Love Island's Ekin-Su on Curtis showmance rumours, how she really feels about Davide & THAT bitter feud with MAFS star

The Sun

7 days ago

BELIEVE it or not, for the last 10 years we've been watching beautiful people in bikinis find their type on paper and couple up.
So, to celebrate 10 years of Love Island, we had to revisit one of its most iconic stars, Ekin-Su Cülcüloglu.
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The 30 year old won the show in 2022, alongside then-boyfriend Davide Sanclimenti, with the highest-ever percentage of the vote.
Racking up 4.2m Instagram followers since then, she has gone on to land brand deals with Oh Polly and BPerfect, as well as several reality shows, including her own with Davide.
Then, earlier this year, she returned to the villa for Love Island: All Stars, reaching the final with boyfriend Curtis Prichard, 29.
'Love Island is where I'm from,' Ekin-Su says. 'It's where I was 'born'.
"It is a very successful show – not only have we had marriages and babies, but so many amazing Islanders, like Molly-Mae Hague, Maura Higgins and other icons. It's been replicated in so many countries, but the UK one will be forever the best. It is an honour to have been a part of such a fun, crazy and fiery show, and the fact I won it means a lot.
'Even now, I say to producers I would go back in, not to find love, but just to enjoy the experience of being in there. There's such excitement in the drama and not having your phone [and contact with the outside world] on this holiday of a lifetime.'
Ekin-Su didn't just star on the show – she was a fan before she went in, and, in a weird turn of events, had watched her now-boyfriend, pro dancer Curtis on the show in 2015.
'I watched season five, which had Maura, Molly-Mae and Curtis. I'm not gonna lie, I wasn't impressed with his treatment of Amy [Hart, who he split from after Casa Amor, before going on to date Maura]. Maura was my favourite. She had boundaries. That's what I liked about her.'
Last year, Ekin-Su told us the only way she'd go back into the villa was if they paid her £5million, because she was worried about 'being cast as the villain'. So, what changed?
'I lied,' she cackles.
Ekin-Su snogs Curtis Pritchard as she supports Love Island boyfriend backstage at Misfits boxing match
'No, I'm joking. It was different dynamics. I was more mature. When I first went in, I didn't know what Love Island could bring me. I didn't know how it worked, or what it felt like to be on reality TV. But the second time around was easier – I knew what to expect and felt more calm, so I was more in my element. There were arguments I would have got involved in the first time around that I avoided in All Stars. I didn't want petty fights, but I did have to stand my ground and be strong where needed.'
How does she look back at that first series and her time with Davide?
'I've changed a lot. I now think: 'How iconic that we won the show.' I don't hate Davide. Sometimes, I look at the clips of us and I laugh, though that doesn't mean I miss him. But I'm happy for him, I genuinely mean that. He's found someone [he's dating entrepreneur Iris Au] and they look really in love. Two years ago, I probably wouldn't have been able to say that.'
And was she shocked she coupled up with Curtis, who she's still with six months on?
'I didn't think I'd end up with someone like him. I always go for guys who are a bit like Davide. But I'm older now and I know what didn't work for me. I need someone who suits my personality and is genuinely nice and who lets me shine.
'At the start, people were like: 'Oh, you guys are a showmance,' but it never was. We're both geeks. Although we are not the same, I see myself in him. He's a lovely guy and very peaceful.
'When something feels right, I feel free. That's how I know I'm with the right guy. I feel that with Curtis and I'm happy in myself. I love myself more. Before, I was anxious and felt like I was walking on eggshells. Now, I don't worry if I don't hear from him for a couple of hours. We trust each other. It's a healthy relationship.'
Love Islanders tend to move at an accelerated pace in their relationships after leaving the villa.
But Ekin-Su has learned her lesson and doesn't want to rush it.
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'We don't live together,' she explains. 'It's not that we are taking it slow, but that's how it should be [in normal dating]. I think you should both live your own lives and then, after a year or so when it's serious, you should look to buy a home together. Then you know it's the real thing.'
It's not been all plain sailing for Ekin-Su and Curtis, though.
