She failed to find love in the Love Island 2016 villa, abruptly leaving the second series single and devastated after being stripped of her Miss Great Britain title for having sex on the show. But seven years on and Zara Holland has found her happily-ever-after having tied the knot with husband Elliott Love just last month.
The pair married in an idyllic Grecian white wedding in Athens with a stunning view of the ocean, surrounded by 150 of their closest family and friends, before honeymooning in the Greek islands.
And Zara, 27, says that she’s elated to have found her Mr Right after her roller-coaster Love Island ride.
The star tells Closer, “The wedding was perfect – the best day of our lives! The venue was stunning and it was bright sunshine, which was amazing. I absolutely loved my dress, but I do wish I had a second one to change into while dancing at 1am, as it was hot!
“Our first dance was to Love by Nat King Cole which we thought was apt because my last name is now Love. It was perfect.”
When the former model headed into the Love Island villa in 2016 – alongside Olivia Buckland and Malin Andersson – she was just 20 years old and had recently won the title of Miss Great Britain. While Zara had multiple dates with her fellow Islanders, she failed to find a connection until scaffolder Alex Bowen arrived and the pair went on a date.
Following the date, Zara got raunchy in the famous “hideaway” with Alex – who later married fellow Love Islander Olivia in 2018 – and as a result had her Miss GB title taken from her after the organisation said that they could not “promote Zara as a positive role model”.
While Zara was devastated at the time, after leaving the villa she spoke out about the ordeal and called for standards to change in terms of women embracing their sexuality. She said on Loose Women, “I’ve done nothing wrong. All women have needs. There is nothing wrong with having sex on TV. I knew what I was signing up for – it is Love Island. I am a 20-year-old girl who was in the moment.
“I haven’t committed a crime, so why should I have my title taken from me? It’s horrific.”
And now, looking back, Zara says that she has no regrets about her time on the show, saying, “Women are definitely owning their sexuality more on TV now, which is great. It’s also good to see that ITV have limited what they show to the public, as that will also help reduce the trolling that people experience.
“When I came out of the villa, everything was really hard to process and it was such a whirlwind. If the same thing happened now, I definitely would have handled it differently because I’m older – and I like to think wiser – and know that I did nothing wrong.”
Zara continues, “What happened, happened, it was seven years ago and I can’t go back and change anything, so there’s no point in worrying about it or even regretting it.”
Zara – who runs a fashion company with her mum, Cheryl – is now adapting to married life with Elliott, who she met just six weeks after coming out of the Love Island villa.
The star had gone on a family holiday to the Caribbean after the drama of the show, and Zara met construction worker Elliott there – and he hadn’t watched the show.
Realising that they had mutual friends, the pair began dating shortly after their return to the UK and in January 2022 – while they were holidaying in Dubai – Elliott proposed on a beach.
And now Zara says, “I was so unlucky in love in the villa, but I came out and found everything that I wanted. I was on a family holiday trying to clear my head after a whirlwind couple of months and now we’re married. I couldn’t be happier with how everything turned out – I found my fairy tale!”
With summer Love Island 2023 set to finish at the end of this month, Zara is now cheering on her pal Kady McDermott, 27, who also starred on series two and returned to this year’s season for a second shot at finding love.
Zara – who spent time in Ibiza with Kady just a few weeks before she returned to the villa – says, “I saw Kady recently but she didn’t tell me she was going back in! We always keep in touch. It’s great to see her in there, she’s doing so well. I get why she’s gone back in – she was so young her first time around, like me.”
And Zara also says that it’s great that the ITV2 show has made changes since her time on the show and is more supportive of the Islanders’ mental health, but also says more could be done. She says, “It’s great that ITV now freeze the contestants’ social media accounts when they’re in the villa because it’s so hard for family and friends to have to deal with the trolling of a loved one. But I think it would be a good idea to raise the age limit to 21. When you’re 18, 19 or 20, you think you know everything, but you really don’t. I was far too young!”
Who is Zara Holland?
Zara Holland is a former Miss GB turned reality star. She appeared on Love Island 2016 when she was 20 years old; she entered the villa on day one and walked on day 22 due to an illness in her family. Upon leaving the villa, Zara learned that she had lost her Miss GB crown just days before. She was stripped of her crown after having sex on-screen with fellow Islander Alex Bowen – despite it being the year 2016. Don't get us started on that one...
When was Zara Holland on Love Island?
She appeared on Love Island in the summer of 2016.
Who did Zara Holland couple up with in the villa?
Over the three weeks, she coupled up with Scott Thomas, Daniel Lukakis and Adam Maxted.
How old is Zara Holland?
Zara was born on 24 August 1995, which makes her 27 years old at the time of writing.
Where is Zara Holland from?
Zara is from Hull.
Who is Zara Holland married to?
Zara married Elliott Love in June 2023.
Is Zara Holland on Instagram?
Yes, and her account features a plethora of gorgeous wedding content. You can follow her at @zaraholland.