Love Island crowns Zimbabwe's Mimii winner in grand final

The winners of summer Love Island's 2024 grand final have been announced.

During their eight weeks in the villa, this year's contestants have missed a Euros tournament, an Olympics opening ceremony and a general election.

Their time inside has been almost as eventful, with shock dumpings, dramatic recouplings and sneaky kisses on the famous terrace.

But only one couple could take the £50,000 prize.

Mimii Ngulube and Josh Oyinsan were crowned winners, with Nicole Samuel and Ciaran Davies finishing in second place.

Matilda Draper and Sean Stone were third, while Jessica Spencer and Ayo Odukoya were fourth favourites.

During the episode, the finalists shared emotional declarations of love with one another.

Mimii praised Josh for being "attentive, kind, gentle and loving" as she gave her declaration.

Josh told her: "You mentioned to me that no one has ever written you a poem before and I promised you I will so I hope you like it."

The islander who grabbed most of the headlines this year didn't actually make the final.

When he entered the villa, Joey Essex quickly became the bookies' favourite to win the series.

But his antics finally caught up with him right before the final, when dumped contestants returned to vote for "the least compatible couple".

After a heated exchange with Samantha Kenny – who Joey ditched earlier in the series – the Essex boy and his partner Jessy Potts were shown the door.

Joey's casting in the 11th series of the ITV2 show received a mixed response, with some fans upset that a celebrity had been brought in.

But others praised the decision, and the 33-year-old has been at the centre of some of this year's biggest dramas.

Love Island was once one of ITV's biggest shows but viewing figures have steadily dropped since its heyday.

Six million people watched the show's 2019 final but just 1 million saw the end of the All Stars edition aired earlier this year.

However, ITV said the opening episode of the current run provided the show's best ratings for two years.

It said about 2 million people tuned in – up from 1.3 million in 2023.

The show has also beefed up its approach to contestants' wellbeing after two former islanders took their own lives.

One recent high-profile measure introduced by the show's producers was a social media ban preventing friends and family from posting on the behalf of islanders.

Previously, contestants' relatives would take over their accounts while they were in the villa, sometimes leaving them to face abuse from angry fans.

The ban, first introduced in 2023, was lifted during All Stars but was restored for the latest series.

An ITV spokesperson said the move was part of its "continued commitment to duty of care".