Love Island: All Stars halts production as wildfires rage near South African villa

Filming for the new series of Love Island: All Stars has been postponed and the set evacuated due to a wildfire near the South African villa.

Production for the new series of the reality TV show was already underway when a fire broke out in the region where filming was to take place.

As reported by The Sun, the shoot was called off for safety reasons, with the cast of the new series, as well as host Maya Jama, kept away from the location in Franschhoek, South Africa.

A source told the publication: “A fire broke out close to the villa and it was deemed to dangerous to have Maya, the cast and all of the production crew working there in case it suddenly moved closer to the villa.

“They have now cancelled filming today and are hoping to resume tomorrow,” they continued. “ITV will always put the welfare of the cast and crew above the show.”

The source added that the development was a “huge headache” ahead of the show’s planned launch date on Monday (12 January).

“This will make everything a far closer call when it comes to getting enough footage in the can for Monday night’s launch show,” the source said.

“Naturally, if the fire is still posing a risk the show will be pushed back again. It’s a very nervous wait over in South Africa.”

Love Island: All Stars is a spin-off of ITV’s popular Love Island reality series, in which single adults mingle and find romance while staying in a luxury villa together.

The All Stars edition sees past contestants return, with this series’ line-up including past winners Millie Court and Jess Harding.

Also in the roster of contestants this year are Belle Hassan, Whitney Adebayo, Helena Ford, Leanne Amaning, Tommy Bradley, Sean Stone, Charlie Frederick, Ciaran Davies, Shaq Muhammad and Jack Keating.

A spokesperson for ITV said: “Owing to an ongoing wildfire in the area, we have evacuated the Love Island production site as a precautionary measure.”

Australia has also seen a spate of dangerous bushfires this week, with the state of Victoria entering a “catastrophic” fire danger rating, the highest possible level.