ITV’s Kevin Lygo has revealed that Love Island producers are “looking at alternatives” to allow the series to go ahead in the summer.
He revealed that show bosses had considered Cornwall as a potential location for a new edition of the ITV2 dating show but had eventually ruled out filming the UK, as “it wouldn’t be the same show.”
Speaking at a controller session at the Edinburgh TV Festival, which is being held online due to the coronavirus outbreak, he noted that there was more of a time pressure on decisions about Love Island, which typically kicks off in June.
“With I’m A Celebrity, it’s November, December. I don’t think we can talk about it now but we’re looking at alternatives,” he said.
“We don’t have to make a decision yet… we’re proceeding on the basis it’ll happen in a normal way.”
He questioned whether it would be “feasible” to send contestants and a production crew to Majorca, where the summer edition is usually filmed, so soon.
“Will Majorca open its doors to hundreds of production people arriving?” he speculated.
“Will there have to be quarantining, all these things. And so we have to factor all of that in and also, what signal might it send out.
Lygo said he was “uneasy” about sending the wrong “message” by bringing the show back at a time when social distancing is of the utmost importance.
“What kind of message are we sending out if we’re doing a show where the couples are crammed together all slathering over each other, and the rest of the world is told not to go near anyone in the park?” he added.
He confirmed that ITV would “make a decision [about the show] in a proper way quite soon.”
With additional reporting by Press Association.
