Controversial new reality show Love Island has recruited one of the world’s hottest athletes
IT was never going to be just rugby for Sevens star Charlie Taylor, who has gone rogue and signed up for new reality TV show Love Island, writes Jonathon Moran.
Confidential
Don't miss out on the headlines from Confidential. Followed categories will be added to My News.
RUGBY star Charlie Taylor felt he had no choice but to give up his professional sporting career to try his luck tackling the entertainment industry.
Controversial new reality show Love Island simply came at the right time but he insists he was always going to follow this path.
“I am not your stereotypical rugby player who puts all their eggs in one basket, who knuckles down, who is 100 per cent committed,” Taylor tells BW magazine, ahead of flying to Spain to shoot the series, which kicks off tomorrow night.
“I do stuff on the side, a bit of modelling, a bit of acting, I am a tradesman, I do a bit of PT.
“I never saw myself as being that person that was always going to be there in the role (of rugby). For me I just needed a bit of a break to be honest, so I have taken the year off.”
The 22-year-old has the highest profile of the 10 contestants in the reality series, which is based on the sunny party island of Majorca for the next six or so weeks.
Hosted by Sophie Monk, commentators have labelled the British format as Married At First Sight on steroids with hot-cut and curvalicious 20-somethings vying for love in a Spanish villa.
“This is the most amazing opportunity — to go to Spain in summer and be with potentially the most beautiful girl in the world. Why wouldn’t you take that opportunity,” Taylor asks.
Taylor is realistic, honest and unashamedly open about his reasons for doing the show.
He does however expect some criticism and concedes some might struggle to understand his choice, which comes just a few weeks after representing Australia’s Rugby Sevens at the Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast.
Regardless, he is 100 per cent committed.
“You have up and down moments in rugby and I think for the last year I have been indecisive about what I wanted to do,” Taylor explains. “It was a tough decision. I was playing for my country, yes, but giving up rugby has nothing to do with this.
“This show has just given me a small gap of opportunity but, regardless, I was always going to end up taking this year as a break. I told everyone — my coaches and closest mates knew that.
“I wasn’t even short-listed for the show when I made the decision. I was straight-up with my coach and my family and my best mates … I needed this time off to think about what I want to do and what makes me happy.”
Taylor’s modelling isn’t just a side thing. Having scored his first modelling gig in 2015, he’s now got 178,000 followers on Instagram, is signed to top agency THE.mgmt, and has worked with top brands such as Longines.
He is a fan of reality TV, with his favourite shows including Big Brother and The Bachelor.
“This is an opportunity to work out if I want to be on television, if I want to be in front of the camera and in the spotlight,” he says.
“I could potentially go back to rugby if this doesn’t work out. I could potentially do something else, whether it is modelling or personal training. I did a couple of years as a tradesman, installing glass fences around pools and landscaping.
“I have many things I can do. It is not all rugby, rugby, rugby.”
Love Island is not only a game-changer for Taylor, the show also signals a new direction for Nine. It will air on the networks 9Now and Go channels, which will allow the content to be less PG than on its main free-to-air platform.
The format in the UK is known for pushing boundaries with its risqué love trysts, challenges and controversial sexual content. For example, contestants wear very little, showing off their ripped bods, and they participate in games that encourage physical interaction.
“The whole point of Love Island Australia is that we don’t know what’s going to happen,” Nine’s head of content, production and development Adrian Swift tells BW.
“We might have a tiny audience or a massive one, but what’s important is that the show maintains its DNA as an off-Broadway production.
“What we really want is that somewhere between a quarter and a half of the regular audience comes online via 9Now.”
In terms of his love life and hopes of finding a partner, Taylor has been single for a year and a half. His longest relationship was five months and he describes himself as a “fast faller” who can be “loyal, fun, very immature and adventurous”.
Playing solo is a very different game than Taylor is used to as a footballer working with a team.
“When it comes to Love Island, going on a TV show, everyone is there for themselves and that is what I am doing,” he says.
“I am going on the show to find love. I don’t have to put the team first or do what is right for the show. I am there to do a job, to find love and to have a good time and to find out if I want to do this career as my future and to think about other options.
“With rugby, you’ve always got to put the team first and that is something that killed me inside because it is tough. If you are 1 per cent wrong in a team, it falls back on you and I don’t want to make my country feel ashamed or my team feel like I’ve done something wrong … I would never ever put myself before the team.”
Aesthetically, Taylor is drawn to women who look after themselves. In production notes, he says he likes either blondes or brunettes and prefers “at least a C cup, above 5ft, blue or green eyes”.
“I am after a girl who looks after themselves, more hygienically than anything else,” he says.
“I don’t like girls with body hair, that is a turn-off for me. And also bad breath, bad teeth, body odour — all that stuff. Hygiene is the number one thing for me. If she is active, loves health and exercise, she doesn’t have to be a fit freak, she has to look after herself. She doesn’t have to be ripped. Someone who is relaxed and someone with a sense of humour and a great smile.”
Taylor, who has five brothers and two sisters, doesn’t rule out sexual relations on the island, although he says he won’t be doing anything gratuitous.
“Personally, I’ve thought about what will happen in that situation and honestly I am not coming on the show to sleep with anyone,” he says. “I don’t have the mindset of going on the show to find someone attractive and having sex. That is not where I am at.
“If I find a connection with someone who I love for who they are and we have a connection physically and sexually, you may see me hook up with someone. But going to the bedroom and having sex with someone random, I won’t do that. I won’t have my family at home watching me sleep with someone.”
Love Island will have its season premiere on Nine’s Go! and Now channels tomorrow at 8.30pm