Love Island's Samantha says Joey Essex 'held back as he knew Grace was going in'

This year's series of Love Island has proven to be packed full of drama so far, with several bombshells arriving and sudden exits. One of the biggest surprises of the season came on the first day, when Love Island's first ever celebrity bombshell, Joey Essex, made his arrival in the villa.

Joey, 33, famed for starring in ITVBe's TOWIE, formed an instant connection with Liverpudlian make-up artist Samantha Kenny, 25, with the duo going on to couple up just hours after Joey's arrival. The pair spent two weeks getting to know one another, but the arrival of Grace Jackson sparked the beginning of the end of Joey and Samantha's romance.

Grace, 25, previously dated Joey, and it was clear the former couple still had eyes for one another. When Grace opted to couple up with her ex, Samantha was left packing her bags and heading back to the UK, with the feeling that Joey had wasted her time.

Speaking exclusively to new, Samantha revealed she feels her precious time in the Love Island villa was wasted by Joey. She said: "Yeah, I do. I just wanted to get to know Joey and I wanted to explore a connection that I thought was there, but I don’t think that was the case for him at all."

There's been rumours swirling regarding Joey and Grace's relationship, with some Love Island fans wondering if they ever really broke up in the outside world, and some even claiming the pair are faking their reunion for the cameras. While Samantha isn't keen on commenting on the fan theories, she does acknowledge that Joey may have known his ex was heading into the villa.

"Grace did come into the villa and say they got back speaking again in March, and at that time we were going through the process of the show. So, I don’t know… I would never say they were still together but in my personal opinion, I think he knew she was going in because her name was leaked," the 25 year old Islander said.

Samantha also noted: "If you had an intense relationship with someone last year and it came out they were going on Love Island, you’d know about it."

Joey and Grace made no effort to hide their attraction to one another in the villa - even snogging right in front of Samantha's face. The pair also spent a night in the hideaway together without being asked by producers, but it seems their chemistry is genuine, with even Samantha admitting it is "mind-blowing".

"I’ll hold my hands up, their sexual tension and chemistry is mind-blowing," she told new. "It’s what I want – but just not with Joey Essex!"