If you haven’t seen the, frankly, iconic second season of Love Island, which originally aired in 2016, then the name Malia Arkian might not ring any bells. However, despite her short-lived time in the villa, she was responsible for one of the most talked about moments in the history of the ITV2 show.
Just hours after entering the villa as a bombshell, Malia was involved in an argument with Kady McDermott over spilled wine and was removed from the villa by producers after allegedly getting physical with her co-star.
It’s been seven years since the eventful scenes aired on our screens and a lot has changed then, not least Malia’s life as she’s gone from a reality star and wannabe singer to business owner with a footballer fiancé to boot.
Where is Love Island’s Malia Arkian now?
Malia is loved-up with her footballer fiancé Hope Akpan and the pair have a daughter called Halo.
She's also co-owner of a VERY fancy cafe in Hale, Cheshire.
Why was Malia Arkian removed from the Love Island villa?
Malia was ejected from the villa in 2016 just hours after making her arrival following a heated altercation with Kady McDermott.
Kady spilled wine over Malia's legs and feet following the bombshell's date with Kady's then-man Scott Thomas, which, although accidental, was taken as deliberate by the newcomer.
"If you wanna speak to me, just come in there. You don’t do that with me, not at all," Malia told Kady.
As Malia walked away, Kady shouted, “Do you honestly think I’d waste my wine over you? It was a f--king accident," to which Malia hit back, “Shut up you b-tch. Who the f--k do you think you are?”
The pair then broke into a fight before Malia was removed from the villa. Speaking in the Beach Hut following the incident, Kady said, "There’s no way someone’s coming in shouting at me like that. I mean, she hasn’t even been in the villa for five minutes. So I started getting rowdy back. The next thing you know, she full on shoves me.
“I’m a rowdy girl, but I’ve never in my life been in a physical fight. I think we both overreacted to be honest. I just wish I’d let her shout, I wish I didn’t react back. I really regret it.”
What has Malia Arkian said about Kady McDermott?
Malia and Kady reignited their feud in 2019 when Sherif Lanre was removed from the villa following an incident with Molly-Mae Hague.
At the time, Kady claimed her fight with Malia was even worse than the scenes that aired on TV as she tweeted, "She punched me in the nose after and gave me a nose bleed but they didn’t show it as too graphic 😂🙈🥊🥊🥊🥊."
Malia branded Kady a "compulsive liar" and told The Daily Mail, "She's sat thinking how to make a living, I never punched her she’s a compulsive liar. She needs professional help."
CHECK OUT Love Island's most controversial moments
1 of 11Faye Winter and Teddy Soares feud
Following the Mad Movies challenge that showed Teddy talking to Casa Amor bombshell Clarisse Juliette, Faye Winter was left furious. For the majority of the following episode, that was an hour-long, Faye was shouting at Teddy, Matthew MacNabb and even Dale Mehmet. As a result of the showdown, Ofcom received a record number of 24,763 complaints from viewers.
2 of 11Love Island 2021 postcard
Love Island bosses brought the postcard challenge back during the 2021 series and it caused quite the stir in the villa. It left Millie Court in the dark about Liam Reardon's antics and Faye Winter thought Teddy Soares had kissed another girl however it was part of a game.Teddy returned (with Faye's teddy bear in hand) and was left single in the villa and Casa Amor bombshell Lillie Haynes returned and exposed Liam, which left Millie devastated.
3 of 11Love Island's lie detector test
In 2019 it also came to light that the infamous lie detector test had been axed. Ofcom investigated reality TV rules following the tragic death of Steve Dymond following his appearance on The Jeremy Kyle Show.
4 of 11Laura Anderson and Paul Knops in the final
Love Island 2018 already had a few controversial moments but it was the final episode that drew in some complaints. After Laura Anderson and Paul Knops came runners up on the show, viewers took to Ofcom and complained because they were not in an official relationship. In third place was Megan Barton Hanson and Wes Nelson and in fourth place was Josh Denzel and Kaz Crossley - both couples were in an exclusive relationship.
5 of 11Paige Turley and Finn Tapp's headline challenge
After the Mean Tweet challenge appeared to be scrapped during the 2020 series, the News Splash didn't go down well with viewers.Paige Turley was left furious when one of the headlines said, 'Casa Amor causes Callum, Finn and Nas' head to turn on tonight's Love Island'.Finn protested his innocence but Paige was annoyed and so were fans who branded the headline as "fake news".
6 of 11Love Island axe smoking area
Remember the early days of Love Island where the majority of the Islanders would gossip over the smoking area? Well following a lot of complaints, in 2018 the producers took action and removed the smoking area from inside the villa.
7 of 11Casa Amor in 2019
They say Casa Amor is one of the hardest tests and the 2019 series proved it because it received over 300 complaints. Poor Amy Hart was left devastated when Curtis Pritchard admitted his head turned towards Jourdan Riane. Meanwhile, Amber Gill was left single when Michael Griffiths savagely dumped her for Joanna Chimonides.
8 of 11Georgia Steel and Jack Fowler's kiss
During the 2018 series, Love Island received 655 complaints following Georgia Steel and Jack Fowler's kiss. While Georgia insisted that they both intentionally kissed on their date, Jack was sure that he went to kiss her cheek but she moved in for the lips. Luckily the truth came out during the reunion and Georgia FINALLY apologised.
9 of 11Tommy Fury and Maura Higgins
A lot of viewers felt uncomfortable when Maura Higgins tried to kiss Tommy Fury, despite his protests and Love Island received 709 complaints.
10 of 11Dani Dyer crying
Jack Fincham was floored when he saw his ex-girlfriend walk into Casa Amor but no one was more devastated than Dani Dyer who was left in a flood of tears. After the episode aired, Ofcom received 2,644 complaints about the show.
11 of 11Joe Garratt and Lucie Donlan's relationship
During the early stages of Love Island 2019, Ofcom received 600 complaints over Joe Garratt and Lucie Donlan's relationship. Viewers accused him of having a "controlling nature" when Lucie was left in tears and Women's Aid issued a statement about the show.
Who is Malia Arkian’s fiancé?
Malia is engaged to footballer Hope Akpan, whose credits include Atherton Laburnum Rovers, Crawley Town, Reading, Blackburn Rovers, Burton Albion, Bradford City and the Nigeria national team.
The couple announced they were engaged in June 2019 when Malia also revealed she was four months pregnant with their first child.
Does Malia Arkian have any children?
After announcing her pregnancy in June 2019, Malia gave birth to a baby girl named Halo in October.
Alongside a series of sweet snaps of the newborn, the reality star wrote, "Welcome To The World Baby Halo, dreams do come true, we are eternally grateful! Thank you God, born 25th October 12:45pm weighing 7.7 pounds."
In another post, Malia said she'd had a "smooth and natural labour" and told her followers that Hope was a "hands-on, loving" father.
How old is Malia Arkian?
Malia was born on 24 June 1989.
Where is Malia Arkian from?
Malia was born and raised in Iran but later moved to the UK where she lived and worked in Manchester as a make-up artist.
Does Malia Arkian have Instagram?
Malia does have an Instagram account @onlymalia.