What happened to Laura Whitmore on Love Island? Why did she leave?

Laura Whitmore joined the ITV dating show in 2020 but left after Season 8. Here’s everything you need to know about the former Love Island host’s exit.

Laura Whitmore became part of Love Island UK in 2020 during Season 6, after Caroline Flack’s exit left the host position open.

Flack, the former host, was found dead in her London house on February 15, 2020. Laura, who was close friends with Flack, was chosen as her replacement.

Laura hosted Love Island for 3 seasons only and left in 2022 with Maya Jama replacing her.

Laura had issues with Love Island production

The reality TV host announced her exit in an Instagram post in August 2022, where she revealed that her traveling schedules were taking a toll on her.

While filming Love Island along with her other work projects, Laura had to constantly travel between the United Kingdom and South Africa. She expressed that she was happy to have lasted 3 series.

She wrote: “Some news! I won’t be hosting the next series of Love Island. There are certain elements of the show I’ve found very difficult that cannot be changed some due to the format, including the flying back and forth to South Africa along with my new conflicting project.”

She asked for understanding from the viewers and also mentioned her friend, the former Love Island host. She wrote: “I was only planning to fill in for Caroline for a series and it turned into 3 series. I hope I did you proud Caroline.” 

The model and Unicef ambassador revealed another reason for her exit in a 2022 interview with Psychologies magazine. As a Love Island host, she had to be on stand-by without involving herself with the Islander drama. She said that it was difficult for her to not be emotionally involved with the contestants.

She said, “There was only so much I can do as a host – I couldn’t support them or not support them. I couldn’t say anything,” she said. “So you kind of have to go quiet, and that was hard for me because I like to be able to have those conversations. If I could [have done] things the way I wanted to, I’d probably still be doing it.”