Who is Will Young from Love Island 2023?

This Love Island contestant already has one million followers on TikTok

Will Young posing for a press photo for Winter Love Island 2023
(Image credit: ITV)

It's time for this year's singletons to enter the villa, so we're taking a look at who is Will Young, one of the contestants on Winter Love Island 2023.

For those who've been wondering when does Winter Love Island start, the day is upon us and we can only hope that this series brings all the drama, dumpings and scandalous challenges that we saw in the 2022 series.

As well as whole new batch of Love Island cast members, this year viewers have got a new presenter to enjoy too. But while some reality TV fans have been asking who is Maya Jama, the show's new host, others have their eye on one of this year's contestants, who already has a pretty huge following of his own. Keep reading to find out more about who is Will Young and what his chances are of sticking around until Love Island 2023 finishes.

Who is Will Young?

Will Young is a 23-year-old farmer from Buckinghamshire, who grew up on his family's £1 million estate. Will already has a large following on social media thanks to the viral videos he posts about life as a farmer, but now he's trading that in for a few weeks in the Love Island villa.

Revealing why he has decided to leave his farm and head to South Africa to appear on the dating show, Will said: "Having grown up on a farm, it’s been quite difficult juggling relationships and work. Love Island will give me time away from the farm to solely go out and find love. I think I’m at the time of my life where I’m mature enough to go and find a wife."

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He added: "It took a lot of time setting in place with the farm, obviously, because it’s me and my dad working.

"Me getting taken out of it, there was a lot of thought that went into it of different things that we could do. We’ve basically got someone in to replace me while I am away."

Ahead of his appearance on ITV's flagship dating show, Will has said he’s both a 'wholesome boy' and a 'cheeky chappy', and has revealed that he loves techno music and says Boris Johnson would be one of his dream dinner party guests. He also revealed that he loves to meditate, and that he lights a candle and meditates for 20 minutes every night.

What is Will Young famous for?

Will Young is famous for the videos and photos he shares of his life as a farmer under the nickname 'Farmer Will'. The videos show snippets of his day-to-day life surrounded by animals on the farm he grew up on.

Will might be famous himself but he's met a famous face too. Back in November, Will posted a video of Claudia Winkleman throwing a bucket of water over him as part of an advert for Head and Shoulders shampoo.

Will said of the interaction with the Traitors presenter: "Claudia Winkleman came to my farm. She was lovely and got stuck in. She poured water over me."

Will is on Instagram at @farmer_will_ and on TikTok at @farmerwill_. But despite his large following he won't be posting during his time in the Love Island villa, as all the contestants have been asked to disable their pages while they're on the show.

ITV has asked them to do this so nothing can be published on their behalf and to avoid "the adverse effects of social media".

How many followers does Will Young have?

Will has 1.1 million followers on TikTok, and 134k followers on Instagram.

When asked how he would feel if one of the girls in the villa turned out to be one of his many followers, Will said: "Hopefully they like my content. It is a possibility but I’ll just cross that bridge when it comes."

@farmerwill_

♬ original sound - Farmer Will

Where is Will Young's farm?

Will Young's family farm is in Buckinghamshire, in south east England.

He revealed that he has always lived on the farm with his parents, saying: "I’ve lived at home all my life. I think the longest I’ve been away from home is seven days.

"So I would definitely miss the animals and my family, and I live next door to my grandparents as well. So I think that would be quite tough – getting out of that safe space and chucked in the deep end."

He added: "My family are really sound. I’m sure the girl that I was to couple up with would be amazing as well so. I’m a big family person. Family is really, really important to me.

''I would be nice with everyone, having a big, loving happy family."

How long has Will Young been single?

Will hasn't revealed how long he's been single, but he has hinted at some commitment issues in the past.

He has said of past relationships: "I self sabotage myself sometimes when I’ve got a good thing going. I do like my own space and my own time; I haven’t got to stress about anything and just worry about myself."

However, he explains that it's not a deal breaker if his potential love interests aren't good with animals, saying, "My mum didn’t step on the farm for the first 20 years of my mum and dad’s marriage!"

He added, "What attracts me is energy, if the energy is there, she can do whatever she wants. 

"As long as she respects what I do and my busy times of the year, then that’s all I need. If she loves it, bonus! But it’s not a big issue for me."

The funny man has proved to be a hit with audiences, with many hoping that he won't leave Love Island anytime soon. 

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Ellie Hutchings
Family News Editor

Ellie is GoodtoKnow’s Family News Editor and covers all the latest trends in the parenting world - from relationship advice and baby names to wellbeing and self-care ideas for busy mums. Ellie is also an NCTJ-qualified journalist and has a distinction in MA Magazine Journalism from Nottingham Trent University and a first-class degree in Journalism from Cardiff University. Previously, Ellie has worked with BBC Good Food, The Big Issue, and the Nottingham Post, as well as freelancing as an arts and entertainment writer alongside her studies. When she’s not got her nose in a book, you’ll probably find Ellie jogging around her local park, indulging in an insta-worthy restaurant, or watching Netflix’s newest true crime documentary.