Married At First Sight star Georges Berthonneau, 32, claimed that he and Ekin were in a serious, secret 10-month relationship before she went into the villa.
He said they'd agreed a set of boundaries, so she could appear on the reality show, before reuniting with him once the show had ended.
Ekin-Su shakes her head and sighs: 'It's just somebody that I've known from the past. I was never in an exclusive relationship with him. I wish him the best. That's all I can say. It was over and we were never a thing. I think he's just a bitter guy who's hurt. Curtis knows about him. I just don't understand why you would even do that, though. Not even my ex, Davide, would speak maliciously about me. And we [she and Georges] weren't a couple. I think he should stop saying my name really. His 10 minutes of fame is over. I just wish him the best.'
And while Ekin-Su and Curtis are taking it slowly, they have ticked off some couple milestones, including meeting the family.
'I've met AJ [Curtis' brother] and Zara [Zoffany]. And now they're engaged, so we've got the wedding to look forward to.'
Are there any wedding plans of her own?
'I want to get married – I've told Curtis straight: 'You need to put a ring on it in two years, otherwise I'm out!' I'm not wasting my youth. Curtis is not a guy to shy away from proposing. He knows what he wants – he asked me to be his girlfriend on Love Island.
"If it's going to happen, it's going to happen. We've spoken about getting married – I want kids and so does Curtis. He wants two boys and I'm like: 'What about one girl and one boy?' I think he'd be an amazing dad. I even have baby names, but I'm not going to say them because somebody might steal them!
'But at the moment, we're both enjoying our lives. And when the time's right, the first thing we'll do is an exclusive with Fabulous,' she laughs.
Before she looks too far into the future, Ekin-Su is keen to book a holiday, because apart from their time in South Africa for All Stars, the pair haven't had a chance to go away together. This is partly because Curtis was preparing for his professional boxing debut.
'Boxing is brutal,' she says. 'He's so bruised. I've seen him physically throw up in a bucket.
"I kept saying to him: 'Are you not scared about your face?' He was like: 'I'll get a new nose.' I'm like: 'No, babe, you're beautiful.' He's gone from this dancer to beating up a man. It's crazy.
'I know some professional boxers don't see their wives for months. Tyson Fury goes away to camp and just switches off, and that's hard. I guess you just have to be understanding, because I think Curtis will want to keep going and go professional.
'The only negative is we haven't had that honeymoon phase yet,' she says.
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'We've come out of Love Island and I've been in America and he's been training every day. We haven't had romantic dinners or any wild times together. But now all that is over, we're booking a holiday. I'm sitting there, thinking: 'I'm working really hard every day. These other couples, they're on holidays all the time. What's going on?'' she laughs.
Although, one pair who won't be jetting off is Love Island: All Stars winners Gabby Allen, 33, and Casey O'Gorman, 28, who split last month.
'I recently found out they'd broken up and I was like: 'What?' I actually messaged my manager to ask if it was real. I'm shocked, as they won. Maybe it was because of the age gap.'
I've made mistakes and I've learned from them. Now I just want to be healthy and happy
Ekin-Su
Since shooting to fame three years ago, Ekin-Su has gone on to appear on Dancing On Ice and Celebrity Big Brother, as well as the second series of The Traitors US, which she had an early exit from after being 'murdered' and buried alive.
She has some advice for the likes of Stephen Fry, Alan Carr and Clare Balding, who are among the stars appearing in the first UK celebrity series of The Traitors later this year.
'To do well, you have to almost act dumb or stupid, because if you have a game plan, people will think you're a traitor and vote you out. You need to act like you don't know what you're doing. The smart thing is not to appear to be smart,' she says.
Ekin-Su's own career continues to go from strength to strength, with Netflix reality show Inside coming up.
'I've manifested my five-year plan to do more TV. I love being on TV and I'm owning saying that now,' she says. 'I'd love to be in the US for six months, then back here.'
It sounds as if she has her life mapped out.
'I've made mistakes and I've learned from them,' she says. 'Now I just want to be healthy and happy.'