Love Island host Maya Jama was secretly devastated while filming the hit ITV dating show following her emotional split from Manchester City footballer Ruben Dias.
Friends of the 32-year-old presenter revealed she had to smile for the cameras during the show's 13th series in Majorca while mourning the end of a relationship she believed would last forever.
The couple ended their 18-month romance in May, just days before Jama returned to the villa for the opening episode in June. Following the break-up, she deleted all social media photos of the 29-year-old defender from her profile.
A secret heartbreak in Majorca
The flagship ITV dating series returned to Majorca in June, where romantic hopefuls entered the villa seeking love. Jama welcomed the contestants to the 13th series, presiding over couplings, recouplings, and dramatic fallouts through to the finale last month.
However, sources close to the television host revealed that Jama was coping with deep personal heartbreak while presiding over the contestants' love lives. A source close to the presenter told The Mail on Sunday: "She was devastated and it was tough for her. She had to smile for the cameras and spend her evenings surrounded by people falling in and out of love."
The insider added: "You couldn't make it up. She thought she had found her forever person and then she had to watch over a villa of single people trying to find theirs. She was the happiest she had ever been while with Ruben. She didn't expect, or ever want, it to come to an end."
Before entering the villa, Jama addressed the separation briefly on social media, declaring: "I am an all or nothing girl. I will love loudly or not at all and if it ends it ends."
Plans for a shared future in Cheshire
The couple had been together for less than two years, but friends confirmed that Jama was actively planning a long-term future with the Manchester City footballer. In December last year, the pair moved into a dream home, a £4 million luxury mansion located in Alderley Edge, an exclusive enclave in Cheshire favoured by top athletes and public figures.
The property had originally been awarded as a prize in an Omaze prize draw mansion giveaway before the winner sold the estate to the couple's landlord. Jama, who previously resided in London, had initially commuted to Dias's pad in Manchester before relocating to North West England full-time.
Despite facing demanding summer work commitments, the television star had arranged her itinerary to spend maximum time with her partner. Jama had built international flights into her schedule to join Dias in America during his World Cup duty with the Portugal national team, as well as spending time together in Cheshire upon his return.
Speculation and social media denials
By May, rumours began circulating that the 29-year-old footballer had been sending late-night social media follow requests to female influencers, an action referred to in Love Island terminology as toe-dipping.
At the time the reports emerged, Jama remained tight-lipped as she was on location at Ardross Castle in Scotland filming the second series of the BBC reality show Celebrity Traitors. The couple subsequently confirmed their break-up, although Dias strongly denied any allegations of unfaithfulness.
Writing on Instagram, the Portuguese centre-back expressed frustration over public speculation affecting his family. Dias wrote: "When my 85-year-old grandad is asking me if I've cheated on my girlfriend because he's seen it repeatedly on the news, that's where I draw the line on what's acceptable and what's not. I believe Maya deserves all the respect in the world. Respect me, respect Maya, and understand that not always one has to betray the other in order for a relationship to end."
Jet-setting travel and returning to London
Following the break-up, Jama moved out of the shared love nest in Cheshire and returned to her home in Hampstead, North London. She has since documented extensive international travel across her social media accounts for her 3.3 million Instagram followers.
Since the split, the former Radio 1 presenter has logged more than 20,000 miles of travel. Her trips have included visits to Sweden, Mykonos, Majorca, Miami, New York, Ibiza, and Morocco, alongside attending social events and parties in London.
Past high-profile relationships and dating histories
Jama is no stranger to public relationship break-ups. She previously dated grime musician and three-time Brit Award winner Stormzy for five years before they briefly split amid allegations of unfaithfulness. The pair rekindled their romance in 2023 before ending their relationship a year later in 2024.
During her hiatus from Stormzy, Jama engaged in a whirlwind romance with professional basketball player and NBA star Ben Simmons. The pair were romantically involved for seven months before getting engaged, but split three months later.
Dias also has a complex relationship history, having previously dated former Love Island contestant Arabella Chi, including during her appearance on the Love Island All Stars spin-off series in 2024, which was hosted by Jama.
Prior to that relationship, Dias was in a three-year relationship with Portuguese pop star April Ivy, which ended over lifestyle differences. Speaking to Esquire magazine recently, Dias stated that he wanted to settle down just like anyone else, acknowledging that his profession created a perception of him as a womaniser and noting that he wanted to prove there were exceptions to the rule.
For a time, the Love Island presenter was that exception, but as contestants on the dating series often observe, it is what it is.
