Meet Lucy Plunkett – the Irish girl tipped to be entering the Love Island villa
MEET the Irish girl tipped to follow in Maura Higgins’ footsteps and set pulses racing on the new series of Love Island.
Dubliner Lucy Plunkett has confirmed to pals that she was approached by show bosses to enter the Majorca villa later this month.
The famous dating show, hosted by Wicklow presenter Laura Whitmore, is set to burst back onto screens on June 28 after a year off amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
And a friend of 20-year-old Lucy, who bears a striking resemblance to former Love Island contestant Molly Mae Hague, told the Irish Sun that she is ready to find love on the show after splitting with a long-term love.
The pal said: “She was in a long term relationship and she thinks she is now ready to find someone again after having her heart broken. She is very picky so I think she may find it hard to find someone.
“She’s looking for a man who is loyal and isn’t too controlling. She’s very much a free spirit who beats to her own drum.”
SPOTTED ON INSTA
Like many stars who appear on the show, she didn’t apply herself, she was contacted through her Instagram.
And the northsider is hoping to fly the flag for the capital.
The friend added: “They contacted her through Instagram to go on an audition. She had to do multiple rounds of auditions but was told she had a really good chance as the producers loved her.
“She’s very excited and can’t wait to represent Dublin. She is the first Dubliner to be on the show from the northside and wants to show Dubliner’s humour.”
Her friend said that while she may appear “mean” on the show, she is loved by her pals and is a “sweetheart”.
And they reckon Lucy will be entering as a “bombshell”, where a contestant is designed to stir things up with existing couples.
NO PRETENCES
They said: “I expect her to be herself. She sometimes may come across as mean or a b**** because of her honest nature but she is a girl’s girl and is a sweetheart once you get to know her.
“But if someone crosses her she won’t have a problem speaking her mind, she can be problematic!”
Lucy boasts over 12,000 followers on Instagram already, where her bio reads: “My vibe right now is just living life.”
But her followers are expected to shoot up once she appears on screen.
She has been teasing her followers with hints about a “trip” and has been showing off bikini hauls, which she will be wearing if she enters the villa.
She owns her own small clothing business called but wants to embrace the chance to do the show while she can.
Her friend told us: “She took the opportunity when it came to her. As you can tell by her Instagram, she’s a big believer that everything happens for a reason.”
Lucy won’t be the first Irish contestant to cause a stir on Love Island - the show that made Longford beauty Maura Higgins a star.
MAUR IRISH STARS
Maura, , wasn’t the only breakout star of the 2019 series - as Limerick’s Greg O’Shea managed to win the show after just a couple of weeks in the villa.
Becoming one of the most successful stars from Love Island, Maura was kept busy with regular TV appearances from Supermarket Sweep to Celebrity Juice and This Morning.
And the ex-grid girl nabbed a celeb spot on Dancing On Ice, which sent her star soaring in the UK.
Plus collaborations with Ann Summers and Boohoo saw her earnings rocket to above the €1million mark.
But after coupling up with villa best pal Chris Taylor in late 2020, the duo .
Maura said: “It breaks my heart to even type this but I wanted to let everyone know that myself and Chris have made the joint decision to end our relationship.
“There is no wrongdoing on either side… We still love, care and respect each other deeply.
“From the minute we met each other we’ve been very close friends and that will never change.
“There is no regret. Life is about taking chances. We wanted to make this work but we have realised we work better being friends.”
EIRE REPRESENTED
Meath scientist Yewande Biala also featured on series four, while influencers Rob Lipsett and Shannen Reilly McGrath had brief stints on the show in 2017.
Meanwhile, rugby ace Greg landed into the villa late and coupled up with fan favourite Amber Gill.
The couple won the show and split the £50,000 prize down the middle.
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But in September 2019, we revealed how the pair had split just five weeks after the show, with Amber telling how she was devastated after she was dumped by text.
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The former couple have since talked things over, as Greg told: “Me and Amber have actually spoken privately, I don’t think anyone really knows this.
“We’ve spoken privately since and we’re both like yeah, no hard feelings, we probably could have dealt with the situation better but who is going to with millions of people looking at you.”