{"id":563423,"date":"2026-07-23T00:27:17","date_gmt":"2026-07-23T00:27:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/563423\/"},"modified":"2026-07-23T00:27:17","modified_gmt":"2026-07-23T00:27:17","slug":"sean-fitzgerald-we-left-love-island-because-we-werent-getting-anything-else-from-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/563423\/","title":{"rendered":"Se\u00e1n Fitzgerald: We left Love Island because we weren\u2019t getting anything else from it"},"content":{"rendered":"

It is unlucky for some, but Love Island continues to dominate in its thirteenth season. Despite declining UK viewership, the ITV dating show remains event television for reality TV fanatics and hopeless romantics alike. And if you aren\u2019t watching live, chances are you\u2019re catching up via social media recaps and reactions.<\/p>\n

The premise is as irresistible as ever: can you spend eight weeks in a Mallorcan villa with a group of strangers and find the love of your life? The \u00a350,000 prize fund is appealing too, no doubt.<\/p>\n

Since its debut in 2015, the format has remained largely unchanged, but Irish representation has steadily increased, with producers undoubtedly hoping to launch another Maura Higgins into the celebrity stratosphere. In an era of manufactured reality TV, where viewers increasingly complain of overproduction, Higgins\u2019 candour and humour cut through. (The Longford native has since leveraged her stint on Love Island into a successful TV career spanning reality competitions and presenting roles in both the UK and the US).<\/p>\n

\"Se\u00e1nSe\u00e1n ‘Fitzy’ Fitzgerald reacts to seeing fellow Irish contestant Charlene Murphy join the villa<\/p>\n

It makes complete sense, then, that producers turned to Charleen Murphy<\/a>, one of Ireland\u2019s most recognisable influencers, and Se\u00e1n \u2018Fitzy\u2019 Fitzgerald<\/a>, a GAA player with an existing social media following, as this year\u2019s Irish contingent.<\/p>\n

But the producers decision to bring Murphy in as a \u2018bombshell\u2019 left her at a disadvantage. Entering the villa after the original cast means you have little time to establish a connection, and thirteen seasons in, OG Islanders know that coupling up early remains the safest route to the latter stages of the competition.<\/p>\n

Fitzgerald, meanwhile, entered as an OG Islander and coupled up with detective Lola Deal just four days into the series, following a well-trodden path towards the final. But after six weeks, the couple found themselves in the bottom three of the public vote and decided to walk away on their terms.<\/p>\n

\"LolaLola Deal with Se\u00e1n Fitzgerald. Picture: Karwai Tang<\/p>\n

\u201cI was happy to leave,\u201d Fitzgerald says, speaking at Dublin\u2019s Conrad Hotel during a whirlwind trip home for media promotion.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe last few weeks were a bit like Groundhog Day, and I was thinking about club football coming up.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe weren\u2019t getting anything else from it. We were all tested out.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fitzgerald, 25, remained loyal to Deal (depending on how you view his Casa Amor antics) straight through to their exit.<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t know what to expect,\u201d he says. \u201cI thought I was going to go in there and couple up with a different girl every week \u2026 I knew I\u2019d find someone, but I didn\u2019t expect to fall in love with someone.\u201d<\/p>\n

Asked what it was about Deal that drew him to her, he\u2019s blunt.<\/p>\n

\u201cI just thought she was so hot,\u201d he laughs. \u201cShe\u2019s very naturally pretty and that\u2019s what I go for.<\/p>\n

\n Obviously, looks dry out and personality keeps you there. [She] is hilarious; she likes my weird humour and banter. And I vibe off that.\n <\/p>\n

Their relationship was heavily scrutinised from the get-go. That\u2019s Love Island tradition. The show is as much about strategy as it is about love (the cynics will debate the percentages for each), and their journey wasn\u2019t without its tests.<\/p>\n

\"Se\u00e1nSe\u00e1n ‘Fitzy’ Fitzgerald: ‘The last few weeks were a bit like Groundhog Day, and I was thinking about club football coming up.’ Picture: Brian McEvoy<\/p>\n

In Casa Amor \u2014 a fresh batch of equally attractive men and women arrive to break up existing couples and \u2018steal\u2019 partners \u2014 Fitzgerald questioned whether he had closed himself off too soon. After admitting he wanted to be tested, Casa Amor bombshell Julia Majchrzak attempted to pursue a connection with him. Fitzgerald ultimately chose to remain loyal to Deal, but Majchrzak\u2019s advances didn\u2019t sit well with Fitzy\u2019s original beau.<\/p>\n

Majchrzak\u2019s and Deal\u2019s exchanges resulted in some of the most viral moments of the season (including Majchrzak telling Deal to \u201cp\u00f3g mo th\u00f3in\u201d), but it is Deal who has largely faced backlash from the public.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Julia thing \u2026 that wasn\u2019t to do with me, as such, that was more the two of them,\u201d Fitzgerald says. \u201c[Julia] just kept bringing it up, again and again and again. It was really bothering Lola, because she was [saying], \u2018we don\u2019t need to keep talking about it\u2019.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve no bad blood with [Julia],\u201d he insists, \u201cShe\u2019s grand. It\u2019s just a difference of opinions.\u201d<\/p>\n

As for regrets, Fitzgerald is disappointed \u201cthe craic\u201d he brought to the villa didn\u2019t always make the final edit.<\/p>\n

\n What I really wanted to come across was that I was respectful to women and a bit of craic. I think I was very respectful to the women.\n <\/p>\n

Looking ahead, Fitzgerald isn\u2019t ruling out a return to teaching.<\/p>\n

\u201cBefore I went in, I was typing into ChatGPT for the Heart Rate Challenge, asking, \u2018What dances can I do that won\u2019t get me in trouble as a primary school teacher?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

He\u2019s grateful that his principal, who is a fan of the show, is \u201cso sound\u201d and told him to \u201cgo for it\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe thing I missed the most was the kids,\u201d he admits.<\/p>\n

\"FionnualaFionnuala Jones chats to Se\u00e1n Fitzgerald (Fitzy) in Dublin having returned from his time at the Love island Villa<\/p>\n

But while he never thought he would do the show (\u201cI did a video taking the piss of Love Island.
\n <\/a> The next day, they got me to do a Zoom audition\u201d), the appeal of reality TV is obvious, and he says he\u2019s eager to do more.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne thing I\u2019d love to do is I\u2019m A Celeb. They\u2019d show more of my craic. I think that would be hilarious.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d be open to most things. I\u2019m looking to get in to podcasting, TV, all of that.\u201d<\/p>\n

As for a return to the pitch for Barna versus Caltra on August 2, don\u2019t hold your breath: \u201cI don\u2019t know if they\u2019d want me… I haven\u2019t trained in 12 weeks!\u201d<\/p>\n

Deal, he says, will be visiting Ireland after the dust has settled on the final, and Fitzgerald is excited to show her everything that Ireland has to offer, including a \u201cspice bag spree\u201d and a meal in P\u00e1draic\u00edns Seafood Bar in Furbogh.<\/p>\n

\u2018Love Island\u2019 concludes on Monday. Fionnuala Jones will host a sold-out watch party at Opium Dublin with fellow Cork influencer P\u00e1draig Wilson McCarthy
\n