From regional Victoria to Mallorca, Spain, former Sale local Jordan Dowsett has stolen the hearts of thousands of men and women across the country, becoming an instant fan favourite on one of Australia’s most popular reality television shows, Love Island Australia.
Sadly, the meticulous mulleted, muscly tradie did not find love during his time on Love Island, making a teary-eyed departure from the Villa during Episode 25.
Still, the self-proclaimed ‘half-glass-full kind of guy’ says his time on Love Island was the best experience he ever had.
“It was honestly the best experience of my life; I loved it so much,” Jordan said.
It has been several weeks since Jordan made his poignant exit from the Love Island villa, during which time host Sophie Monk officially crowned contenders Claudia Bonifazio and Austen Bugeja winners of the show.
After time to reflect on recent events, Jordan is finally ready to reveal it all, and what better place to start than the very beginning.
After a split from a long-term relationship, Jordan decided it was time for a change, packing his bags and heading north to the sunshine of the Gold Coast.
“I was happy living my life in the Gold Coast, it has been so good up there, and my sister really started to push for me to do it [Love Island Australia],” Jordan said.
“She said I would be really good on it and all that sort of stuff.
“I went down to Melbourne and seen her one weekend, and she basically helped me fill it all out [the application] and went from there.”
After numerous interviews and pages upon pages of forms, an unsuspecting Jordan received the news that would change his life forever; ‘you have been selected as a Love Island Australia Season 4 contestant’.
“I definitely did not expect someone like me to get on there,” Jordan said.
“A country boy from Victoria getting put on a reality TV show.”
The Gold Coast sparkie packed his bags and boarded a direct flight to Spain.
“It was the first time I went to Spain; it was nuts,” Jordan said.
“The flight literally took like a whole day to get over there; it was ridiculous.”
While Jordan’s time on Love Island was the “greatest experience” of his life, it wasn’t without its challenges.
“I loved it so much, but at the same time, it was the biggest rollercoaster I have ever been on in my life, emotionally,” Jordan said.
“Everything in there is so heightened, it’s crazy, you can’t actually explain it. You have to have had the experience to understand what I’m saying.”
For those not privy to the innards of soapy reality television, Love Island follows a group of men and women who partake in a series of tasks with a partner that they continue swapping until they meet the love of their life.
Relatively simple in theory, not quite so simple in practice.
Jordan, who has not yet had a relationship since his split with his former long-term partner a few years back, was an instant favourite with fans and among Love Island contestants (Islanders).
The 25-year-old was front and centre in the season’s first scandal, which rocked the show, as he was initially paired with Claudia Bonifazio, 23, until 25-year-old Holly Oakes-Ferguson decided to steal him.
Unfortunate in his search for love, Jordan bid farewell to Love Island, returning home from Spain single.
“Unfortunately for me, I didn’t find love with a girl in there, but I definitely fell in love with every single Islander that I spent quality time with in there,” Jordan said.
“I am down in Sydney at the moment, spending time with a lot of them; I have been back and forth from the Gold Coast to Sydney, we are all from different states, so Sydney is kind of the meeting point.
“I have probably been here four times now to see everyone.
“Obviously, the show only just finished, so we’ve sort of had to do it all like discreetly, not really be seen in public, but it has been absolutely amazing.
“The friendship connections; like I said, everything is so heightened, so crazy in there, and all of us experienced that together. It’s like no one understands except for us.”
Returning to his life on the Gold Coast, Jordan faced a world vastly different to the one he had left behind.
“Literally, your world gets turned upside down,” the former Sale footballer said.
“It’s a completely different world now, where there are some pros and cons, but at the same time, I wouldn’t change it for the world after the experience I got to have in there.”
Love Island Australia fans may be happy to know that Jordan is still on the search for love; there is no ring on that finger yet.
For Sale fans of Jordan’s, who may be hoping the hunky tradie will return home after his recent rise to fame, will sadly be disappointed. The reality TV star is lapping up life on the Gold Coast and has no plans to return to regional Victoria.
In other news, Jordan recently pleaded guilty to mid-range drink driving in Southport Magistrate’s Court after he was busted drunk behind the wheel of a golf buggy at a major Gold Coast intersection on his way back from a food run to a servo.
