TV & Movies

10 Of Love Island’s Most Shocking Casa Amor Moments Of All Time

From Amber’s “Dead Ting,” to Georgia’s “Loyal babe,” and Shaughna’s “Congrats Hun.”

by El Hunt and Sophie McEvoy
Updated: 
Originally Published: 
'Love Island’s Most Shocking Casa Amor Moments Of All Time
ITV

Dreaded by (some) contestants and highly anticipated by spectators, Love Island’s Casa Amor has provided some of the most iconic and savage moments in the show’s history. And 2022’s edition certainly didn’t disappoint. Already heralded as “a recoupling that will do down in history” by fans, ITV confirmed the episode drew in a record-breaking 3.9 million viewers. (That is the show’s biggest overnight audience since the 2019 grand finale, according to ITV.) But before we dive into that drama, it is worth remembering the long history of jaw-dropping moments Casa Amor has brought into our lives and feeds.

First introduced into the popular dating show in season 3 (who could forget that moment between Kem Cetinay and Amber Davis!) the “ultimate challenge” has made a comeback in every series since, bringing its unique brand of chaos and drama with it. Usually, a postcard is sent into the villas, giving the other camp a snapshot (literally) of what their other halves are “getting up to.” Previous criticised for causing great emotional distress to contestants in seasons gone by, the postcard didn’t feature in 2022’s series (not that Dami, Andrew, and Jacques needed any more help in that department...) Talking about the bombshell postcard, show executive Mike Spencer told fans on Reddit: “I agree we have to be incredibly considered when making editorial decisions. We are also making a dating entertainment series but humour is normally at the heart of most storylines. I think we are considered and it always becomes tricky with the passing of information but we aim to find balance in the show.”

The Stick or Twist re-coupling is always a fateful one and has given us such iconic moments as Amber’s “Dead Ting”, Georgia’s “Loyal babe”, and Shaughna’s “Congrats Hun”. While we wait for the dust to settle in 2022’s dramatic fallout (and “may the best heartbreaker win” merch to land) here are of the most savage and jaw-dropping Casa Amor moments in Love Island history for your viewing pleasure.

Kem & Amber (Season 3)

The love story between Kem Cetinay and Amber Davies is one for the Love Island history books. While the couple may not be together now, they had quite the blossoming romance on the reality show. Like all relationships, they had their fair share of rocky moments and by the time Casa Amor came around, Kem and Amber weren’t exactly in the best place.

Neither trusted one another, and ended up coupling up with two new Islanders to keep themselves from being dumped from the island. While Amber coupled up with Nathan Joseph in a purely platonic pairing, Kem waltzed back into the villa with Chyna Ellis, thinking his relationship with Amber was over. Obviously, this was news to Amber and the rest of the villa. While she managed to keep her composure, Olivia Attwood couldn’t help but show her displeasure at Kem’s decision.

But it wasn’t long until Kem and Amber ditched their respective partners and got back together, leading them to become Season 3’s winning couple.

Faye & Teddy (Season 7)

Context is incredibly important in Love Island and can make or break a relationship. This is especially true when Casa Amor comes into play, and those pesky producers caused quite the stir between Faye Winter and Teddy Soares. After kissing Clarisse Juliette during a game, a photo was sent back to the girls on a postcard in the main villa without any context.

Understandably, Faye was quite upset. But those feelings of sadness quickly turned to anger when clips from Casa Amor were played to the girls, including one of Teddy talking to Clarisse and acknowledging his reaction to her – especially when he described himself as “technically single”. This interaction pushed Faye over the wedge, leading to an explosive argument between the two that received over 25,000 Ofcom complaints from viewers about Faye’s behaviour.

Granted, the regulator also received over 4,000 complaints to the show in general, noting that giving the islanders the postcard without context was “misleading and caused unnecessary distress.”

Gabby & Marcel (Season 3)

Having been first introduced in Season 3, Casa Amor was a brand new experience both for the islanders and viewers at home. So when that postcard came sliding under the door, it was unclear just how bad the drama would be. But as the girls came to see the photos of Chris Hughes, Marcel Somerville, and Jonny Mitchell in bed with new girls and Kem Cetinay kissing another, it was clear that this new twist would be the ultimate test of their relationships.

Gabby didn’t take too kindly to seeing Marcel in bed with one of the new girls, especially when she came to find out that not only had Marcel also snogged Shannen Reilly McGrath, but they did it twice. “Two sleeps in a bed with a girl and two kisses – you are something else,” Gabby told Marcel. As Iain Stirling aptly summed up in the voice over: “They say a picture’s worth a thousand words, I’m guessing three of those words will be, you cheating scumbag.”

Amber & Michael (Season 5)

The ramifications of Casa Amor can be vast, and that was certainly the case when Michael Griffiths decided to ditch Amber Gill and recouple with Joanna Chimonides. Gill was obviously shocked at the decision, but so were the rest of the islanders who looked on in absolute disgust. His decision inevitably caused an absolute meltdown, especially since Gill remained loyal while away from the main villa.

