First ever winner of Love Island, Fran Cosgrave, is barely recognisable in a recent social media post, sporting a thick beard two decades after his appearance on the show.

The first series of Celebrity Love Island aired in 2005, featuring well-known personalities such as Atomic Kitten's Liz McClarnon and EastEnders star Michael Greco.

However, it was ex-Westlife bodyguard Fran Cosgrave and TV host Jayne Middlemiss who went on to win the show.

Prior to his stint on the show, he had a relationship with Natasha Hamilton from 2001 to 2002, with whom he shares a son, Josh, now 21.

Now two decades on, Fran, 47, looks markedly different from his days in the plush Fiji villa. The star has ditched the clean shave and now had a full dark beard.

Fran has largely retreated from the public eye, swapping television for music. He is now a producer and DJ for house music trio, the Futuristic Polar Bears, which he founded.

He has produced hit tracks like Running Wild and Damaged, with his Instagram bio stating he has 90 million streams on Spotify.

The group has toured extensively, performing gigs and making appearances at nightclubs worldwide. In a conversation with Jennifer Zamparelli on RTE 2FM, Fran reflected on his experience with fame.

He went on to say: "You can't take it [fame] too seriously because it's gone as quick as it comes.

"As it came towards 2009, things just started to spin out of control a bit, as it does. I was kind of finished with the whole celebrity thing.

"I started saying, 'no' to loads of programmes and I just wasn't interested in it. My manager, rightly so, was like, 'Mate why won't you do any of these things?' I was just like, 'I'm not there anymore.'"

The former nightclub owner has put his party days behind him and when he's on the road, he said there's 'no drinking, no partying'.

He now also focuses on running his business, RUUD Coffee, which he founded this year after launching his own bespoke coffee blends and brand, Concrete Coffee, in 2024.

Celebrity Love Island returned for a second season in 2006 and it featured celebrities such as Eternal singer and Loose Women star Kelle Bryan and Boyzone's Shane Lynch.

However, it was models Bianca Gascoigne and Calum Best who triumphed in the final series before its cancellation.

Love Island airs weekdays and Sunday nights from 9pm on ITV2 and ITVX

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