I Kissed a Girl has been described as “serving drama, smashing stereotypes, and promises more twists and turns than ever”.
Eva Adamson (22) from Belfast and Cara Kinney (25) from Ballycastle will be entering the Italian Masseria in a bid to find love with a group of other singles from across the UK.
In the show, hosted by Dannii Minogue, the group of girls are matched up and meet for the first time… with a kiss.
Before they arrive, the girls are matched based on what they’re looking for in a partner.
After meeting their match for the first time with a kiss, they’re encouraged to give their new relationship a good shot.
However, the girls must ultimately do what’s right for them, because everything is a possibility in this love game.
Belfast woman Eva said that this is her first time ever on a dating show and told this newspaper that she very rarely used dating apps prior to filming.
She also revealed that she enters the villa as a “surprise” at the end of the first episode as a new girl who is not immediately matched up with anyone.
“I come in to mix things up a bit,” she said.
“I used to search and search the internet for any WLW (women loving women) when coming to terms with my sexuality, so something like this is amazing.”
With a degree in Retail Fashion, Eva likes to mix up her style. She describes herself as ‘Stem’ — considered in the LGBTQ space as a girl with a mix of masculine and feminine energy.
Eva lived in London for four years while she was studying at university but now, since filming ended on the show, she has moved back home to Belfast.
“I do miss my friends in London but it’s great to be back home,” she said.
“I am just so buzzing to be on the show and to help represent Northern Ireland on this sort of stage because there’s very little representation for lesbians or girls who like girls on TV or the internet and those who are from Ireland or Northern Ireland it’s even less, so it really is a big deal.”
Eva said she spoke to other contestants on the show about the legalisation of same-sex marriage in Northern Ireland only coming into effect in 2020 — much to their surprise.
“They were all so shocked that it only came into place here so recently,” she told the Belfast Telegraph.
Ballycastle woman Cara Kinney
Cara, who works as an aesthetician and lash tech said it was amazing to appear on the show.
“Coming from a small town in Northern Ireland, the rare chance to be in an environment exclusively full of queer women was an opportunity of a lifetime,” she said, adding that growing up on a council estate has made her proud of people knowing where she’s come from in life.
The Co Antrim woman admitted that her mum is her biggest supporter, along with her three brothers and two sisters.
“When I was growing up, I didn’t have anyone from here I could identify with, so this show has been great for representing girls like me.
“I left school and moved away for university before I discovered my sexuality.”
Cara identifies as bisexual and she’s had relationships with both men and women.
She explains that being bisexual can be a “weird feeling” because she can sometimes feel “stuck in the middle”.
She told the Belfast Telegraph that she thanks the show for helping her feel “secure” in her sexuality.
“There are topics we discussed I would never normally in everyday life, but it was such a safe environment,” she said.
“It was the best experience I could have ever asked for; all the girls on the show were so welcoming and we all got on so well.”
Speaking about meeting the host — Dannii Minogue — Eva said she was “so down to earth”.
“You see all these big celebrities when you’re on TV growing up and you just get so starstruck but meeting and chatting to Dannii on the show was just amazing, she is such a lovely human being,” she said.
Cara added that “you don’t meet many big celebrities like that around Ballycastle, but she was so lovely and friendly to all the girls — a gorgeous person all round.”
I Kissed A Boy was a TV favourite of 2023, which saw a group of men from the LGBTQ+ community on the hunt for love in an Italian Masseria.
In keeping with the show’s women-first approach for this upcoming series, it was announced that Layton Williams will not be returning to offer his commentary this time around, but instead, TikTok star Charley Marlowe will serve as the narrator for I Kissed A Girl when it debuts next week.
Episodes one and two of I Kissed a Girl will be available to watch on BBC iPlayer on Sunday, May 5.
Episodes will air on BBC Three every Sunday and Monday night at 9pm.
News Catch Up: Tuesday 23rd April 2024
James Parker is a UK-based entertainment aficionado who delves into the glitz and glamour of the entertainment industry. From Hollywood to the West End, he offers readers an insider’s perspective on the world of movies, music, and pop culture.
