Now that ITV has commissioned countless editions of Love Island per year (well, two, but that's still 16 weeks out of the 52) it's all too easy to forget the iconic Islanders who have taken a step back from the Love Island spotlight, but certainly helped make the series what it is today by just being them.
We won't name too many names as admittedly that sounds a little shady, but we will name Love Island 2019 star Belle Hassan, because, respectfully, she fits that mould perfectly – and we love the 2023 star she has become.
Since her Love Island 2019 stint, Casa Amor bombshell Belle has certainly made the move from Love Island cliche (usual launch parties and new PLT collection dinners) to social media sensation and influencer posting a hilarious mix of comedy and beauty content on the regs to her hundreds of thousands of followers. The content is there and constantly giving us life, but her private life certainly isn't the open book it once was on Love Island.
With that in mind, it makes sense that Belle didn't fancy making a big song and dance about her recent split from boyfriend Kane, who she dated for two years. In fact, she's been keen to just 'hide' the ins and outs from the world and instead just take the time to move on.
During a recent Instagram Q&A a fan flat out asked the Love Island bombshell whether she was single, to which she responded, "Lool yes absolutely. I feel like you guys are going to want a story time on this which is why I've hid it for a while because no one wants to really talk about this stuff 😂."
But don't worry too much about this newly-single gorjy girl, as in a separate Q&A post she suggested she has learned a lot from the heartbreak. A fan asked her, "Do you think people should experience a romantic heartbreak?", to which Belle responded, "Yeah 100% you learn so much about your self when you go through this."
You go, girl. We love us some growth and self care. We are also still loving this black and pink hair combo. Absolute goals.
Belle confirmed her romance with ex Kane in 2021.
In a cute af 2021 Instagram post, the reality star shared a snap of herself and a mystery man having a smooch over dinner. She captioned the snap, “Happiness over everything 🤍.”
Belle didn’t name Kane at the time, but she did tag the words, “b-tch you thought mind your [business]” – a warning to those wanting to have a cheeky stalk.
Her comments were full of messages of congratulations with fellow Islanders Joanna Chimonides writing, “IM SO HAPPY FOR YOU❤️❤️❤️”, and Demi Jones gushing, “Love to see it 😍”.
Belle famously dated Anton Danyluk after meeting on Love Island but split just five months after leaving the show after she reportedly got sick of his partying ways.
A source told The Sun at the time, “Belle has seen all the pictures and videos of Anton in Ibiza and now just wants out. She feels he’s disrespecting their relationship and can’t see him changing his ways.
“His obsession with Craig David also made her feel awkward. He seemed to be more excited about reuniting with Craig than speaking to her."
Anton later admitted to heat that there was no hard feelings between them.
He said, "I do love Belle to pieces, I've just got so much respect for her. The journey we went on was just incredible and we'll always have that.
"But, like I say, it's sometimes best to just keep it separate."
Back in July 2021, Belle was forced to deny rumours that she was dating her fellow 2019 IslanderJoe Garratt after they cosied up in a Tik Tok video where they lip-synced to a Nicki Minaj song together.
Fans couldn’t help but point out the chemistry between the two and began speculating that romance was on the cards.
One wrote, “Kinda ship this ngl,” while another commented, “Wooooooh you guys suit.”
Another commenter added, “Living for them,” with one more calling Joe and Belle an “attractive couple”.
However, Joe quickly took to the comments section to clear up the rumours.
“Not every day ship guys 👀 sometimes just best mates,” he wrote.