Love Island is now ITV2’s most-watched show of all time

Love it or hate it, this is impressive

Whatever you think of Love Island, you cannot deny that it is a phenomenon. It started out as a celebrity reality show, that was axed after two series in 2016. But then nearly a decade later it was reborn, like a phoenix from the flame, as a show with just regular folks, this time on ITV2. And despite ITV2 having no shortage of people-getting-off-with-each-other-on-holiday shows, word of mouth built, until last year it became the surprise smash of the summer, and it was all people were talking about. And the format has been sold around the world as well, with German, Finish n and Australian versions being made. It’s a true feel-good underdog story, right? And it appears the new series is doing even better. The first episode of the fourth series was watched by nearly three million people – which makes it the most watched show ever on ITV2. It also beat everything else in its timeslot. Those are pretty incredible numbers, especially for something not on normal terrestrial TV. And what was the previous record holder for ITV2? The finale of last year's Love Island, which drew in 2.43 million viewers.