Who is Sharon Gaffka? Meet Love Island 2021 contestant who is swapping Brexit policy work for the villa
Everything you need to know about Love Island 2021 contestant, Sharon Gaffka.
It's all happening on ITV's Love Island, and Sharon Gaffka is at the centre of the drama.
The civil servant recently went on a date with new boy Teddy Soares, following her break from Aaron Francis, and now a Love Island recoupling is on the way.
The boys will get to decide who they want to couple up with, but will Sharon be Teddy's lucky lady? Or will she rekindle things with Aaron? And what will that mean for the other Love Island 2021 contestants? Only time will tell.
ITV has released a sneak peek from the dating show, and Love Island's Hugo is left in tears as Sharon brands him "ignorant."
As Sharon continues her Love Island journey, here's everything you need to know about the civil servant.
Sharon Gaffka – Key Facts
Age: 25
Job: Civil Servant – Operations Lead for Department of Transport
From: Oxford
Instagram: @sharongaffka
Coupled up with: Aaron Francis
Why does Sharon want to take part in Love Island?
It turns out that being the only single person in your friendship circle is no fun at all, and that played a big part in Sharon’s decision to sign up for the show.
“Because of COVID and the lockdown, I’m the only single one in my friendship group. They’re either married or planning on getting married. I don’t want to be the only one in the group chat that is single anymore!”
She also has a Love Island acquaintance in 2019 contestant Molly-Mae. “I used to do pageants. Molly-Mae and I had the same pageant director.”
Despite her connection to the show, Sharon isn’t actually a dedicated fan of Love Island, only having caught “bits here and there” from the last couple of series.
What does Sharon do for work?
Sharon is a civil servant and is the Operations Lead for the Department of Transport – a role that, like many others, has become a lot more complicated in the wake of the last year or so.
“I’ve been a civil servant since I was 18. I’ve worked in lots of different departments. I’ve been doing Brexit policy for the last year, I did a stint during the Coronavirus pandemic in the Department of Health so I was helping deliver testing kits and managing the operations. It’s been an intense year!
We can only imagine how nice a stay in a sun-soaked villa would be after dealing with all that!
What is a civil servant?
A civil servant is a person who works for a sector of government. They're hired on professional merit rather than appointed or elected, and their role typically survives transitions of political leadership. Types of jobs include government financial professionals, government IT experts, policy workers and so on.
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Will Sharon go back to her job after Love Island?
Will Sharon leave the world of meetings and red tape to promote fake tans and do nightclub PAs? Apparently not. “My intention post-Love Island is to return to my profession,” she says.
In fact, she had her boss’s backing when she took up her place on the show. “I did tell my boss and a colleague that I am going on Love Island. They're really big fans of the show. So I think they were more excited about it than I am!”
Sharon has big ambitions after the show…. “It is in my long term plan to potentially be an MP. So it would be a first for the show if I was the first Love Island MP.”
What is Sharon looking for in a partner?
Sharon has height and intelligence on her mind when it comes to finding her perfect match on the show – the only question is whether someone will come along that will tick those boxes.
“I tend to date someone who is taller than me even though my last long-term partner was actually someone who was shorter than me.”
What about the ghosts of Islanders past? Despite not having watched much of the show before, Sharon did say that one (perhaps surprising) islander caught her eye… “I've always said that somebody who's really intellectual is something that's really important to me. So, Michael in series five really surprised me when he said that he did like a degree in the sciences. I'm probably going to be shocked and taken back by some of the people that will walk into the villa. So I’m keeping an open mind.”
Sharon is also looking for someone with a good sense of humour, who won’t mind if she’s a little accident prone...
“Somebody who can make me laugh and I can be myself around. I’m really clumsy and goofy. On social media, I look really put together but my friends who know me know I’ll fall down the stairs.”
Let’s hope she is careful when navigating the stairs in the villa else she could end up on It’ll Be Alright on the Night!
Want to meet the other Love Island 2021 contestants?
- Hugo Hammond
- Aaron Francis
- Sharon Gaffka
- Shannon Singh
- Liberty Poole
- Brad McClelland
- Kaz Kamwi
- Toby Aromolaran
- Chloe Burrows
- Faye Winter
- Chuggs Wallis
- Liam Reardon
- Millie Court
- Rachel Finni
- Lucinda Strafford
- Teddy Soares
Love Island airs on ITV2 most nights at 9pm. For more info check out Instagram, Twitter, TikTok and Facebook. While you’re waiting, check out more of our Entertainment coverage or visit our TV Guide to see what’s on tonight.
