Maura’s ‘mammy’ finally gives Curtis her seal of approval after Love Island fans were convinced she hated him in the villa

MAURA Higgins' beloved mammy Sharon has finally given Curtis Pritchard her seal of approval after Love Island fans were convinced she hated him in the villa.

The keen nature photographer took to her Instagram page to share a sweet photo in tribute to the lovebirds.

In the snap, Sharon is cuddled between Maura and Curtis during her daughter's homecoming visit to Ballymahon, Ireland.

All three are smiling at the camera, with 23-year-old Curtis slightly blurred after he moved his head during the shot.

Sharon captioned the post: "Finally got to hug these two yesterday. Have missed my baby girl @maurahiggins so much.

"And after finally talking with @curtispritchard12 .. can say he is a lovely lad.

"It was a pleasure to talk to him and I'm so proud of them both."

She added a separate photo without Maura to her Instagram Story, with Curtis clutching her tightly as they share a hug.

Sharon added: "Delighted to welcome Curtis yesterday and our smiles say it all xx".

Love Island fans previously claimed that Sharon isn't a fan of Curtis after she visited the villa at the weekend.

Maura's mum initially raised eyebrows when she bypassed the professional dancer upon entering the villa to embrace Ovie Soko, telling him: "This is the man I want to see!"

She later sparked speculation that she didn't like the hunk during a chat with Maura.

In an awkward conversation, the Irish beauty's mum only managed to call Curtis "nice", before adding: "There's obviously something that you see in him."

She added that she "trusted" Maura to do the right thing, convincing viewers at home that she doesn't like Curtis.

Curtis was then spotted being awkwardly snubbed by Maura's friends and family when she returned to Ireland yesterday.

While Maura received a hero's welcome when she and her partner burst into a local pub, Curtis can be seen standing alone in the background in a video posted to Maura's pal's Instagram Story.

While there has been some question over what some of Maura's loved ones think of Curtis, her dad Seamus was quick to heap praise on the hunk.

Speaking ahead of Monday night's final, the lorry-driver said: "He's a grand man, he'd be f***ing useless driving a lorry, but he's grand."

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