On Monday night, Love Island well and truly became The Lucinda Strafford Show. Her new love triangle with Aaron Francis and Danny Bibby had all the islanders talking, notably about how hilariously awkward her curve of Aaron’s kiss was.
While there’s plenty to discuss about Lucinda’s narrative on the show – particularly, Danny’s increasingly concerning behaviour towards her – one thing viewers can’t stop commenting on is her voice. Yes, reaaaaaaalllllyyyyyy.
It was noted almost as soon as she entered the villa, her accent questioned for its similarity to people from Essex despite the fact Lucinda is from Brighton. But it’s not really her accent that’s jarring most viewers – that would just be blatant classism – it’s her unique ability to drag words out far beyond their usual syllables, with an intonation that suggests shock at the simplest of statements, and always answer questions with another question.
Even the other Islanders have started picking up on it, with a hilarious clip from Love Island Unseen Bits showing Liam Reardon and Millie Fuller imitating her this weekend (which, by the way, you should watch even just to see Liam and Millie’s actual personalities over the less than notable narrative they’ve been given on the main show).
Of course, on the outside world – it’s less laughing with Lucinda, more laughing at her it seems. The same thing happened with Chloe Burrows. Viewers have accused both of them of putting on ‘baby voices’ to attract men, because their idiolect does seem to change depending on who they’re conversing with (Chloe’s more problematically than Lucinda’s, we should add).
If that is the case though, it’s working for them. All the men have at some point fell at Chloe or Lucinda’s feet with the simplest ‘Oh myyyy Gooodddd’. And to be honest? That says a lot more about the men than it does them.
CHECK OUT Love Island's biggest love rats
CLOSER: Love Island's BIGGEST love rats (SLIDER)
1 of 24Tyler Cruickshank
Bombshell Tyler was pretty keen on Kaz... Until Casa Amor. His head did a complete 180 when he met Clarisse. But when he returned to the villa, Tyler did a complete U-turn and got back with Kaz. Poor Clarisse and Matthew (who Kaz was coupled up with) were then left single.
2 of 24Terry Walsh
Tattooed Terry Walsh cracked on with newcomer Emma-Jane Woodham within HOURS of girlfriend Malin Andersson being booted out of the villa. The cheating pair then went on to have sex in front of the other contestants (which he'd already done with Malin). Sophie Gradon commented: "She was riding him like a bucking bronco." Apparently, Emma-Jane was the 502nd person Terry had slept with. Not that he's counting. Rat Rating: 9
3 of 24Jack Fowler
Yes, he was one of the sexiest 2018 Love Island contestants but we can't deny the fact that Jack Fowler is definitely a love rat.When he first joined the villa we thought he was perfect with Laura Anderson and we were all on his side when he didn't get back with her after she ended things and then wanted to reunite with him.However we started to think there was something about him when he instantly got back with her after it was announced that two new boys (Idris and Kieran) would be entering the villa. And then he broke Laura's heart after two new girls (Laura 2.0 and Steph) joined the villa. Yup. He ended things just a day after they came into the villa and moved on VERY quickly with the new Laura as well.Talk about salt to the wound, eh?Rat Rating: 8 (we think he's a total game changer)
4 of 24Megan Barton Hanson
Muggy Megan Barton Hanson went straight for Wes Nelson hours after dumping Eyal Booker, despite the fact he was coupled up with her pal Laura Anderson. Within 24 hours, she snogged him in bed (that's one fast rat). THEN Megan played about 20 guys against each other in Casa Amor before deciding to cheat on Wes with new boy Alex Miller. In her defence, she was with Wes for six months after leaving the villa - but the couple split in January 2019. Rat Rating: 7
5 of 24Toby Aromolaran
Toby, Toby, Toby. He had quite the journey. He coupled up with Kaz, then dumped her for bombshell Chloe, then dumped her for bombshell Abigail and then he left for Casa Amor... After returning to the villa he brought back MARY. Days later he dumped Mary AND Abigail and reunited with Chloe.
