TWO contestants announced for this year's series of Love Island are from Oxfordshire.

Sharon Gaffka, 25, from Didcot, is an operations lead for the Department for Transport.

And Chloe Burrows, 25, is from Bicester and works as a Financial Services Marketing Executive.

They join the new crop of contestants for the ITV2 series when it airs on June 28.

Asked why she wanted to take part in Love Island, beauty queen Ms Gaffka told the Press Association: “It’s been a bit of a running joke between my friendship group for a while that I should apply, probably because I’m the most outrageous one out of the group.

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“But also because of Covid and the lockdown, I’m the only single one in my friendship group. They’re either married or planning on getting married. I don’t want to be the only one in the group chat that is single anymore!”

Talking about her job, she explained she has been a civil servant since the age of 18.

She added: “I’ve worked in lots of different departments. I’ve been doing Brexit policy for the last year, I did a stint during the coronavirus pandemic in the Department of Health so I was helping deliver testing kits and managing the operations. It’s been an intense year!”

Gaffka said she tends to date people taller than herself and added: “I’m quite an intellectual person so I want someone who can kind of match that.”

When asked about why she wanted to take part, Ms Burrows said: "I’ve been in awful ‘situationships’ and stuff so I just thought, why not?!"

And when asked what she was looking for in a romantic partner, she added: "I like a good build. I go to the gym. I want someone who is funny. Really funny and caring and will do nice little things for you. And then obviously someone who you can depend on to not ditch you.

"Because I am quite a big character and quite loud, they would have to be as loud, if not more. I could never be with someone who is quiet. Someone that gives you a bit back."

Laura Whitmore will return as the host of the popular reality series. It will be the first time the ITV programme has aired since last year’s summer series was cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic.

This year’s ITV2 show starts on June 28 at 9pm.