Love Island: All Stars postponed indefinitely after wildfires force villa evacuation

Dubai: ITV has halted production of Love Island: All Stars just days before its scheduled premiere after wildfires erupted near the filming location in South Africa.

The third season of the popular dating show spin-off was set to premiere on Monday, January 12th, but broadcaster ITV announced the indefinite postponement via the show's official Instagram page.

The statement from ITV was clear about priorities. "Further to a production evacuation owing to ongoing wildfires in the area, our assessment of the location site has concluded that filming will need to be postponed. Health and safety are our greatest priority and will always come first, and therefore, the transmission of Love Island: All Stars will be delayed until a date to be confirmed."

The All Stars series was already in pre-launch mode when major wildfires broke out in the Western Cape region of South Africa, close to the villa in Franschhoek near Cape Town. The show's cast and crew had gathered at the location ahead of filming when the evacuation order came through.

Authorities are working with the South African Air Force to battle multiple blazes across the region, leading to road closures and evacuations. State broadcaster SABC reported on Saturday that several fire-related incidents were being controlled in the Western Cape where the villa is located.

A road next to the villa was reportedly closed due to the fires. Some areas affected by the blazes have made progress according to local fire services as of January 9th. However, other areas including Langrug, Franschhoek, and Boland remain "out of control."

The timing could not have been worse for production. An insider source told The Mirror: "It's a nightmare. It's left the team scrambling to arrange alternative options on what's the most difficult day in terms of logistics for the crew. It's called the 'Get In day' and they need to make sure that the islanders don't get a glimpse of each other before arriving at the villa."

In place of the All Stars premiere, ITV2 will air the Love Island: Decade of Love reunion special. The programme brings together past contestants to discuss the history of the dating show. ITV has given no further details on when it hopes to resume filming or when the series might eventually air.

Hosted by Maya Jama, this year's initial lineup is formed of 12 contestants including two former winners, Jess Harding, 25, and Millie Court, 29. The son of Irish singer Ronan Keating, 26-year-old Jack Keating, is also part of this series' cast.

Other contestants expected to appear are Belle Hassan, 27, Charlie Frederick, 31, Ciaran Davies, 23, Helena Ford, 29, Leanne Amaning, 28, Sean Stone, 26, Shaq Muhammad, 27, Tommy Bradley, 22, and Whitney Adebayo, 28.

Love Island: All Stars follows the same format as the original ITV programme, but with former contestants returning to the villa in a bid to find their match.

The postponement leaves both the production team and fans in limbo. Filming reality television requires precise scheduling, coordination of cast and crew, and careful management of logistics. Moving everything to a new date, or potentially a new location, represents a significant challenge.

The cast members, who had already committed their time and made arrangements to participate, now face uncertainty about when filming might resume. For some, this could create scheduling conflicts with other commitments.

ITV's decision to prioritise health and safety over transmission dates is the only responsible choice. The welfare of cast and crew must always come first, regardless of commercial or scheduling pressures.

For now, Love Island: All Stars remains in indefinite postponement, with no confirmed date for when cameras will roll again.

Areeba Hashmi is a trainee at Gulf News.