)
• Catherine Agbaje, series 10
• Megan Forte Clarke and Conor Phillips, series 12

Among the singles in this year's OG line up is Seán Fitzgerald, aka Fitzy, a GAA player from Galway.

The 25-year-old primary school teacher was part of Galway's All-Ireland squad who were defeated by Armagh in 2024.

His appearance comes after a tongue-in-cheek "audition tape" which he posted to his almost 100,000-strong following on Tiktok earlier this year.

Speaking ahead of the new series, he said if he sees someone he likes: "I'm going for it and nothing's going to stop me."

If you've never seen it before, the premise of Love Island is to couple up and convince the public to keep you on the island in order to win £50,000 - all while trying to find your perfect match.

These are the first 12 singles who entered this year's villa:

• Robyn, 21, a quantity surveyor and DJ from Liverpool
• Lorenzo, 28, a business owner from Hertfordshire
• Mica, 21, a student from Barbados who lives in London
• Seán, 25, primary school teacher from Galway
• Ellie, 24, a real estate videographer from West Lothian
• Samraj, 25, a model from Birmingham
• Lola, 28, a detective from Kent
• Samuel, 25, an electrician from Dudley
• Angelista, 24, a nurse from Staffordshire
• Ope, 27, west-end performer from Lincolnshire
• Jasmine, 27, a fashion business owner from Dubai who lives in London
• Aidan, 23, a property broker from Kent

And not to spoil anything, but it is Love Island so obviously there's already been plot twists and bombshells!