It’s Time To Talk About Love Island — & Those Tans

Love Island wouldn’t be the same without the blazing sun setting the scene. Even the more recent winter edition was relocated to South Africa in search of that ‘summer of love’ climate. You wouldn’t expect a bombshell to don a bikini in sub-zero temperatures now, would you? Like it or not, Love Island is built on the premise of young, slim people wearing swimwear and flirting with each other somewhere hot, but beyond valid concerns about the lack of body diversity represented on the show, that amount of bare skin combined with intense sun exposure also presents another ethical dilemma.

Tanning has become the unspoken backdrop to the Love Island visual, be it tense chats on the sun loungers or girl huddles by the pool. It’s not uncommon to watch the Islanders’ skin tones significantly deepen before our very eyes, nor is it abnormal to see pink-tinged noses and chests after a day outside in the villa’s famous pool area. Who could forget Dr Alex George, whose red, raw sunburn became one of the main narratives of his Love Island story? Or Molly Mae Hague’s mum spotting a changing mole on her leg while she was on the show? It was later found to be cancerous. Besides Hague, Faye Winter, Liberty Poole, Olivia Attwood and Paige Turley are among the former Islanders who have also reported mole scares since leaving the villa.

The truth is, it goes beyond the contestants. Concerningly, skin cancer cases are at an all-time high in the UK. According to Cancer Research UK, cases of melanoma — the type of skin cancer Molly Mae had removed, and which can spread to other areas of the body if not caught early — have spiked by almost a third over the past decade. Nine in 10 of those cases are caused by too much UV radiation from the sun and tanning beds. 

Of course, there’s no official prerequisite to be tanned on Love Island, but it certainly seems to be an unspoken beauty standard — one that’s practically unavoidable given the constant sun exposure the Islanders face. It begs the question: Is this bronzed ideal quietly influencing the rest of us, too?

Consultant dermatologist Dr Alia Ahmed describes the day-to-day sun exposure shown on Love Island as “pro-tanning behaviour”, which normalises habits that increase the risk: “Having a tan is a sign of skin damage caused by UV rays from the sun,” she explains. “Every time you tan or burn, you damage the DNA in your skin, and the more you damage your DNA, the greater your risk of getting skin cancer.” The Skin Cancer Foundation reports that just one severe sunburn during childhood or your teen years can more than double your risk of melanoma later on.

Dr Ahmed doesn't mince her words: “There is no such thing as a safe tan. As a dermatologist who treats skin cancer daily, I think showing pro-tanning behaviour in the media is highly dangerous,” she warns. Dr Ahmed adds that it’s up to broadcasters to be more responsible in the images that are being portrayed. But of course, a golden tan seems to be part of the Love Island look, be it from the bottle or, sadly, sunbeds. As you might expect, some former Islanders have admitted to using sunbeds before entering the villa, aiming to appear tanned from day one. In 2022, season seven star Liberty Poole said that she’d used sunbeds beforehand, but after finding a “weird mole” that appeared on her stomach when she returned home, she shared that she had given up sunbeds for good. 

Still, it seems the pressure to appear tanned to fit in on the show is very real. I asked former Islander Abigail Rawlings, who also appeared on series seven, whether she felt any need to be tanned before she entered the villa: “Absolutely,” she said. “The year that I went in, they had banned fake tan,” Rawlings told me, referring to a baffling former rule which was thought to be introduced to prevent staining on the villa bed sheets. Rawlings continued, “I hated going in there when everyone else already had a tan. Me and Chloe [Burrows] were using a bronze-tinted face moisturiser on our bodies just so we didn’t look as pale next to everyone else who was already in the villa.”

Fake tan is now allowed on the show again, meaning Islanders can opt for a sunless glow, but according to season 11’s Harriett Mae Blackmore, it isn’t a popular choice. Speaking on GK Barry’s Saving Grace podcast, she claimed that during her season, no one used fake tan due to concerns about streaks, and that many of the women were using sunbeds before the show to develop a deeper tan on-screen. Laura Anderson and Olivia Attwood have also spoken about previously using sunbeds, and both admitted they didn’t realise the dangers.

