Love Island bosses certainly listened to the public when fans begged to see more “normal” people in the villa – with stars with jobs and wages far and wide entering the show this year.
The villa has welcomed stars from sporting backgrounds all the way to the NHS and hospitality, and they’ve all been thrown into the same home for a possible eight weeks.
Whether they opt to return to their day jobs or cash in on their villa success, all the current islanders came from a working background – though not everyone was able to splash the cash quite as freely.
But who was on the big bucks before they went in the villa?
Jacques O’Neill – £90,000 – £140,000
Jacques O’Neill earns quite a decent salary as part of his career as a rugby league player for Castleford Tigers.
Aside from his yearly salary, he has an estimated net worth of over £1m, so his stint on the show is only likely to magnify his earnings and successes.
The star has played for the Castleford Tigers 29 times since he signed in 2019 – and in another proud career moment he was named in England Knights’ performance squad in 2021.
However, he has now been released from his contract to allow him to head onto the ITV show for the summer.
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Gemma Owen – varied
(Image: Instagram @gemmaowen)
Gemma Owen is one hard woman to track down when it comes to her yearly income – mostly because it varies so much.
Despite only being 19 years old, the star has at least three income streams aside from her family wealth, ranging from her dressage stints, businesses and Instagram.
In dressage, she can earn over £15,000 per win, ad while her swimwear brand OG Beachwear is said to have made a loss in the last financial year, it’s still another biz under her belt.
Elsewhere, Gemma’s Instagram can bring in a strong amount of cash – and having landed 82,000 followers before her stint, she would’ve been cashing in on at least £700 per sponsored post.
Ekin-Su – £16,000 per episode
(Image: ITV)
Ekin-Su is another star with a varied income stream as she makes money from both acting and Instagram.
Her job on a Turkish TV series sees her take home £16,000 per episode, and after starring in seven, it means that she bagged £112k for a year of work.
Ekin-Su has also done modelling in the past and had an impressive Instagram following before her stint, meaning she can make around £1,000 per sponsored post.
Andrew Le Page – £50,000
Andrew Le Page sells property in Dubai, so it’s no surprise that he brings home the bacon.
His job makes him the second highest paid islander in the villa with the star making cash on top of his salary pay with his commission.
The star is also a qualified personal trainer, though there is no evidence to suggest how much cash he was bringing in from the stint.
Dami Hope – £31,500
Senior Microbiologist Dami has built up his successful career based on intelligence alone.
It’s all serious work and new findings outside of the villa, but inside the villa it’s something far different as the star focuses on romance over science.
Prior to his stint in the villa Dami was already praised for his fashion sense, so it’s likely that upon his exit he will be hit with countless deals – but will he return to his career afterwards? Only time will tell!
Paige Thorne -£30,600
(Image: ITV/REX/Shutterstock)
Paramedics’ salaries change the longer they spend on the job.
Paige, who has been an NHS Paramedic for two years after her initial training, currently earns £30,600 – and having promised to return after the show, she could be set to earn £37,890 within five years.
Even if Paige does choose to return to her job as a Paramedic, it’s likely Instagram will become a secondary source as the star already has 162,000 followers – and it’s only likely to grow.
Davide Sanclimenti -£29,000
(Image: ITV/REX/Shutterstock)
Davide became the director of his own business in May 2021.
OK! reports that the star earns on average around £29,000 per year after launching S Deluxe Shisha, his successful business.
The star was also doing some modelling prior to his stint on the show and with nearly 100,000 followers, he’s likely to keep it up afterwards.
Amber Beckford – £28,600
(Image: @amberbeckford)
Amber Beckford has the potential to be making nearly £30,000 per year as a full-time nanny – a job which she has loved.
But while she worked as a nanny during the week, she lived a life of luxury outside of her day-job, with lavish nights out and dates surrounding her lifestyle.
Amber has now continued to grow her Instagram page as her followers keep going up and up – so she can be raking in even more cash after the villa stint.
Indiyah Polack – £22,000+
While Indiyah’s yearly salary is the lowest of the islanders, she doesn’t sit quite at the bottom as she also pools in extra cash from modelling and her job as an influencer.
Working as a waitress is her day job, but she already had a strong following before heading into the villa and had worked on previous projects as a model.
Her shoots landed her extra cash, though the exact earnings from her extra jobs is unknown.
Ikenna Ekwonna – £25,000
(Image: ITV)
Ikenna, like Dami, came from the science sector.
After landing a degree in Biomed Science, he works as a graduate pharmaceutical sales rep and specialises in Astrazeneca CVRM.
He worked for the company during the pandemic and continued to do so afterwards.
Ikenna has also been trained up as an online PT, so he had the potential to increase earnings there too.
Luca Bish – £23,000
Luca Bish, who sells fish, got a degree in Fishing and Fisheries Sciences and Management (it’s a big year for the science lot) and went on to become a Fishmonger in Brighton.
However, it looks like the star was doing some bits on the side as he gained multiple celebrity connections prior to his stint on the show, including links to Saffron Barker and Patsy Palmer.
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
