Love Island’s Shakira admits family ‘hated’ boyfriend Harry after villa stint – and didn’t him meet for months

LOVE Island’s Shakira Khan has admitted her family “hated” her co-star boyfriend Harry Cooksley – and refused to meet him for months. The pair first locked eyes on each other on Love Island last year, but their journey in the villa was far from smooth sailing. Love Island’s Shakira Khan has admitted her family ‘hated’ her boyfriend Harry Cooksley after their villa stint last year Credit: ITV The pair have gone from strength to strength since their villa exit – but her family took some convincing Credit: Instagram They immediately formed a connection but that was put on pause as he decided he wanted to get to know Helena Ford. After spending the majority of the series dating other islanders, the two finally admitted their feelings for one another, just weeks before the final. Sign up for the Love Island newsletter Thank you! Now Shakira, who fronts Love Island spin-off show The Debrief, has admitted her man faced a rough ride when it came to being a part of the family. Dressed in a pretty polka dot dress she told co-hosts Toni Laites and Yas Pettet: “For me, my family hated Harry from what they had seen on the show. Get the full scoop on the real reason Love Island’s Ellie quit the villa in our exclusive Sun Club story “And I didn’t introduce him to them for months because I just wanted us to have that time not listening to the noise and decide if this is someone I want to introduce to my family”. Yas then interjected: “He had a lot of work to do as well”. She told how her loved ones had not met Harry until months after they saw sparks fly on the show Credit: ITV They reached the final of the ITV2 series Credit: ITV Shakira agreed: “He had a lot of work to do”. Most read in Showbiz She likened the situation to current Love Island star Simba, who has already come under fire from partner Angelista’s family. Simba and Angelista have had a rollercoaster ride in the Love Island villa, with Simba testing Angelista’s loyalty and emotions on a number of occasions. As the meet the parents episode was teased, it looked to be a rocky ride for the pair. Shakira added: “I think its going to be the same case with Simba. “He’s just going to have to be persistent and resilient and just prove it every single day”. Harry and Shakira ended up coming in second place behind winners Toni Laites and Cach Mercer in their Love Island series. Since coming out of the villa, the two appear to be going from strength to strength and they recently celebrated a huge milestone in their relationship. In February, the ITV stars revealed they’d officially moved in together. The pair then shared a clip of them jumping around in their new home. Comment now