While Love Island has improved its welfare measures in recent years due to the potential mental health impact of appearing on the show, it is worth noting that this includes the Islanders’ physical health, too. ITV told Refinery29 that, owing to its partnership with Boots, factor 30 and 50 sunscreen is readily available in the villa, as are hats and sunglasses. According to the former Islanders interviewed for this article, the show’s 24-hour health and welfare team is attentive to sun safety. Rawlings tells me, “I remember that I burnt my bum one day, and then the welfare team was on my case after that.” She continued, “Both welfare and production were advising me on limiting my sun exposure and telling me, ‘No sun today.’ It was my fault that I burnt myself, as I was lying on the wrong side of the day bed, being silly. There are plenty of areas of shade.” 

Amy Hart, who appeared on series five, also shares that in her experience, the Love Island team was vigilant: “The welfare producers came in twice a day to chat to us and check we had drunk enough water and had sun cream on,” she says. “If we were down at the challenge stage, they would be coming over and checking if we needed more SPF. Because I’m a bit more fair, they would often check in with me.”

Hart also shared that lunch was always served under big umbrellas to provide some extra shade. Rawlings adds: “I think the only time that you are at risk of getting burnt is when they do a re-coupling or activity during the day in the sun, but they are constantly reminding you and advising you to make sure you have sun cream on. But I never felt like I didn’t want to be outside. Because it’s nice and warm, you naturally want to be out there.” Both women added that there was no specific requirement to be out in the sun, apart from challenges, but since these make good TV, that’s what we tend to see more of, which can send the wrong message.

Despite precautions, it’s undeniable that most Islanders are seen spending significant periods of the day out in full sunlight, which, though perhaps their prerogative, far exceeds the amount recommended by dermatologists: “No one should be exposed to as much sun as the Love Islanders are,” says Dr Ahmed. Dermatologists advise avoiding exposure to the sun between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. when UV rays are most intense. Dr Ahmed adds, “Though I agree that sun exposure probably has some mood-boosting benefits, the serious risk of dangerous outcomes like skin cancer or tanning addiction is real. Many skin cancer patients tell me that they were irresponsible in the sun when they were younger because they didn’t know any better,” she says. “I’d hope that if people were correctly informed, they would avoid such prolonged sun exposure.”

As for whether this so-called ‘pro-tanning behaviour’ is having an impact on audiences is hard to quantify, but there’s certainly been a recent shift towards sunbed use and tanning, particularly among Gen Z. Earlier this year, The Times reported that the UK’s two biggest sunbed chains have experienced rapid growth in recent years, and sunbed tanning has shown alarming popularity among younger generations on TikTok. On the social media platform, influencers often film themselves inside tanning booths, even promoting high-risk treatments such as Melanotan II nasal sprays — illegal in the UK — to stimulate pigment in the skin.

A 2024 study by Melanoma Focus found that 28% of UK adults still use sunbeds, and that figure rises to 43% among 18 to 25-year-olds. Even more worryingly, 23% of that age group think sunbed use can reduce your risk of skin cancer, with many believing the ‘base tan’ myth — the idea that preparing your skin with a tan before spending time in the sun is a means of ensuring you won’t burn. In reality, any form of UV exposure is a sign of skin damage that can increase the risk of skin cancer.

Multiple experts believe that we are being influenced by online discourse promoting sunbeds as a “wellness” tool. Many tanning shops are framing sunbed sessions as a form of self-care and relaxation, or introducing red light hybrid sunbeds, which use red light therapy and UV, leading users to believe they are rejuvenating their skin rather than damaging it. But here’s the thing: there are no health benefits to using sunbeds, just health risks — a fact often overlooked in tanning’s recent rebrand. 

Since Love Island’s core audience is 16 to 24-year-olds, it’s not wildly assumptive to infer that the show has had some impact on attitudes to tanning. After all, we’re already aware of its undeniable influence across fashion, aesthetic treatments like filler and wider cultural conversation.

