I was on Love Island – here’s why stars wear sunglasses in bed, never get filmed eating & the VERY racy audition process

THERE’S less than a month before sun-kissed babes and hunks descended on a Majorca villa in their quest to turn holiday romance into lasting love.

Love Island fans will be hoping for scandal, sauciness and sex after the last season broke show records by drawing in 3.3million viewers.

andreajanebunker/InstagramLove Islander AJ Bunker reveals the secrets behind the show[/caption]

The reality TV star was a bombshell in Season 7 last year

Despite first airing seven years ago, there are a number of behind-the-scenes secrets that occur at the villa that viewers might not know about.

In an exclusive interview with The Sun, Andrea-Jane ‘AJ’ Bunker, from season seven, spills the beans on why all contestants wear sunglasses in the morning, why no one where’s a watch and whether it really is scripted.

andreajanebunker/InstagramAJ believes it was her saucy snaps online that led producers to contact her[/caption]

Producers ask if you’d have sex on TV

AJ claims producers approached her via Facebook to come in for an interview five years ago, but she turned them down due to being in a relationship.

Last year, producers got back in touch and she jumped at the chance to go through auditions – even though she wasn’t guaranteed a spot on Love Island. 

She says she’s “an open book” so wasn’t shy when it came to detailing “all cheating exes”, her “horrific past” and embarrassing stories. 

Throughout the process, she was “on edge” after being told she would only hear back if she made it on to the next round.

During an interview with TV executives, AJ was quizzed about her sex life and dating tactics.

“They asked how I would catch a guy’s attention – I said I would approach him because in my eyes you’ve got to risk it for a chocolate biscuit,” she told The Sun.

“I think they chose me as a bombshell because I don’t mind chatting up a guy even if he was attached. They based it on my personality.”

AJ was asked if she “would have sex on TV”, to which she answered ‘no’ because she “grew-up Catholic and didn’t want to be ‘executed’ by my priest or mum”. 

The team also asked if she was “a sexual person”, to rate her skills in the bedroom and tried to find out if she was flirtatious or not.

TV show holding bay

After all the interviews, hopeful contestants had an “agonising wait” to find out if they have made it onto the show.

AJ was given four weeks’ notice before travelling to Majorca for the show – but even then insists it was “never 100 per cent” she would appear on Love Island.

“They normally put you in a hotel but because of Covid, I was in my own little villa with a chaperone for three and a half weeks,” she said. 

“We were in hiding and weren’t allowed our phones from that point on, so I had to bring mindfulness books and colouring books to keep myself occupied.

“It was a waiting game and nothing was guaranteed, I know loads of people were flown back. I was always told it was never 100 per cent guaranteed until I stepped foot in the villa.”

‘Not 100% scripted but producers nudge you’

AJ revealed producers try to find out who contestants are going to chat to… and where

In the past, many have speculated that Love Island is fake or scripted to make better TV, but AJ claims that’s not the case.

“It’s not scripted 100 per cent but for filming purposes, they ask who you want to chat to and where so the cameras can focus on you,” she said.

“They tell you which areas of the garden are already busy and suggest, ‘Well, he’s sitting over there why not grab a chat now’ – they give you a little push but it’s not forced.”

Forced to sleep and stay awake

AJ was told to go back to sleep when she woke up early

From the moment Love Island hopefuls are flown out to Majorca, watches and phones are banned and there are no clocks, AJ says. 

She explained that they film the evictions “really late at night” due to it “not getting dark in Spain until late in the evening”.

AJ added: “You have no idea what time of day or night it is because there are no clocks and even the ones on the cookers are set to random times.

“When I first went into the villa my body clock had me up at 9am and asleep at 10pm, so I did struggle at first.

“I tried to get up and they told me to go back to bed because they don’t want to miss anything being filmed.

“Another morning, I wanted to go upstairs to unpack my stuff but they told me I couldn’t. Everything was on their terms and times.”

Why contestants wear sunglasses in bed

AJ said she’s always asked why Love Islanders always wear sunglasses in the morning

AJ also claimed contestants always wear sunglasses in the morning – even in bed – because they are “woken by a massive, bright light”.

She added: “It’s awful, it’s like the light of God. It’s the brightest and it’s why everyone wears sunglasses in the morning.

“It’s not because no one has any make-up on, it’s because we’ve all just been blinded by that brutal light.”

Banned conversations & not eating on camera

Love Island stars are rarely seen eating on the show, which AJ claims is to avoid viewers having to hear everyone chewing. 

AJ explained: “But you’re not allowed to chat about anything to do with the villa because they want to save all that for the cameras.”

She also revealed that stars are “not allowed candy or bad fast food” but sometimes if they “have been good” they get little treats.

AJ said: “One night they bought us all a McDonald’s, which was great, and at night, if we were good we would get bowls of sweets and all the snacks we shouldn’t have been eating.”

Love Island stars are now only allowed two alcoholic drinks per night

Apart from that, most of the food was catered for and AJ claims it was “boring, healthy” food like chicken, fish, potatoes, pasta, salad, fruit and yoghurt.

She also added of booze rules: “You’re only allowed two alcoholic drinks a night, which is the worst, and they space them out too, so you get one at the beginning of the night and another four hours later.

Portaloo nightmare

Due to coronavirus regulations, the TV stars were not allowed to have cleaners inside the villa at the same time as them. 

This meant they had to make their own beds and there also weren’t any beauty experts to sort their make-up, nails, lashes or hair.

AJ said: “One thing I was shocked about is that they locked us out of the villa when it was cleaning day.

“When we needed the toilet, there was a portaloo, like you see in Glastonbury, that was being heated up by the Spanish sun. It was horrific.”

Lover to fighter

andreajanebunker/InstagramAJ is set to appear in Celebrity MMA next month[/caption]

Unfortunately for AJ, she didn’t find romance on Love Island and admitted she was gutted to enter the villa only to find out her crush Brad had already been sent home.

While AJ hasn’t given up on love, she’s taken a surprising new path now – battling it out on Celebrity MMA on June 24.

The hair extension technician will battle former Playboy model Carla Howe and it seems the sparks are already flying. 

At a press conference last week, the Love Island star was kicked in the crotch and scratched on the face by her opponent and there has been a lot of trash talk online.

AJ said: “I’ve gone from lover to fighter and can’t wait for my fight. I’m going to knock her head off.”

Love Island airs on Monday June 6. Celebrity MMA happens at OVO Arena Wembley on June 24

The last series of Love Island broke the show’s viewing records