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Who is Love Island host Maya Jama?

The 28-year-old presenter took over from Laura Whitmore

Maya Jama is the host of Love Island 2023
Maya Jama is the host of Love Island 2023. (ITV/Lifted Entertainment)

Love Island has had a makeover for 2023, with a new host taking over the hugely popular ITV2 dating show.

Maya Jama was confirmed last year as the latest presenter taking over from the outgoing Laura Whitmore.

Not only did she present 2023's winter edition but Jama will be back to host 2023's summer series starting on Monday, 5 June - but how much do you know about her?

Who is Maya Jama?

Maya Jama is the host of Love Island 2023. (ITV)
Maya Jama is a TV and radio presenter. (ITV)

Maya Jama is a 28-year-old TV and radio presenter from Bristol.

Her early TV jobs included work on MTV and hosting roles for the Brit Awards, and in 2017, at the age of 23, she became the youngest person to host the MOBO Awards.

You may have also seen Jama presenting the first series of reality show The Circle, gameshow Cannonball, Simon Cowell music contest Walk The Line, fundraiser Stand Up To Cancer, Peter Crouch: Save Our Summer, and Glow Up: Britain's Next Make-up Star.

Read more: All the Love Island winning couples so far

Jama has also presented a number of shows on BBC Radio 1.

As well as her TV and radio work, she is known for her four-year relationship with Stormzy which began before he became famous.

Stormzy spoke in a Louis Theroux interview last year about his regrets at their relationship ending, and wrote his track Lessons about their break-up.

Why is Maya Jama the perfect match for Love Island?

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Love Island: SR9 on ITV2 and ITVX

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Maya Jama is a big fan of Love Island. (ITV)

Almost as soon as Whitmore announced she was quitting Love Island, Jama's name began being touted as the perfect replacement for her.

Not only is she a popular presenter and fits with the age group the show appeals to but Jama also happens to be a huge fan of the series.

She said: "I’ve been a fan for years. It was the first reality show, other than Big Brother, that I made sure I was back at a certain time to watch and all my friends and family were speaking about.

"Everyone gets involved, everyone has opinions - from the older people in your family to the younger ones. It’s just fun, it’s fun to see how people play out in different situations and wonder what you would do if you were in the same position.

"Most of us have had a bit of a holiday romance before and it’s like watching that on telly."

Who else has presented Love Island?

Laura Whitmore
Laura Whitmore was the last Love Island presenter. (ITV)

Cast your mind back to the 2005 celebrity series of Love Island that the current incarnation is based on, and you might just remember that it was originally hosted by Patrick Kielty and Kelly Brook.

There was a second celebrity series in 2006, this time hosted by Kielty and Fearne Cotton, before Love Island went on to hiatus until its 2015 reboot.

Caroline Flack hosted 'Love Island' between 2015 and 2019. (Credit: ITV)
Caroline Flack hosted Love Island between 2015 and 2019. (ITV)

Late TV presenter Caroline Flack made the new version of Love Island hugely successful from 2015 to 2019, but stepped down from the 2020 winter series after allegations that she had assaulted her boyfriend Lewis Burton, and shortly before her death.

Flack's friend, Laura Whitmore, who is also married to series narrator Iain Stirling, took over as host from the 2020 winter series onwards, until she announced her decision to leave following the summer 2022 series.

Maya made her hosting debut fronting Love Island's winter series in early 2023 and will return to present its summer edition which starts in early June.

Love Island returns on Monday, 5 June at 9pm on ITV2.

Watch: Maya Jama is 'chomping at the bit' to film Love Island