A new batch of ten singletons are being prepared to enter the Winter Love Island village in South Africa for the January 16 launch.
And contestant Tanya Manhenga could be off to an awkward start as she appears to have a similar type to new ITV2 show host Maya Jama.
The 22-year-old student and model has revealed that her dream dinner guest would be Stormzy, with whom Maya was in a relationship between 2015 and 2019.
Strange? Love Island 2023 contestant Tanya Manhenga has revealed that her dream dinner guest is Stormzy… even though the rapper is the former host of Maya Jama.
The show asked Tanya, who hails from Liverpool, who her dream dinner guests are.
“Stormzy, Anthony Joshua and Channing Tatum,” she replied.
But it could be an awkward meal if Maya is around, following her split from the rapper in 2019.
The couple was even said to be rekindling their romance in late 2022, as the host was single again after a whirlwind engagement to NBA star Ben Simmons.
Ex: Maya was in a relationship with Stormzy between 2015 and 2019 (pictured in 2018)
Ready for some winter sun: Tanya has worked with brands like Boohoo and is already represented by talent agency Muse. She has 14.2k followers on Instagram.
But recently dismissing the claims while preparing for her Love Island debut, Maya explained that she’s “very, very single.”
speaking to The times, explained: ‘We were very young when we met, just beginning our careers. I was starting on MTV. She hadn’t even released a single at the time. We were just babies.
I go on to add that the couple did not push themselves at first.
She recalled: ‘I don’t think any of us knew it was going to be something that big. We were just: we’re young and we’re in love and we’re going to try and work really hard. We are only together. We never really did red carpets. We didn’t do any of that.
More guests: When asked about her dream dinner guests, the model and student also added Channing Tatum (left) and Anthony Joshua (right) to the list
No expectations: Maya recently reflected on her relationship with Stormzy, noting that they were “just babies” (pictured in 2017)
Maya doubled down on the interview, saying, “I’m very, very single right now. newly single It’s only been a month… but it’s nice.’
While Stormzy previously admitted that he blames himself for his split from Maya and admitted that it helped him “grow up.”
In an episode of the BBC’s Louis Theroux Interviews, the Vossi Bop hitmaker said: “My breakup, that was probably the biggest catalyst for growth as a man.”
It was like, OK, you made a mistake and you lose someone you loved, someone you cared about, someone special to you.
‘That’s probably the biggest loss a man can have, isn’t it? Far from someone passing away, that’s the biggest loss you can have.
Single and ready to mingle: While she was recently rumored to have rekindled her romance with her ex Stormzy, Maya Jama has insisted that she is “very, very single.”
After their breakup, false rumors even circulated that Maya was moving on with boxer Anthony Joshua, making new islander Tanya’s dinner list even more of a tangled web.
The model will join a host of other singles in the villa next week and has admitted that she is “looking for a boyfriend”.
I’m super nice, but don’t let that fool you. I want to be friends with everyone, but if you’re going to be cheeky, I’m the type of person who will pay you back. I will bring good vibes and good energy,’ he explained.
But it won’t be easy for her male co-stars to get to that boyfriend level, as the beauty also admitted that she “doesn’t trust men.”
Tanya said, ‘I don’t trust guys. Some want to get serious real quick but I don’t trust them enough, it’s all about trust. I keep my cards close to my chest. He might be in love, but I’ll keep it to myself so he doesn’t find out right away.’
Love Island returns to ITV2 for its winter series on January 16.