Bombshell Love Island dossier reveals bosses meddle with votes to save favourites, texts are fake and conversations are staged
LOVE Island bosses have hoodwinked the show’s millions of fans by manipulating votes, a bombshell production manual reveals.
Producers decide who gets dumped from the villa, while leaving viewers to believe they are in control, the behind-the-scenes document shows.
The 408-page ITV “production bible” shows bosses:
- Meddle with votes to get the result they want
- Factor in “a safety net” to avoid losing key characters during the votes
- Steer their favourite islanders during recouplings to ensure they are not at risk
- Direct the islanders constantly, set up fake conversations in the villa and ply contestants with booze to ensure plenty of drama
- Fake the sending of texts — in fact, the islanders are reading scripts
It means controversial islanders who help draw huge ratings — and advertising profits — can be protected from eviction. Our revelations come the day before the ITV2 show reaches its climax.
This year’s series has attracted record audiences, with 3.4million watching the launch show on June 4.
It is a major moneyspinner for ITV, through advertising and sponsorship deals.
But the revelations threaten to spark an investigation by watchdogs at Ofcom.
TV compliance expert Trevor Barnes said: “The other problem is about viewer trust. If you have a vote to get rid of two people and producers decide they want to keep them for the final, you are going to feel pretty uncomfortable.”
The manual spells out that the effect of audience votes should be limited as much as possible. It says: “The audience love making show-affecting decisions.
“But as producers it is important to be aware of not handing over to viewers control of key decisions that would have a significant impact on the narrative. There is always a way to narrow the options for the audience so they don’t go wild.”
It recommends the use of a safety net, such as introducing a public vote to protect popular contestants, even if they have been voted off by other islanders.
Alternatively, producers can give islanders the final say if the public vote does not go the way they want.
The document says this will “help them [the public] come to the right decision!”
It adds: “If you do a vote-off you need to be fairly confident you won’t be losing a key character, or factor in a safety net.”
Our revelations come after fans cried fix as producers appeared to try to protect smooth-talking Dr Alex George, who has been this year’s must-watch contestant.
He and partner Alexandra were voted off by islanders and were expected to leave. However, producers then threw in a twist by calling for a public vote.
Show narrator Iain Stirling told viewers: “Now it’s time for you to have your say.”
The result of the vote will be revealed on tonight’s show.
But fan Dolly B tweeted: “The ones with the most votes should have walked! Voted out by their fellow contestants. If Alex stays this WHOLE show is a fix. Shame on you Love Island!!!”
Mollie Evans, added: “Why go to a public vote? Is ITV looking after awkward Alex? You’re making this programme look fixed.”
Voting on the app is free but it has become a cash cow for ITV. It is sponsored by Superdrug and is chock-a-block with ads, product placement and even has a merchandise store.
Users can buy on-screen outfits direct from fashion retailer Missguided and other Love Island-branded goods, including plastic bottles at £15 each.
It is thought that 2.4million people — two-thirds of all viewers — use the app, meaning ITV has a huge captive audience to sell to advertisers.
Each show is said to bring 200,000 extra visitors to Superdrug’s website, helping it to boost profits by 16 per cent.
Elsewhere, the manual blows apart the notion that Love Island is a reality TV show. Instead, it says, it uses a technique which it describes as “accelerated reality”.
The manual says: “All the relationships and emotions that appear on screen are real but the hot-house environment of the villa and the way in which ‘format bombs’ are used to develop stories and create content means that the natural development of everything is hugely accelerated.”
It reveals that producers are in the villa, interacting with the cast, encouraging conversations to speed up storylines.
The manual says: “The islanders have a great relationship with the in-villa producers who are in and around the villa most of the day.
“The producers are in constant contact with the gallery, driving stories and creating content (as subtly as possible).”
If a storyline is stalling, producers step in to move it forward, the manual reveals.
It says: “As a result, stories that may have played out over 3 or 4 days unfolded over 1 day, and the shows felt more dramatic and had a faster pace. The cast knew from the outset that they would be produced in this way and quickly understood how it worked.”
Recouplings also appear to be manipulated with the manual stating producers should “steer or save a strong islander who is at risk”.
'This is flirting with danger'
AS a former Ofcom man, this makes for uncomfortable reading, writes Trevor Barnes, TV compliance expert.
A lot of people will be discomfited by what producers are saying about voting.
The Ofcom code says you have got to look at the spirit as well as the strict letter of the law.
You read these revelations and they raise questions — potentially serious questions — about whether the voting is conducted fairly.
There is also an obligation for ITV to look at its own publicity and ask: “Are we playing fair by viewers?”
The show’s regular device of using text messages to reveal results of votes or challenges also appear to be staged.
The production manual reveals that the information is written out by producers and sent to the contestant’s phone.
MOST READ IN LOVE ISLAND
It says: “The Islanders would then pretend they have got a text and just read the pdf off the phone.” It adds that using the contestants to read out results, rather than presenter Caroline Flack, helps to “keep host costs down”.
Islanders are also pampered by production staff who make their beds, do most of the shopping and prepare meals.
They also supply contestants with booze but are told to limit drinking. The manual states: “As a basic guide we should be limiting intake to 6 units per person in any 24hr period.”
Ofcom said it would look at whether the programme broke broadcasting rules by misleading viewers over voting.
A spokesman for the show said: “The audience ultimately decide the winner of Love Island as the winner is chosen solely by public vote.
“As anyone who watches the show regularly would know, Love Island has always been a combination of reality and produced elements that are reactive to what’s happening in the villa, and we have always been completely transparent about this and the way the show is produced.
“This is often acknowledged in the voice over by Iain Stirling.”