I spoke to 21-year-old Kelsie from Belfast (dubbed the ‘sunbed capital’ of the UK), who recently began using sunbeds again regularly. Kelsie says she was exposed to tanning culture from a very young age and doesn’t feel like herself without a tan: “Most of the influencers we see online are always perfectly bronzed, and over time that just became the standard,” she says. 

“I actually stopped using [sunbeds] for a couple of years, trying to stick to fake tan instead,” she says, “but it’s a full-time job trying to keep it looking decent with all the scrubbing, reapplying and patchy ankles. A few weeks ago, I’d just had enough. I was so pale that people were asking if I was feeling okay, which definitely didn’t help my confidence.”

Do the Love Island contestants influence you, I ask? “Without a doubt. Seeing those 10/10 stunning girls on my TV screen every night, especially during the summer, has definitely influenced my decision to use sunbeds,” she says. “That’s why a lot of people, including myself, turn to products like tanning accelerators, drops and even nasal sprays. Tanning has just become so ingrained in how we see beauty and feel good about ourselves.”

Grace, 24, explains that she uses sunbeds in the run-up to the summer every year; the majority of her friendship group does the same. It’s hard to hear her reasons: “Being pale makes me feel like I look ugly, especially in the face. When I’m tanned, I get praised a lot. I get a lot of compliments on my tan and how quickly I tan on holidays, so it could also come from the external validation,” she tells me.

Of the potential health implications of tanning, Grace muses: “I do worry about the risk, but I have quite sallow skin naturally and I think as long as [sunbeds are] used in moderation it would be okay.” Since the Skin Cancer Foundation reports that just one sunbed session before the age of 35 can increase your risk of developing skin cancer by 75%, it’s another worrying trend. Grace continues, “I’m probably more concerned about ageing my skin more than anything, so I hide my face while in the sunbed to prevent sun damage.” As for the Love Island influence, she agrees with Kelsie: “Watching how tanned they become as the weeks go on definitely influences me, 100%,” she says.

Beyond my instinct to reassure these young women of their beauty and shield them from our image-obsessed world, I’m struck by how openly they share both their insecurities and their sunbed use with me. Later, I reached out to a couple of nationwide skin safety organisations to get their take on the portrayal of sun exposure in the media. Both stated that everyone — Love Islanders included — should be able to “enjoy” the sun, but safely. Dr Rachel Orritt, health information manager at Cancer Research UK, commented: “On-screen portrayals of people sunbathing or not protecting their skin can give the misleading impression that tanning is harmless or even good for us.” As such, Dr Orrit recommends using sunscreen with an SPF of at least 30 and a rating of four or five stars, applying it generously and regularly. If you’re out and about in direct sunlight, you should generally be reapplying SPF every two to three hours.

Will Love Island ever take a different approach to showing sun exposure on screen? It’s a tough one. Ultimately, the clue’s in the name. The odds are that the show’s not going to relocate to Iceland for the next series. As for whether it could be doing more to protect the Islanders from the sun, ITV did not provide an official comment for this article, though it’s clear that the channel does include sun safety within its welfare protocols. But the cases of Islanders reporting mole removal following their time in the villa are hard to ignore, as is the amount of screen time given to the contestants lying in the sun. As a precaution, Dr Ahmed would suggest full skin checks before, during and after the show for all contestants: “I’d also like to see the Islanders encouraged to promote sun safety more frequently on screen,” she says, “like applying and reapplying sunscreen on camera.”

It’s doubtful that Love Island will be pieing off its sun-drenched settings anytime soon, but perhaps it’s time the show updated its duty of care procedures to address sun safety, as Dr Ahmed suggests. Currently, it’s missing from the show’s (publicly shared, at least) welfare information. Maybe those infamous morning debriefs could include a dedicated SPF session. After all, a summer of love shouldn’t lead to a lifetime of sun damage.