What was Love Island's Curtis Pritchard and Amy Hart infamous coffee row?

Yahoo

5 days ago

Love Island is 10 this summer, and after a decade of romance, drama and jaw-dropping scenes from the villa, some moments live in the memory longer than others.
One of the ITV reality show's most famous showdowns was between series five's Curtis Pritchard and Amy Hart, who got into a bitter row about coffee being more important than cuddles which eventually led to their break-up.
Here's what went down between the pair at the 2019 Love Island villa.
Pritchard was already a minor celebrity when he arrived at the villa as one of the pro cast of Ireland's Dancing with the Stars, and the brother of Strictly Come Dancing's AJ Pritchard.
Hart, an air hostess, made her show debut alongside Pritchard on day one, and by day two the latter had chosen her to form a couple with. While things ticked along between them into week six, it started to become obvious to viewers and Islanders that Hart was more into the relationship than Pritchard was.
But the catalyst for the coffee row came a few days before their heated discussion, when Pritchard was sent off to Casa Amor and had his head turned by bombshell Jourdan Mainoo-Hames. Although he and Hart chose to stay together following the Casa Amor week, the cracks were beginning to show...
Hart and Pritchard's break-up chat found a place in Love Island history ahead of the many other splits the show has seen because it became oddly focussed on coffee.
As Hart tried to get to the bottom of why Pritchard didn't want to spend quality time together, the ballroom dancer became visibly riled as he blamed his lack of affection on it being so important for him to make coffee for all of the other Islanders each morning.
Hart told him: "I don't think you actually ever genuinely liked me at all. For example, Tommy (Fury) and Molly (Mae Hague) sat up all night chatting in bed. You literally give me a quick kiss, turn over and go to sleep.
"In the morning, if someone likes you they want to have a cuddle in bed with you in the morning."
A clearly annoyed Pritchard replied through gritted teeth: "I know, and I also want to be the person who gets up and makes everyone a coffee so everyone is ready for the morning."
Pritchard's strong feelings about making coffee left viewers baffled and is still the moment from his time in Love Island that people most want to talk to him about even six years on.
Hart added: "I feel like I was an acceptably average placeholder until you found someone better. You did and then she coupled up with (someone else) so you came back to your back-up plan. I was your back-up plan."
Of course, the argument became about much more than who was getting their morning coffee as Hart grilled Pritchard over sharing a kiss with a Casa Amor bombshell behind her back.
Fans of the dating show had called red flags on Pritchard's behaviour towards Hart previously when he had asked her to be exclusive but said he wasn't ready for a boyfriend-girlfriend label yet, asking her to be his "half-girlfriend".
She brought up the term again as she said: "We're supposed to be exclusive, we're supposed to be this fabled 'half-boyfriend-half-girlfriend' which now makes me feel like an utter t**t. And you're having meaningful snogs with other girls when I'm not here? How is that ok, how is that acceptable? For me, absence made the heart grow fonder. For you, it was out of sight, out of mind."
"Even if you think with your head that you like me, you clearly don't," she added. "And that breaks my heart, that breaks my heart."
Pritchard apologised but told her: "I can't promise you this won't happen again, and I don't want to hurt you how I've ever hurt you, so..."
She shot back: "How can you go from saying you want a future with me to now saying you don't want to be with me? You're a liar, you're a compulsive liar," before storming off.
The Casa Amor incident wasn't the only time Pritchard's attention was taken by another Islander - he eventually left Hart for Maura Higgins. Hart chose to leave the show on day 37 after her split from Pritchard.
Reality TV stardom beckoned for Pritchard after his first Love Island appearance and he went on to take part in 2023's Love Island Games, as well as Love Island: All Stars in January 2025.
Asked about his coffee comments ahead of his All Stars appearance, Pritchard admitted: "It follows me everywhere! In hindsight, if I do find a girl this time, I will perhaps cuddle her in bed rather than make coffee… So Amy taught me a lesson."
The pair came face-to-face in the villa again in 2025 as Hart got a podcast presenting gig for All Stars, which meant she had to host Pritchard and partner Ekin-Su Culculoglu's exit interview.
But Hart, who is now married and a mum-of-one, told The Sun: "He was my easiest interview because I know him so well, I know how hard I can push him, I know how hard I can wind him up.
"Everyone wants us to not like each other. The fact we do get on really well makes it so easy."
Pritchard's love life hasn't seen him settle down like Hart yet – he and Higgins finished Love Island 2019 in fourth place, but split within a year amid accusations of betrayals and cheating. Higgins also had to interview her ex on TV as he left Love Island Games where she asked him about getting to know other contestants whilst partnered up and awkwardly called out: "He still has no balls, guys!"
He and Culculoglu finished All Stars in third place, but on 28 May, 2025 Culculoglu shared with her Instagram followers that they had split just three months after the show wrapped. Pritchard later confirmed the news in his own social media post, writing: "It's true, Ekin and I have decided to go our separate ways. Breakups are never easy, but l'll always be grateful for the laughs, the adventures, and the memories (especially the dance routines)."
Love Island: A Decade of Love airs on ITV2 at 9pm on Sunday, 1 June. Love Island is set to return to ITV2 in June.