The moment Busted's Matt Willis realised he had to marry Emma Willis (2024)

Celebrity hosting duo Emma and Matt Willis have opened up about their sweet love story as the new spin-off, Love Is Blind UK, hits screens.

Since their chance meeting during an MTV interview in 2004, Big Brother host Emma and Busted star Matt have only had eyes for each other. They married in 2008 and share three children, Isabelle, Ace and Trixie.

And now they are putting their lasting love front and centre as the new co-hosts on one of Netflix’s most popular dating shows, Love Is Blind, as it debuts its highly-anticipated UK season.

The premise sees 30 contestants – half men, half women – speed date their way through a cohort of strangers with the hopes of finding that one special spark.

By the end of the 10 days, couples who believe they have a unique bond get engaged with the promise of meeting one another at the altar in just a few weeks time. The catch? They have never laid eyes on one another.

In the real world each couple must overcome a plethora of challenges – from chaotic love triangles to shocking confessions to sceptical family members – all in the pursuit of a lifetime of happiness together.

The show is the perfect yardstick to measure the strength of their relationship – which has seen its own hurdles over the years.

Although neither could remember the exact moment they knew the other person was ‘the one’, for Matt he realised he had to propose to stop Emma from slipping through his fingers.

‘I think it happened over time but for me it was never one thing. I was kind of like “I’m going to ask her to marry me because I don’t want her to go away.” That was it for me,’ he told Metro.co.uk.

Emma added: ‘I think I always knew that I was pulled towards [Matt]. In [Love Is Blind] they have a very limited amount of time to know what they want to do and they have a moment of realisation where they have to get down on one knee and propose to somebody and then meet them.

‘Whereas in real life. I don’t think it was so much of a moment.’

One thing they were in agreement about was that they never envisioned their relationship making it this far.

‘I don’t think either of us ever thought we’d get married,’ Matt admitted.

Meanwhile, Emma echoed: ‘We never thought we would be together 20 years later, we were just having a bit of fun and that fun turned into a life of happiness.’

Despite Emma and Matt’s trusty presence on the show – guiding the couples from one stage of the experiment to the next – they explained there is one thing they are strictly prohibited from doing, despite their pleas.

Much like a nature documentary maker unable to help a wounded animal, they cannot advise the contestants. No matter their troubles.

‘We want to be! We want to be [involved],’ Emma, 48, explained. ‘That is not our job which is hard,’ the boyband alum, 41, agreed.

Explaining exactly how it all works, Emma lamented: ‘We have asked multiple times “can we… can we get in there a bit more” but I understand why we’re not because they’re in this bubble and you want them to stay in that bubble.

‘You want them to stay focused on what they’re there to do… [and] the minute we dip in, it distracts them.

‘They might think more “oh we’re on a TV show”. You want them to stay immersed in it. So we’re allowed to dip into it the moments where we need to reset the next part of the experiment for them.’

‘But hopefully, there will come a time where we will all reunite together and we’ll get to ask them all the questions that we’ve written down in books since we watched the series.’

‘[We’ve been] absolutely dying to ask them!’ Matt echoed.

The show is filmed across the UK, Sweden and Corfu and the duo are only sent in for ‘two or three days’ at a time.

Otherwise, they are ‘back at home, being mum and dad during the school run, doing other day jobs… and then we spend a few days there with them and get up to speed with what’s been happening.’

Matt added: ‘We get filled in a bit by people about what [is] going on, partly because we pester them to know everything.’

Although they have limited screen time, the project is still special for the two of them as they haven’t officially hosted anything together since 2008. Naturally, the charm of the show immediately captured them both.

‘We watched the whole series in about two days [and] were staying up till the middle of the night watching it. We were adamant, we were like “don’t see anyone else. We want the job. Please have us.” We were all over it,’ Matt shared about their eagerness to land the gig.

The TV personality jokingly added they were practically ‘begging’ for the role.

The US version of the show – helmed by Nick and Vanessa Lachey – has proved itself a consistent hit since first airing in 2020 and its latest, fifth, season peaked at number one in the streaming charts earlier this year as it reached new highs.

And although the UK version is hoping to follow in its footsteps, there is one way it can set itself apart from its transatlantic counterpart.

By finally including an LGBTQ+ inclusive season (something producer Chris Coelen has previously told the Metro would involve some ‘logistical difficulties’).

When asked if it could be a possibility, Emma expressed her enthusiasm for the idea.

‘I would love to absolutely love to [do an LGBTQ+ inclusive season]. I think it would be incredible,’ she said.

But in the meantime, viewers have plenty of drama awaiting them as the hopeful lovers answer the question at the heart of the show – is love truly blind?

The first four episodes of Love Is Blind: UK will air on Netflix on Wednesday, August 7. Episodes 5-9 will drop on August 14 and episodes 10-11 will arrive on August 21.

Got a story?

If you’ve got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the Metro.co.uk entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@metro.co.uk, calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we’d love to hear from you.

MORE : Emma Willis makes feelings crystal clear after ‘gutting’ Channel 4 The Circle axe

MORE : Netflix fans stop watching ‘triggering’ thriller halfway through after experiencing ‘intense’ physical reactions

MORE : TV legends reunite six years after iconic show ended