Love Islander secretly splits from girlfriend of a year to appear on All Stars & he’s already flown out to South Africa
LOVE Island star Curtis Pritchard has secretly split from his girlfriend Sophie Sheridan to appear on All Stars.
In 2022, The Sun revealed Curtis, 28, had moved on from Maura Higgins with his Cinderella co-star Sophie after meeting on stage.
The pair often shared loved-up photos on their Instagram and last summer enjoyed a romantic getaway to St Lucia in the Caribbean.
But it has now been revealed Curtis has quietly ended his relationship with Sophie ahead of his All Stars return.
A source said: “Curtis split from Sophie a few weeks ago after the pair decided they were better off as friends.
“The romance had run its course and Curtis couldn’t see the relationship going any further.
“It came at the right time, as Love Island bosses were also desperate to get him back on the show for All Stars.
“When Curtis was approached by bosses, he jumped at the chance of returning.
“He’s newly-single and loves being on telly, so getting the chance to be back in the villa and to find love again was a no brainer.
“He loved doing Love Island first time around and now that he’s single it’s come at a great time for him.”
The Sun has reached out to Curtis’ rep for comment.
The split comes as a surprise as Curtis and Sophie were only pictured in November looking happier than ever at the Irish Post Awards 2024 at Grosvenor House.
Last year, Curtis was in a relationship with Sophie, so the option to do the spin-off was out of the question.
The pair have since deleted any trace of each other from their Instagram with Curtis hoping to find his dream woman – six years after he dated Maura Higgins.
His TV stint is bad timing for Maura, who is dating Strictly Come Dancing hunk Pete Wicks.
I’m A Celeb star Maura, 34, and Curtis hooked up on Love Island in 2019 and dated for eight months.
A source said: “Curtis signing for All Stars is more than awkward for Maura just as she’s fallen for Pete and they’ve finally gone public with their love.
“Her break-up with Curtis wasn’t the best and Maura always worried he’d be the ex that could blab.
“It’s also less than ideal when she’s hoping to build on her I’m A Celebrity profile and advance her career.
“Love Island bosses are in the process of confirming the Islanders who will launch January’s show and Curtis might not make that line-up — but he is in the cast of bombshells to land later in the series.”
Love Island: All Stars launches in Cape Town, South Africa, on January 13.
Other names in the frame include Grace Jackson, Luca Bish and Liv Hawkins.
ITV said: “Any names suggested are speculation until our line-up is officially announced.”