Maura Higgins facts for kids

Maura Higgins (born on 25 November 1990) is an Irish television star, model, and presenter. She became well-known in 2019 after being a finalist on the fifth series of the reality show Love Island.

Since then, Maura has worked with many fashion and makeup brands. She also hosted the Irish version of the makeup competition Glow Up. She has been a contestant on popular shows like Dancing on Ice (2020), Cooking with the Stars (2022), and I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! (2024). Maura was also a social media presenter for Love Island USA and Love Island Games. In 2024, she started presenting Love Island USA: Aftersun.

Early Life and Beginnings

Maura Higgins was born in Ballymahon, County Longford, Ireland. Her parents are Sharon and Seamus Higgins. She grew up with two sisters and one brother.

Maura went to Forgney N.S. and then Ballymahon Vocational school. After school, she studied hairdressing in Athlone. She worked in a hair salon in Ballymahon for a while.

In 2014, Maura started working for Monster Energy. As a "Monster girl," she traveled to Abu Dhabi for the Formula 1 finale in 2017. In 2018, a video of her drifting a car for Monster Energy in Abu Dhabi went viral. This video aimed to inspire women there to drive.

Before her big TV break, Maura also appeared in the music video for Liam Payne's song "Get Low" in 2017. In 2019, she worked as a ring girl for famous boxers, including Anthony Joshua.

Career Highlights

Modelling and Brand Partnerships

Before becoming a TV star, Maura worked as a model and grid girl. She was part of many advertising campaigns. Her work with Monster Energy began in 2014, where she gained attention for her car drifting video.

After Love Island, Maura launched her own product lines.

• In August 2019, she released her first luxury tan collection with Bellamianta. A second collection followed in 2021.
• In October 2019, Maura launched a clothing collection with Boohoo.com. She also hosted their first podcast, "Get the Scoop."
• In November 2019, she started her first lingerie collection with Ann Summers. She has since released several more collections with them.
• In April 2020, Maura launched a shoe and bag collection with EGO shoes. She filmed a TV commercial for it in Dubai.
• In June 2020, she released a 34-piece makeup collection with Inglot Cosmetics.
• In September 2020, Maura worked with Just Eat to promote Greggs deliveries in the UK.
• In December 2020, she launched her own False eyelashes brand called "False Flutters," sold exclusively at Primark.
• In November 2021, Maura signed with Elite Model Management to grow her modelling career.
• In November 2022, she teamed up with Kim Kardashian's makeup artist, Mario Dedivanovic. They created videos for Social media to promote his new makeup products.

Television Appearances

Maura Higgins became famous in June 2019 when she joined the Love Island villa for its fifth series. She quickly became a fan favourite.

After leaving Love Island:

• She regularly appeared on This Morning, giving advice in an "agony aunt" segment.
• She also presented a two-part series called "Maura's Ireland," showing the beauty of her home country.
• In January 2020, Maura won "TV Personality of the Year" at the Gossies Awards.
• She hosted the red carpet for The National Television Awards and was a guest on Love Island: Aftersun.
• In the same month, Maura competed on the twelfth series of Dancing on Ice. She was partnered with Alexander Demetriou and was eliminated in week 7.
• In July 2020, Maura had her own show on ITV2 called Maura Higgins: You're Joking Me!.
• She was a guest on Loose Women, The Late Late Show, and Jeremy Vine.
• Maura also appeared on celebrity game shows like Supermarket Sweep, Alan Carr's Epic Gameshow, Celebrity Juice, I'll Get This, and The Wheel.

More recently:

• In September 2021, Maura was announced as the presenter for the Irish version of Glow Up: Britain's Next Make-Up Star.
• In April 2022, she won "Best Female TV Presenter" and "Most Stylish Lady" at The Gossies Awards.
• The same year, Maura was a contestant on the second series of Cooking with the Stars, finishing in fourth place.
• In October 2022, she appeared in an episode of Shopping with Keith Lemon.
• In July 2023, Maura became the social media presenter for the fifth series of Love Island USA. She also guest-hosted a challenge on the show.
• In September 2023, Maura shared that she would be acting in a film called The Spin. She plays a character named Rose in the movie, which was filmed in Northern Ireland.
• In October 2023, Maura was the social media presenter for Love Island Games, a global spin-off show. She also guest-presented three episodes.
• In 2024, Maura began presenting the American version of Love Island: Aftersun. She also guest-presented two episodes of the main Love Island USA show during its sixth season.
• In November 2024, Maura joined the twenty-fourth series of I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!. She finished in seventh place.

Personal Life

Maura Higgins lives in Essex, England. She moved there when she was training for Dancing on Ice.

Maura briefly dated Curtis Pritchard after they were on Love Island together in late 2019. Their relationship ended in March 2020. She was also in a relationship with Strictly Come Dancing professional Giovanni Pernice, which ended in October 2021. Between 2023 and 2024, Maura dated Bobby Holland Hanton, who is a stunt double for actor Chris Hemsworth.

Filmography

As herself

Year	Title	Role	Notes	Ref.
2019	Love Island	Contestant	Finished in 4th place; Series 5
	This Morning	Agony aunt	Segments
	This Morning	Presenter	2 episodes
	Supermarket Sweep	Special guest	Cameo
	Jeremy Vine	Guest panelist	1 episode
	The Late Late Show	Guest	Irish talk show
	Celebrity Juice	Guest panelist	Series 22; episode 3
	Love Island: Aftersun	Guest panelist	Spin-off
	Loose Women	Guest panelist	2 episodes
2020	Love Island: What Happened Next?	Herself	Series 1; Episode 3
	Dancing on Ice	Contestant	Finished in 6th place; Series 12
	Maura Higgins: You're Joking Me!	Herself	Main role
	I'll Get This	Guest	Christmas special
	The Wheel	Celebrity expert	Series 1; Episode 3
	Alan Carr's Epic Gameshow	Herself	Celebrity special
2021	Glow Up	Presenter	Irish version; 8 episodes
	On Yer Bike	Herself	Charity cycling series
2022	Cooking with the Stars	Contestant	Finished in 4th place; TV series
	Shopping with Keith Lemon	Guest	Series 3; Episode 8
2023	The Late Late	Guest	Valentines special
	Love Island USA	Social presenter	Season 5
		Guest Host
	Love Island Games	Social presenter	Season 1
		Guest presenter	3 episodes
	The Late Late Show	Guest	Christmas special
2024	The Spin	Rose	Film in post-production
2024	Love Island USA: Aftersun	Presenter	Spin-off show
	Love Island USA	Guest presenter	2 episodes
	I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!	Contestant	ITV1; series 24

Key

Denotes films that have not yet been released

Awards and Nominations