6 of 24Dr Alex George
He was unlucky in love since he entered the villa. No one stepped forward for him, Laura dumped him for Wes, Samira made it clear she didn't want to be coupled up with him, Megan kissed Eyal in front of him and then Ellie chose Charlie over him.But it appeared that his luck had changed when the gorgeous Alexandra joined the villa and picked the doctor over the two new boys (Idris and Kieran). So why oh why did he then quickly turn for new girl Laura Crane? Unfortunately for Alex, she wasn't interested, so he recoupled with rejected Alexandra out of necessity. After spending an amazing date driving around in a Ferrari together, Alex then told a loved-up Alexandra that he just wasn't interested anymore and dumped her. She accused him of stringing her along and called his behaviour 'shameful'. She subsequently told Closer that 'there's something wrong with him'. Rat Rating: 7 (maybe he'd be even rattier if more girls had given him a chance to be?
7 of 24Liam Reardon
Liam - the plot twist we didn't want to happen. When the Love Island 2021 boys went to Casa Amor we was hoping Liam would stay loyal to Millie but he didn't. Straight away he shared a bed with Lillie, flirted with her and even shared a few kisses outside of the challenges. He returned to the villa single but everyone was stunned when Lillie also turned up and exposed him.
8 of 24Georgia Steel
Fans warmed to Georgia after Josh Denzel broke her heart by going off with Kazimir Crossley in Casa Amor while she stayed loyal to him. But viewers did a U-turn when Georgia SNOGGED her best pal Laura Anderson's fella, 'new' Jack Fowler. To make things worse, Georgia didn't mention the kiss until Laura confronted her. Hell broke loose, with half the villa ganging up on Georgia. She said it was very much a mutual thing but fans saw the clip of her pulling Jack in for a smooch. Georgia was coupled up with Sam Bird, who stood by her side until the lovebirds left the villa. On the outside, things didn't work out so well when Sam ended the relationship after accusing 'loyal' Georgia of cheating with an ex. Rat Rating: 8 (we could have ignored the cheeky peck, but cheating on the outside, too? Come on, Georgia!)
9 of 24Alex Bowen
Zara Holland was stripped of her Miss Great Britain title after a romp with Alex Bowen within HOURS during the second series. But Alex pied her off pretty much immediately for Olivia Buckland. However, this rat might have redeemed himself, as he proposed to Olivia in 2017 and the pair married in 2018. Rat Rating: 6
10 of 24Rykard Jenkins
Rykard Jenkins - who had been cracking on with Rachel Fenton - had sex with Olivia Buckland in the bed next to Rachel while she slept. EWWW. The pair kept it a secret, until Caroline Flack broke the truth to Rachel about what happened between the sheets. But Rachel and Rykard stayed together for 18 months after the show ended. We're assuming they didn't share a bedroom with anyone else this time. Rat Rating: 8
11 of 24Brad McClelland
OG contestant Brad didn't have the best luck in the villa. He coupled up with Faye but it quickly became clear that there wasn't a spark. When Rachel arrived he seemed totally infatuated (that may have been because whoever she didn't couple up with would be booted from the villa). But when Lucinda arrived his head did a 180, he dumped Rachel and later she was booted from the villa.
