‘Love Island’ host Caroline Flack has admitted that she thinks the show is portraying an “unrealistic” body image for its younger viewers.
The current series of the ITV2 reality show has been its most popular yet, pulling in some of the highest viewing figures the channel has ever seen, and repeatedly making headlines over the course of its seven-week run.
It’s also proved to be the most controversial, though, with some critics unhappy that producers have only really showcased one type of body among the contestants chosen for the show.
Asked whether she thought ‘Love Island’ “portrayed an unrealistic body image for young girls” by The Telegraph, Caroline said: “I guess it is, really, isn’t it?
The series has also been criticised for the lack of diversity among the Islanders, with many suggesting a show called ‘Love Island’ should be more proactive in showcasing love from the LGBT+ community, rather than only having Islanders pair up with members of the opposite sex.
This could be set to change in the future, though, with ‘Love Island’ creator Richard Cowles admitting he’d like to experiment with a “gay version” of the show.
However, he did claim that trying to “mix the two” would be “difficult”.
The current series of ‘Love Island’ wraps up on Monday (24 July) with Caroline set to return to the villa for a special live episode.