It’s the battle of the UK reality dating shows, as Netflix’s Too Hot To Handle and the British version of Love Island are set to premiere within days of each other.
Produced by Fremantle’s Thames and Talkback, Too Hot To Handle is first out of the blocks. The show will premiere on June 23, following the travails of singletons in the Turks and Caicos Islands as they look for love, but are forbidden from kissing, canoodling, and self-gratification.
The world’s hottest no-dating dating show is back!
Too Hot To Handle Season 2 premieres June 23 pic.twitter.com/udzFGcOkRX
— Netflix (@netflix) June 16, 2021
Netflix will drop Season 2 in two batches of episodes. The first four will go live on June 23, while the remaining six installments are being lined up for June 30. This means it will overlap with Love Island, ITV Studios’ beloved exotic location reality format, which premieres on Britain’s ITV2 on June 28.
Confirmed: Love Island returns Monday 28 June at 9pm on ITV2 and ITVHub@ITV2 @itvhub @LoveIsland #LoveIsland pic.twitter.com/1JyEMhio9o
— ITV Press Centre (@itvpresscentre) June 16, 2021
Season 7 will return to the Spanish island of Mallorca after last year’s summer edition was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic. The show is eagerly anticipated by fans, but will be tinged with some sadness as it marks the first full season since presenter Caroline Flack’s suicide last year.
Both shows have become bankers for Netflix and ITV respectively. Netflix greenlit a second a third season of Too Hot To Handle after the first became its biggest competition show ever. Love Island consistently draws millions of viewers and is a cash cow for ITV, presenting lucrative advertising, sponsorship, and product placement opportunities.
On the same day Love Island’s premiere date was revealed, ITV again published duty of care protocols for contestants. It follows the death of Flack and a number of other former participants, including Mike Thalassitis. ITV’s protocols are almost identical to those published in 2019 and include detailed screenings prior to broadcast. Contestants are also offered a minimum of eight therapy sessions once they return home.