The future of one of the UK’s most popular dating shows is in jeopardy.
Earlier this week, three former Married at First Sight UK contestants made a string of “serious” sexual abuse allegations. Now, the show is on the brink of cancelation, despite the upcoming season having already been filmed.
Here’s what we know…
Married at First Sight UK could be canceled for good
On May 18, the BBC aired a Panorama special documentary about MAFS UK. In The Dark Side of Married at First Sight, three former MAFS UK brides claimed they experienced abuse during filming.
Two of the brides, who are anonymous, accused their onscreen husbands of rape. Meanwhile, a third alleged she was the victim of a non-consensual sex act. She claimed that her partner ejaculated inside her without her permission.
All three of the women also accused Channel 4 and CPL (the company which produced the show) of not doing enough to protect them.
Since the documentary aired, Channel 4 has wiped all episodes of MAFS UK from its streaming service and removed the MAFS UK social channels. Channel 4 also put out a lengthy press release in response and confirmed that an external investigation has been launched.
As for CPL, lawyers for the production company said its welfare system was “gold standard” and that it had acted appropriately in all three cases.
So, will the once-beloved dating show ever return?
Filming for Season 6 of MAFS UK has already wrapped and, while The Sun recently reported that a decision has been made not to air it later this year as planned, a Channel 4 spokesperson refuted this … for now.
“No decision has been made on the broadcast of MAFS UK series six,” they told The Independent. “We have just announced an external review into contributor welfare on MAFS UK, and we need to see what that finds before deciding what happens next.”
TELL US – HAVE YOU WATCHED MAFS UK? AND, HOW DID YOU REACT TO THE ALLEGATIONS?
