Ruby Lovell and the Soft Power of Storytelling: Connecting Nations, One Island at a Time
- ATN
- 4 days ago
- 3 min read
By: ATN News
New York: Ruby Lovell’s story begins on an island — and, in many ways, every chapter of her life circles back to one. Born in Sri Lanka, raised in London, and now thriving in Los Angeles, Lovell has built a career at the intersection of storytelling, cultural identity, and global entertainment. Today, she stands as a multi award-winning broadcast journalist, BAFTA-winning TV producer, author, and now the creative force behind a new travel series that connects island cultures around the world.
Lovell first came to wide recognition as the creator, writer, producer, and host of Right on LA!, her dynamic entertainment program that brings viewers into Hollywood’s orbit with sincerity rather than spectacle. The show earned industry honors on both sides of the Atlantic — including recognition as a U.S. National Entertainment Journalism Awards finalist in both Broadcast Journalist and Anchor/Host categories, as well as Ruby’s recognition in the Asian Women of Achievement Awards in the UK. Yet it is her approach that most defines her: grounded, human, and vivid.
“An impactful story stays with you,” Lovell says. “It has to be authentic. It has to make you feel something.”
This philosophy shapes her newest project, Island Girl, an eight-part international travel series that blends adventure, culture, food, music, and identity — all through the lens of island communities across the globe. Barbados, Singapore, Sri Lanka, the Maldives, and Greece are among the destinations already filmed.
But Island Girl is more than travel television — it is cultural diplomacy on screen.
Rather than presenting islands as postcard escapes, Lovell brings viewers into the living pulse of each place — its markets, kitchens, festivals, families, storytellers, and artisans. She speaks with chefs, elders, musicians, community builders — voices that carry memory. The show celebrates belonging, not just beauty.+
“I am the island girl,” Lovell says. “Wherever I go, that identity stays with me. The series is a celebration of what islands give to the world — resilience, warmth, creativity, and community.”
Island Girl has drawn support from major travel and cultural partners including SriLankan Airlines, Cinnamon Hotels & Resorts, and tourism networks across the islands featured. Yet despite its international span, the tone remains intimate — filmed with the same wonder Lovell felt as a child listening to her grandmother’s bedtime stories.
Those stories inspired another part of her creative path: her children’s book series, featuring a brave young girl named Ruby exploring Sri Lanka’s wildlife, culture, and heritage. The series has earned wide affection for its joyful representation, and Lovell is now in talks with animation studios in Los Angeles to bring it to screens.
For Lovell, representation is not a trend — it is personal.
“I wanted children from multicultural backgrounds to see themselves as the heroes,” she says. “To feel proud of who they are and where they come from.”
And there is more ahead. Alongside the global launch of Island Girl and the development of her animated series, Lovell is preparing to debut Love Ruby, her fashion line inspired by island aesthetics and Hollywood style — another extension of identity expressed through art.
Yet through all of these projects, one theme holds like the tide:
Home is not only a place — it is a story you carry.
Ruby Lovell carries hers with grace — and now, she is inviting the world to travel along.