Seething Olivia Attwood and Maura Higgins rivalry hits boiling point: ‘She can’t stand her’ my source mewed – read toxic whispers, Pete Wicks connection, vicious.comments and you’ll see why, says KATIE HIND

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It’s incredibly frustrating when someone you strongly dislike surpasses you in success.

Except, perhaps, seeing them do it twice.

Olivia Attwood, who became known on Love Island, has worked hard to build a successful career in television, and it seems like that career is about to reach a new level.

Olivia, age 34, is extremely driven and truly believes she’s the ultimate Love Island contestant.

It seems Maura Higgins, her longtime rival, is about to seriously damage her confidence.

Maura appeared on Love Island in 2019, two years after Olivia. She’s successfully transitioned to American television, hosting the US version of Love Island and currently appearing on Celebrity Traitors. Now, at 35, she seems poised to achieve a goal Olivia has long desired: hosting the UK version of Love Island.

Those in the television industry are widely expecting Maya Jama to leave her position as host of Love Island. Sources close to Olivia, who received a private education, say she’s very eager to take over the role when it becomes available.

According to sources at ITV, producers would prefer Maura, especially given her recent popularity from the show American Traitors.

I’m told Olivia has long hoped to host Love Island. While she was initially considered as a potential replacement for Maya, sources say producers are now leaning towards Maura for the role.

Maya hasn’t made any official announcements yet, but after hosting for four years, she’s reportedly receiving numerous job offers, and it seems likely she’ll accept at least one.

Maura hosted the US version of Love Island twice and was asked to return for a third season. However, she had to decline because it overlapped with filming for The Traitors. Her career is currently gaining a lot of positive attention and success.

Nothing signaled this change more powerfully than Maura’s striking look at last month’s Golden Globes, where she wore a beautiful black off-the-shoulder dress with a dramatic gold shawl.

Olivia hasn’t agreed to any TV deals except with ITV, and she hasn’t considered options with networks outside of the UK yet.

According to a source, Olivia is extremely angry about everything that’s happened. She always expected to get Maya’s job – it’s a major position in television, and she felt she deserved it.

It’s particularly frustrating for Olivia, as friends say she really dislikes Maura – and that this is well-known at ITV. This is especially true because, initially, Olivia seemed to be having more career success than Maura, even though they both started out working for the same drinks promotion company.

Considering both women have previously dated Strictly Come Dancing star Pete Wicks, it’s easy to understand why Olivia is upset.

It’s frustrating for Olivia because no matter what she does, Maura has either already done it, or ends up doing it better.

Last year, Maura Higgins caused a stir when she joined ‘I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here!’. At the time, she was dating Pete Wicks, and their relationship was already getting a lot of attention, particularly because he was competing on ‘Strictly Come Dancing’. Many people specifically watched to see her arrive on the show, along with Reverend Richard Coles.

I remember when Olivia had to leave the jungle – it was heartbreaking. She only lasted a few days, and later explained she’d collapsed because of really low iron. It was awful, and honestly, it felt like too much for her to handle even then.

She was really upset that her screen time was reduced, and felt Maura entering the jungle later on proved that Maura was simply imitating her career path.

To make things even worse for Olivia, Maura’s time on the reality show – she lasted until sixth place – unexpectedly boosted her public image.

After Maura did well on ‘I’m A Celebrity,’ Olivia heard rumors that show producers were now supporting her biggest rival. Understandably, she wasn’t happy about it, a source told me.

‘Her career has gone from strength to strength while Olivia’s popularity is waning.’

Olivia and Maura first met in 2016 while working as promotional models for Monster Energy at sporting events. Despite both being glamorous and ambitious, people close to them say they didn’t immediately become friends.

A year after first gaining attention, Olivia found fame on the reality show Love Island, where she met and began dating fellow contestant Chris Hughes. Although they finished third, the public loved them so much that they got their own show, “Chris And Olivia: Crackin’ On.” However, the couple split up only a few months after the three-episode series aired.

Maura, originally from Ballymahon in County Longford, was still employed by Monster Energy and seemed to be falling behind in whatever was happening.

In 2019, Maura Higgins entered the Love Island villa and quickly became popular after pairing up with Curtis Pritchard, brother of dancer AJ Pritchard. They reached the show’s finale but ended their relationship in March 2020.

Everyone in the reality TV scene knew Maura and Olivia weren’t getting along, but it became public in November 2024. Olivia was furious when Maura appeared on a jungle-themed show, and she publicly shared her anger on social media.

She shared that she plans to write a book someday, filled with surprising stories she’s held onto for years. She promises it will be incredibly shocking and revealing.

You can copy my team, repeat my ideas, and even try to follow my methods, but it just won’t be the same. It’ll lack the original quality and impact, plain and simple.

In an interview with the Daily Mail last year, Olivia publicly addressed her competitive relationship for the first time, stating confidently, ‘I’m willing to work harder than anyone else… others might attempt to, but they won’t be able to surpass me.’

Maura, however, appears to have proved her well and truly wrong.

ITV wanted Olivia to become their next big star, similar to Holly Willoughby, after Holly left This Morning in October 2022.

Olivia previously filled in as a host on a daytime TV show last summer. She’s also starred in several reality series on the channel, like ‘Olivia Attwood: Getting Filthy Rich’ and ‘Olivia Attwood’s Bad Boyfriends’.

Olivia seemed to be doing well, but her reputation changed when Pete Wicks came into the picture, shifting her image from relatable to something else.

According to Maura’s friends, her recent, unpleasant breakup with Wicks in 2024 is, unfortunately, satisfying to some.

I heard that Maura has always kept to herself and doesn’t understand why Olivia dislikes her so much. It seems ironic that Olivia’s affair with Maura’s former partner is now causing problems in her own life. Sometimes, the best payback is simply letting things happen naturally.

Today, all eyes are on Pete as the person Olivia reportedly broke up with her husband, League Two footballer Bradley Dack, over. They had been married for two years.

Two weeks ago, sources close to Olivia told The Sun that Bradley was to blame for the breakup of her marriage, claiming he pushed her to end things. Olivia’s publicist later stated that Bradley had behaved inappropriately, though they didn’t specify exactly what he did.

There was no mention of Pete, who is Olivia’s co-star on Kiss FM radio, in the story.

Their close friendship became public last summer when they were photographed getting cozy on a work trip to Ibiza. This is believed to have significantly contributed to her upcoming divorce.

Olivia and Pete seemed very eager to avoid any suggestion that their close bond played a role in Olivia’s breakup with Bradley, so they carefully planned a public relations strategy to prevent any bad publicity.

Instead, the move backfired. People were outraged by Olivia’s willingness to blame her husband, and it created a negative public image. I heard that ITV executives were disappointed, as they had hoped she would become a star for the network.

It was a really bad mistake for her, especially since she’s hoping to take Maya’s place on Love Island. It’s even worse considering Pete used to date Maura.

According to a source, Olivia is completely captivated by Pete. It’s clear from photos that she’s very fond of him. It’s likely upsetting for her to know he previously dated Maura, who she strongly dislikes.

It seems like whenever Olivia starts to build a relationship with someone new, she discovers a connection to her ex, Maura, in that person’s past. It’s as if she can’t escape thinking about Maura, even after all this time.

She really likes Pete and enjoys being with him, but she’s bothered by his past relationship with Maura.

We’re back to talking about Love Island and who will be the next host. I’m told the competition for the job is going to be fierce.

‘You haven’t seen anything yet,’ says one insider. ‘If Maura gets it, Olivia will be fuming.’

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2026-02-07 05:09