LOVE Island and Crocs seem strange bedfellows.

I confess I know little about the former. I believe it’s a reality TV show involving sun, sea and … well … it turns out, sandals.

The Crocs – those weirdly ugly yet quirkily attractive rubber clogs – have been part of my summer capsule wardrobe for many years. But while I have remained faithful to these strange but very comfy shoes, it seems they have been languishing in the fashion doldrums for a while.

Various labels have tried to resurrect the Croc to its former glory. Apparently, Balenciaga has attempted it, as has Christopher Kane; but to no avail.

But Love Island could yet rescue the Croc from the shadows so that it can shine in the sunshine once again.

The hero of the piece? Enter Ikenna in his stylish footwear. I admit I’m not that well acquainted with this chap. Suffice to say he’s a Love Island participant and word is he may be struggling to form connections in the villa. It seems naebody fancies him that much.

But then up he rocked in his Crocs, complete with the wee charm accessories you can fasten to them, and suddenly his fortunes had taken a turn for the better.

After the first episode of the show aired last Monday, retailer New Look reported a 500% spike in demand for Croc charms. This came following Ikenna’s introduction, who strode out to introduce himself wearing a pair of black Crocs decorated with a clutch of (possibly) lucky charms.

Some 2.4 million people tuned in to watch the first episode of season eight, so it’s no surprise that the show has quite an impact on fashion trends.

Harnessing this, and in an attempt to encourage viewers to shop more sustainably, it was announced last week that Love Island would be moving away from fast fashion and instead partnering with eBay to dress the islanders in second-hand clothes.

Perhaps I could lend them a Croc or two. As well as my “Good Crocs” (a vintage pair gifted to me circa 2002) there are the “Cutting About In The Garden Crocs”.

The latter are a little newer, and their provenance not huge on integrity (¤5 from a beach shop in Majorca and def not the real McCrocoy).

They originally belonged to our son, before he grew size 12 feet. They are, indeed, fetching in classy black and resplendent with charms. There’s one of a football, an Eto’o strip and a Spanish flag. There was also a footie boot long since lost.

The real claim to fame of these rubber sandals is that they once tamed a conger eel.

Our son was fishing from a pier with a wee telescopic fishing rod (probably ¤5 from the same beach shop). He shouted over that he’d “caught a massive fish!”. Aye, right. We’d heard these tall tales before, so we didn’t exactly rush over to observe the fruits of his labours.

We got a shock when we did, though. It was a conger the length of his arm which he was whacking with his stubbornly ineffectual footwear to try to get it off the line and back from whence it came.

I always have a smile when I contemplate my old kid-on Crocs.

Perhaps the lovelorn Ikenna should hang on in with his controversial footwear.

It might prove the perfect lure.