12 of 24Tyla Carr
Tyla Carr sobbed when Jonny Mitchell gave up his place so that she could stay in the villa. She gave him an emotional goodbye and asked him to wait for her on the outside. It took exactly three days for her to forget all about him and hook up with Muggy Mike Thalassitis. The public were NOT impressed, and viewers voted the pair out a week before the final. Tyla has since settled down. The former love-rat gave birth to a baby boy in December 2018 - the baby daddy isn't in the public eye.Rat Rating: 7
13 of 24Marcel Somerville
Things looked good for couple Marcel Somerville and Gabby Allen...until they left the villa. Nine months later, Marcel had sex with another girl while the pair were on holiday and Gabby was downstairs in the hotel gym. OUCH. Suffice to say, the couple are no more.Rat rating: 10
14 of 24Adam Collard
What is a Love Island love rat list without Adam Collard? Although, technically, he's probably more of an oily snake. Within a month, Adam ditched three girls before moving onto the next (Kendall Rae-Knight, Rosie Williams and Zara McDermott). His regularly used line 'I'd be lying if I said I wasn't attracted to her, like' when new girls enter the villa, has become a meme in its own right. His unacceptable actions include dumping Rosie for Zara just hours after 'doing bits' in bed with her. He also shared a bed and some snogs with Darylle Sargeant before reuniting with Zara when he was booted from the show.Although Adam and Zara moved in together, Adam reportedly broke up with his girlfriend of 6 months, Zara by text in February 2018. Rat Rating: 8
15 of 24Naomi Bell
Audiences loved Naomi when she arrived late to the Love Island villa and shredded some light on the Love Islander's deceipt - notably, Jessica Hayes' fibs about rejecting the Alberti twins. BUT fans of the show were shocked when oh-so-sweet Naomi stole Jess' partner Joshua Ritchie, before getting bored of him and coupling up with Jess' second choice, Max Morley. Although Max and Jess got back together and won the show, they parted ways shortly after cameras stopped rolling and Max and Naomi were pictured together months later. Ouch! Rat Rating: 7
16 of 24Jonny Mitchell
Jonny, Jonny, JONNY. Where do we begin? Jonny wasn't in the original lineup, but landed on his feet when he coupled up with fan favourite Camilla Thurlow. If he was good enough for our girl Camilla, then he was good enough for us - but things turned sour when the couple disagreed on equality. Camilla was less than impressed when Jonny complained he'd feel 'emasculated' if a girl paid for dinner. Camilla wisely dumped Jonny a few days later, but was upset when Jonny flaunted his new romance with Tyla. After leaving the villa, Jonny went on to date Stephanie Pratt (oh, the wonderfully small world of reality TV) but the pair split in December 2017. Jonny's latest conquest is model Danielle Zarb-Cousin, whom he got ENGAGED to in December 2018, after dating for less than one year.Rat Rating: 7
17 of 24Frankie Foster
Frankie was a beacon of light for unlucky-in-love Samira. Fans were over the moon when the fitness coach appeared to be a perfect match for our favourite Love Island girl after weeks of unsuccessful dating. But all good things must come to an end, and viewers were disappointed when he was voted out of the villa by his fellow islanders, cutting short the couple's blossoming romance. BUT Samira gave up her place in the Love Island villa, leaving her pals behind to be with Frankie in the UK - cute, right? Sadly for Samira, Frankie turned out to be another frog. Multiple cheating rumours quickly emerged and Samira dumped the slimey toad after just one month on the outside. You're better off without him, Samira. Rat rating: 6
18 of 24Anna Vakili
It was a slow start for Anna, but when Jordan Hames entered the villa in week five things started to look up for her.The issues started when she met Ovie in Casa Amore and sparks instantly flew. Recoupling with Ovie and bringing him back to the villa with her, Anna looked suitably guilty when it transpired that Jordan had in fact stayed loyal. What ensued was a weeks worth of excruciating back-ing and forth-ing between Ovie and Jordan while Anna tried to make up her mind, only ending when Ovie finally put his foot down and old Jordan, "You can have her".Rat rating: 4
19 of 24Curtis Pritchard
