Love Island’s Tanya breaks silence on split with Shaq and reveals reason they broke up
LOVE Island’s Tanya Manhenga has finally broken her silence on her split with Shaq Muhammad and revealed the real reason why they broke up.
The reality star, 24, told all while appearing on fellow islander Whitney Adebayo‘s podcast WHAT’S IT GIVING? and branded Shaq “immature”.
The Sun revealed in August that Tanya and Shaq had broken up after a year of turbulent ups and downs.
Now, for the first time, Tanya has opened up about the reasoning behind their relationship breakdown four months ago.
Tanya, who was also joined on the podcast couch by ex-islander Kaz Kwami, said: “I feel like from him, he needed to mature a little bit because guys mature very slowly.
“And then I feel like he was having his epiphany of maturing in our relationship, but then it’s at the expense of my feelings that you’re maturing and it’s not good enough.
“We lived together. I’ve never wanted to live with a guy, like ever.
“Before Shaq I was with someone for three years, he was literally like, ‘Let’s get a house together’. He was ready to just do it but I said no.”
Tanya explained how things seem to fly at a much faster pace when you meet someone on Love Island.
As a result, she said moving in with Shaq seemed a “natural” step despite her previous reservations.
Unfortunately, Tanya says this this only magnified the “flaws” she felt she saw in him.
Tanya continued: “It was natural for me to live with him.
“I didn’t feel any pressure but the behaviours that you start to see when you live with someone… you’re in this public relationship…
“I always said from the beginning, ‘Please, if you ever change your mind or you feel some type of way, you feel like you want to play outside, just say it because if I get embarrassed I’m out’.
“I’m not going to be that couple that people are like, ‘Yeah we saw him in the club, he was different’.”
Tanya’s decision to speak about her split with Shaq comes after The Sun revealed that she is being lined up for the upcoming Love Island All Stars series.
The new series kicks off next month in South Africa and Tanya had been in discussions to appear in it.
A source told us earlier this month: “It’s very early talks but Tanya is being lined up for a return to the villa.
“She genuinely wants to find love and if she can do it once, she can do it twice.”
Love Island All Stars 2025 rumours
Love Island All Stars will be back for its second series in 2025 - and rumours are already rife as to who will be making a comeback this time around.
After the second All Stars series was announced in May, show boss Mike Spender said: “Lots of people have been in contact about it, lots of fun people, from series one onwards.
“We cast it because we knew what was going on behind the scenes of who was getting with who and now even more stories have come out.
“I think we will now save ex-islanders for All Stars.”
One rumoured name for the next series is data engineer Harry Baker.
Harry, 25, arrived in the villa as a bombshell in Series 11. He soon ‘stole’ Grace Jackson after making his debut.
Arriving late in the run, he only lasted for a few days before being dumped alongside Lola Deloca.
Despite the hunk’s brief stint, viewers have called for Harry’s return.
One upset fan wrote: “Get you in All Stars next”, to which Harry cryptically replied by posting ‘shrugging’ emojis.
Shaq and Tanya, placed fourth on Love Island in 2023 and decided to call it quits after a year together.
In July this year, eagle-eyes fans spotted that she had deleted most of the pictures of Shaq from her Instagram before the pair suddenly unfollowed each other.
Insiders claimed they were still attempting to salvage things, but there was no going back.
Tanya’s decision to split with Shaq came after he jetted off on a lads’ holiday with fellow Love Island star Dami Hope.