I was on Married at First Sight – producers use clever tricks to create cheating scandals… and they work every time
There was more drama than ever before on this year’s Married At First Sight.
And Amy Christophers, who starred in the Channel 4 series in 2021, has spoken out about why she thinks there have been so many rows – and also a cheating scandal…
5
5
What a dramatic MAFS series we’ve had this year – where’s the love, folks?
We had Ella Morgan and JJ Slater texting each other behind their partners’ backs, and there was a major cat fight between Erica Roberts and Tasha Jay.
And we’ve yet to see how the brawl broke out, which apparently led to groom Luke Worley running the show!
But I’m starting to wonder if all these cheating scandals and arguments are actually turning off viewers who want to see the couples blossom.
Having been on MAFS, I know that the producers will encourage the cheating behind the scenes – although of course both parties involved have to be willing to do it!
During the audition, you’ll usually be asked if you’ve ever cheated, and if you say something like, “If I like someone else, I don’t care whose toes I step on, I’ll get them.” “I’m leaving “I assume producers will tell another contestant your ideal type, even though they know it could set off fireworks.”
And most of the time it does.
In my series, Megan Wolfe and Jordon Mundell said that they were more each other’s type than the people they were married to.
When they ended up drunk alone in a room, they kissed behind Bob Voysey and Alexis Economous’ backs. It’s like: What did you think was going to happen?!
Producers sit on information
5
It was reported that Ella and JJ actually left the experiment and returned together as a couple.
And in part, it was definitely thanks to the questions the cast had to ask each other at the spa day that made the two realize they were interested in each other – questions that I think the producers would have asked on purpose to create drama create.
Maybe JJ casually said to his story producer or someone in production, “Ella is just my type,” and maybe Ella said that JJ was hers.
I think the producers would have said, ‘Right.’ Okay. Is there something here? Can we show it to the group on camera?’
When we had a girls’ day on my show, it turned out that Josh Christie had sent one of the other women, Morag Crichton, a direct message before the show – and all because she had told the story to her producers.
Sometimes these producers wait a few weeks for information and then release it when the moment comes to cause drama.
That’s what story producers are for. You sit there with your phone and constantly write notes while you talk to them and tell them something.
Get into the minds of the participants
5
5
I think the producers also played a big role in the feud between Tasha and Erica – which I really didn’t enjoy.
In my year I had a small argument with Tayah Victoria – after that I think the producers tried to put a lot of distance between us.
And then when you do your voxing – i.e. speaking into the camera – they will keep asking you about someone. With me they always asked about Tayah and Adam Aveling – especially Tayah.
They’d say, “Okay, interesting, she didn’t say that.” Something like that – they try to convince you that someone beat you up.
When we finally sat down for one of the drinking sessions, Tayah said, “Oh my God, they keep asking me about you too and I have no idea why!”
I think they wanted to pit us against each other and make each other paranoid.
I’m wondering if this might be something that happened between Erica and Tasha before this argument, because I feel like there’s more to it, given the bitterness that Tasha seems to have towards Erica.
It’s not just the girls who have been arguing though, as it looks like we’re in for a major fight between Luke and Jordan Gayle – and all the couples seem to be constantly bitching about each other.
Catchphrase
I find it funny how so many couples keep saying, “Keep my name out of your mouth.”
It’s a really unnatural situation, but it’s extremely hard not to talk about the other couples on the show because the producers are constantly trying to make you judge the others and express your opinion about them.
On my show, I would say to the producers, “I really don’t give a shit what they do in their couple, I’m just focused on myself,” and they would say, “Well, you’ve got to have an opinion.”
At the end of the day, you know what you are there for.
You all have to be at the engagement ceremonies, talking about each other’s relationships, the whole mixer revolves around what you do that week, there’s constant talk about other people.
So if, like me, you’re not the type of person who likes to talk about other people, it automatically makes you nervous and it’s a very uncomfortable situation.
I’m hoping for a bit more romance in the rest of the show – we all love a happy ending!
A Channel 4 spokesperson said: “MAFS UK takes its commitment to matching couples very seriously and matching is carried out by a panel of experts including on-screen experts Paul C Brunson and Mel Schilling.”
Read more on the Irish Sun
“In advance of the casting, all participants disclose their dating preferences – this also includes information about past relationships and experiences.
“The methodology our experts then use is based on in-depth profiling and research to find out everything they need to know to match couples for compatibility.”