ROOTING FOR LOVE
Why did Love Island winner Sammy Root break up with Jess Harding?
Including which islander Sammy has his eyes on
SAMMY Root and Jess Harding won Love Island in 2023, but their relationship didn't last long in the real world.
Here we take a look at what happened between Jess and Sammy, with the latter returning for All Stars as a bombshell in January 2025.
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Who is Sammy Root?
Born May 10, 2001, Sammy Root is a TV personality who found fame on the tenth season of Love Island.
He won the summer 2023 series alongside Jess Harding.
The pair beat Whitney Adebayo and Lochan Nowacki in the final to win the £50,000 prize.
Before entering the villa, Sammy was a project manager.
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Nowadays he's an influencer and a Towie star who has collaborated with brands including McDonald's, Boohoo Man, and Intimissimi.
When did Sammy Root and Jess Harding split?
Despite being crowned the winners of Love Island 2023, Sammy and Jess are no longer in a relationship.
The winning couple split just two months after leaving the villa.
It was initially reported that the former islanders were close after leaving the show, even meeting each other’s families.
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But despite being the fan favourites, they struggled to make their relationship last in the outside world.
Jess dumped Sammy over the phone - choosing not to wait for a face to face conversation before making the news public in early December 2023.
Love Island fans convinced they know who is next to be DUMPED after shock recouplings
Sammy was left stunned when news of their split leaked online while Jess was partying in Ibiza with pals.
Previously speaking about his breakup from Jess, Sammy said: "To be totally clear - I at least wanted a face-to-face conversation to see if our relationship could be saved and felt this would be a respectful way forward.
"We had the most incredible experience winning Love Island and I genuinely saw a future with Jess.
"I was committed and respectful to our relationship.
"Unfortunately things don't always work out the way you'd hoped."
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Will Sammy Root be joining the Love Island All Stars 2025 villa?
Sammy is waiting in the wings to re-enter the Love Island: All Stars villa as a bombshell.
Taking a second shot at finding love, and fans are already excited to see if there's a romance brewing between him and Elma Pazar.
Sammy has a past with Elma.
The pair met on the Towie circuit so his arrival could not come at a better time for her after Ronnie Vint ditched her for former flame Harriett Blackmore.
A source said: “Elma has said the attraction with Sammy was nothing more than flirtation as she’s conscious they have an age gap of nearly 10 years, but Love Island execs hope under the South African sun, love could bloom.
“Sammy is pals with a few of the lads too including Casey [Gorman] and Ron [Hall] so will slot right in.
“He’s All Stars' second winner too, joining Ekin in that accolade.”
Elma isn't the only Towie star Sammy previously had his eyes on.
On August 28, 2024, The Sun revealed that Sammy had "grown close" to lash technician Livvy Jay after joining the series in July that year.
The reality star is said to have wooed the brunette business owner on a number of dates that were aired on the ITVBe show.
Speaking exclusively to The Sun at the time, Elma said: "Sammy is getting close to Livvy, she's new and so is he.
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"He's getting close to her. I've known Sammy for a little while, I've met him on a few occasions and he's a lovely boy."
She laughed: "But he's not interested in me, he doesn't love me."
Love Island All Stars 2025 official line-up
Love Island All Stars is back on TV for season 2.
Here we take you through the line-up of all the Islanders who are in the villa so far.
- Scott Thomas - season 2 (2016).
- Marcel Somerville - season 3 (2017) - OUT
- India Reynolds - season 2 (2017) - OUT
- Gabby Allen - season 3 (2017).
- Elma Pazar - season 5 (2019) - born in 1993.
- Curtis Pritchard - season 5 (2019).
- Kaz Crossley - season 5 (2019).
- Olivia Hawkins - season 10 (2023) - OUT
- Nas Majeed - season 6 (2020).
- Luca Bish - season 8 (2022).
- Catherine Agbaje - season 10 (2023).
- Ronnie Vint - season 11 (2024).
Bombshells
Each series brings with it a string of hot single bombshells making their epic entrance into the villa.
Here's who has joined the villa so far:
- Ekin-Su Cülcüloğlu - season 8 (2022).
- Casey O’Gorman - season 9 (2023) and All Stars (2024).
- Ron Hall - season 9 (2023).
- Tina Stinnes - season 2 (2016).
- Grace Jackson - season 11 (2024).
- Harriet Blackmore - season 11 (2024).
- Montel McKenzie - season 10 (2024).
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