Curtis's behaviour hasn't been the most outrageously awful in the 2019 series, but the amount of pain he caused Amy through his conniving and scheming has been insidiously toxic – which we think is much worse. "Mr Perfect" went to enormous lengths during the first four weeks to convince Amy and, more importantly, the voting public that he was the perfect man, a gentleman, #boyfriendgoals. But it soon became apparent that he'd masterminded the whole charade, leaving Amy so heartbroken she had to leave the villa and cut her Love Island experience short. Needless to say, Curtis has stayed on to enjoy a new romance and continuing support from the lads in the villa.Rat rating: 10
20 of 24Michael Griffiths
Despite the fact that we really fancy Michael, his gaslighting of Amber when new girl Joanna joined the villa was unforgivable. Everyone was surprised when his head was turned, but we were even more disappointed when he turned the whole thing back around on Amberand said it was all her fault.Meanwhile, he lied to both Joanna and Amber about what he'd said to his former flame, when what he was actually trying to do was to keep his options open.Rat rating: 7
21 of 24Jordan Hames
After Jordan Hames asked Anna Vakili to be his girlfriend following an OTT tour of the villa, his head was turned literally one day later by bombshell India Reynolds, and he called her for a chat before even speaking to Anna first. His reasoning was that Anna wasn't he who thought he was – which seems to be the default excuse for the lads in this series.Rat rating: 9
22 of 24Mike Boateng
We all felt for seemingly nice guy Mike when Leanne Amaning got "the ick" and decided she couldn't bare to be around him – after all, he'd been nothing but nice to her. But when he quickly turned his attentions to Jess and became the creepiest man alive – likening himself to a "sexy side dish" – before swiftly moving on in Casa Amor, we kind of got what she meant. Sorry, Leanne.
23 of 24Jess Gale
Meanwhile, despite insisting she was going to give things a proper go with Luke M because it was "the right thing to do", Jess couldn't have made it any more obvious that she was more interested in Mike and after basically forcing Luke to call things off over a shady challenge move, was snogging Mike minutes later.
24 of 24Callum Jones
Callum coupled up with Shaughna Phillips on the first day and after a few early bumps in the road they'd become the strongest couple in the villa when Casa Amor started – which was the beginning of the end, with Callum quickly developing (and acting on) a "strong sexual attraction" to Molly Smith while Shaughna pined for him in the main villa.
Yes, they may be infantilising themselves, or dumbing themselves down, in order to attract men - and that’s uncomfortable to watch sometimes. But the thing is, this is literally a game show in which women need to attract men to win. And winning doesn’t just mean £50,000 anymore – these days it means 1million marketable (!) followers on Instagram, and a Pretty Little Thing clothing contract if you can stick around long enough.
If Lucinda and Chloe are playing this game then in order to win – which Lucinda all but admitted in deciding to stay on the show for ‘opportunity’ instead of leaving with Brad McClelland – they’re actually doing a great job at ensuring a long-term place. For all the talk of dumbing herself down, Lucinda's ability to avoid awkward questions simply by repeating them back to the person asking is incredible (and hilarious).
And honestly, we don’t blame them if it is all about the game, riches are hard to come by for Gen Z these days and a PLT deal is fair compensation for the trolling they’ve both received.
WATCH “We had same sex nights!”: Shannon & Shaughna reveal a BIG Love Island secret
Look! More news!
Love Island's Brad McClelland has his say on Lucinda and Aaron 👀
Love Island breaks silence on 'deleted X-rated’ Liam and Millie scene
Love Island's Lucinda Strafford 'made pact' with ex before flying out to the villa
The men, however, don’t seem to be playing a game when it comes to who they’re attracted to - and the fact is, it’s more uncomfortable that men are attracted to that kind of infantilising behaviour than it is women are succumbing to it. If we didn’t live in a world that values women on their looks – and their attachment to men – perhaps they wouldn’t need to.
Maybe then we wouldn’t hear the world ‘really’ go on for 10 seconds a time, nor would we be subject to incredibly loud cackles at the shittiest of jokes, but while men are this simple that flirting is literally acting like a child, we will be - and that’s worth exploring in therapy, lads.
Don’t blame Lucinda then, blame the men that practically propose to her after three (very long) words. In the great words of John F. Kennedy, ‘Ask not why Lucinda speaks like this, but why men are obsessed with her because of it.’