This led to one of Love Island’s most explosive chats, but it didn’t involve Gill – well, until the conversation came to an abrupt close. Instead, Anna Vakili pulled Griffiths aside for a chat to get to the bottom of his decision making. This quickly turned toxic and extremely fast paced, leading to Griffiths repeatedly calling Gill “pathetic” as he walked away from Vakili.

Unsurprisingly, their turn as a couple came to a quick end. But Griffiths has no regrets about the situation, even though his behaviour was heavily criticised by fans. “If I’d have stayed with Amber for the sake of it I’d be doing none of us any justice,” he told the Mirror. “We weren’t going to work in a relationship so why would I drag it out and hurt here in the long run? Even though I hurt her there and then she went on to win it.” Ouch.

Megan & Wes (Season 4)

As far as bombshells go, few have brought as much drama as Megan Barton-Hanson did in season four. With her eyes firmly set on Wes Nelson, she quickly stole him from Laura Anderson leading to all sorts of drama. She eventually re-coupled with Jack Fo, as did Nelson and Barton-Hanson. But Casa Amor soon came knocking, and Barton-Hanson’s head was immediately turned by Specsavers model Alex Miller.

Deciding to couple up with Miller, Nelson was left to experience the shock of his life when he walked back into the main villa. “If Wes comes back alone, I’m absolutely f*****”, Barton-Hanson said before he did indeed walk back without a girl on his arm. “That’s f****ing brutal isn’t it,” Miller said in response as Barton-Hanson was left speechless. Oh, how the tables turn...

Dani & Jack (Season 4)

Though Dani Dyer and Jack Fincham ultimately took home the top prize in 2018’s drama-fuelled quest to find true love, their path didn’t always run smoothly – and when Jack’s most recent ex rocked up at Casa Amor unannounced, Dani was understandably hurt. “Alright mate, do you wanna say ‘oh my god’ one more time?” she said tearfully in the diary room, speaking about Jack’s reaction to seeing Ellie Jones for the first time.

2,525 viewers ended up complaining to Ofcom about the attempted sabotage, and as things turned out, nothing happened between Jack and Ellie anyway. After reuniting a few days later, he and Dani eventually ended up winning the show.

Georgia & Josh (Season 4)

If there’s one thing we know about Georgia Steel, it’s that she’s loyal, babe. Coupled up with Josh Denzel from Day 10 onwards, the islander dodged temptation while the boys were away in Casa Amor, but later found out that he’d spent almost all of his time away snogging Kaz Crossley. After returning as a new couple, Josh and Kaz eventually came in third place in the season.

Speaking to The Sun, Georgia later revealed that she twigged Josh might’ve strayed in Casa Amor when he was the last boy to return from the other villa. “I'd kind of prepared myself for it, but I was still really happy in the way that I conducted myself.” She also added that she got on well with Jordan in Casa Amor, though their flirty chats were never shown on TV. "Me and Jordan were getting on really, really well, and were speaking throughout the whole Casa Amor stint on the show,” she said.

"If I'd had three weeks with Jordan [instead of Josh], I probably would have gone with him. In reality, we were much more well-suited. We were the same age. We did the same job. We were both from up north, it would've made more sense. I just felt like I owed it to Josh, which now sounds ridiculous!"

Amy & Curtis (Season 5)

Professional ballroom dancer Curtis Pritchard was initially given a heroes welcome when he returned from Casa Amor alone and ready to recouple with his “half-girlfriend” Amy Hart. But he later ended up admitting to having his head turned by Jourdan Riane while he was away from the main villa. It must be said that Amy, who had been amping herself up to tell Curtis she loved him, handled the situation like an absolute champ, making it clear that she deserved much better than being somebody’s back-up option.

She also pointed out that Curtis was more interested in the villa’s cafetiere than cuddling in bed in the morning. His feeble but hilarious response? “I know, and I also want to be the person who gets up and makes everyone a coffee so everyone’s ready for the morning”. Gold.

Millie & Liam (Season 7)

Who can forget the Renaissance painting moment in Season 7 where every single girl in the villa steps up to comfort Millie Court on the swing-seat after she’s discovered the true extent of Liam Reardon’s antics at Casa Amor? Though Liam originally managed to get away with hiding much of what he had been up to over at the other villa, producers brought in Lillie Haynes – the girl he’d been necking – to sit down for a revealing chat with Millie.

The couple managed to patch things up in the end, aided by Millie’s captivating keyboard skills and a lot of grovelling from Liam, but it was a rocky moment for the eventual winners.

Shaughna & Callum (Season 6)

Filmed in South Africa, the first ever winter edition of Love Island found its lead villain in Callum Jones, who dramatically returned from Casa Amor coupled up with new girl Molly Smith. He’d previously been coupled up with now-legendary islander Shaughna Phillips, more or less from day one – bar a brief split when he was stolen by Eve for four days early on in the series.

And when it turned out he had failed to stay loyal, Shaughna had the perfect comeback. “I’m happy for Callum. I should have never trusted a scaffolder anyway,” she said, before delivering her most iconic and withering line of all, “Congrats hun.”

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