Love Island host Laura Whitmore has announced she is leaving the ITV dating series after two years and has given her reasons in a social media update.
After hosting the popular dating show for the past three years, Laura has told fans she is moving on to focus on other projects and that she struggled with some "difficult" elements of the show.
Laura Whitmore joined the series in 2020 to step in for the late Caroline Flack, and paid tribute to the former host in her announcement where she said she "hoped she did her proud".
Confirming the news, Laura posted on Instagram and 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 projects.
"I wish it was still possible but know you’ll be in safe hands. 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 ❤️"
In a statement, ITV added: "Laura has been a fantastic host across the last three series of the show.
"We are so grateful for everything she has brought to the programme but understand and respect her decision, and we look forward to working with her on upcoming ITV projects."
Even though Laura is stepping down from a series she's well known for, alongside husband and narrator Iain Stirling, she's got some exciting new projects on the way including starring in the West End horror play 2:22 A Ghost Story.
She's joining the September cast of the horror hit alongside Tamsin Carroll, Felix Scott, and Matt Willis, which is a definite change of scene for her!
Laura's announcement comes after Love Island season 8, which saw favourites Ekin-Su Cülcüloğlu and Davide Sanclimenti crowned winners and taking home the coveted £50,000 cash prize.
Not much is known about what happens next for Love Island, and a new host is yet to be confirmed by ITV but we'll let you know when that changes.
Previous episodes of Love Island are available on ITV Hub.
