LOVE Island star Jess Harding dumped her "blindsided" boyfriend Sammy Root by phone as she partied in Ibiza.

The Sun can reveal 23-year-old Jess refused Sammy's pleas to talk in person before making their break up official.

He was back in his hometown of Kent- more than a 1,000 miles away – when news of their split leaked.

Insiders say Sammy was left "gutted" as his hopes of reconciling were dashed.

Instead, Jess was thought to be telling pals "they're better off as friends".

A source close to the couple told The Sun: “Sammy feels blindsided by the entire situation.

READ MORE ON LOVE ISLAND

LOVE ISLAND REUNION

Tom Clare, Casey O’Gorman and Liv Hawkins’ reunite in Rhodes

FOUND LOVE

Claudia Fogarty confirms romance with footballer after split from Casey O'Gorman

"He hasn't had any time to process Jess' decision privately and she didn't even give him the respect to speak face-to-face about her decision to end the relationship.

"Sammy was absolutely under the impression they could work things out once seeing each other in person again.

"He is completely gutted about the split.”

The relationship has ended just two months after Jess and Sammy won the summer series of 2023.

Most read in TV

FAB CHOICE

90s comedy legend revealed as Rita Ora’s Masked Singer replacement

GET YOUR SKATES ON

Gogglebox legend & controversial reality star join Dancing On Ice lineup

ALL KICKING OFF

Where Live & Kicking cast are now… flashing claims to bondage dungeon shame

TROLL TERROR

Sick trolls send me pics of coffins wishing me dead, says Strictly’s Shirley

They beat fan favourites Whitney Adebayo and Lochan Nowacki to the £50,000 prize on July 31.

Tyrique Hyde and Ella Thomas came in third place, while Molly Marsh and Zachariah Noble landed in fourth.

Rumours of a split between Sammy and Jess have been rife since last week.

The couple have made red carpet appearances together in recent weeks, including at the The Sun's Who Cares Wins Awards.

Onlookers described the pair as distant, but they put on a united front in front of the cameras.

They also walked the red carpet together at the National Television Awards, but insiders suggested they were struggling to get on behind the scenes.

Jess jetted off to the party island of Ibiza where she's been with her female friends since jetting off at the weekend.

She posed for a mirror selfie in her bikini as she took her mind off the break up abroad.

Source: Read Full Article