Channel 4 has wiped all episodes of Married at First Sight UK from its streaming platform amid "serious" allegations made by three former brides.
In a BBC Panorama episode, which aired on Monday night, two women who appeared on the hit dating show said they had been raped during filming, while a third said she had been the victim of a non-consensual sex act. All three women accused Channel 4 and CPL (the production company which makes the UK version of the show) of not doing enough to protect them, with one saying she wants CPL to stop "allowing harm to come to people".
Here's everything we know about the MAFS UK allegations and Channel 4's response...
What are the MAFS UK abuse allegations?
In The Dark Side of Married at First Sight, which is now available to watch on BBC iPlayer, three former MAFS UK brides describe the alleged abuse they say they experienced during filming.
One anonymous bride accused her onscreen husband of rape. She also alleged that he "threatened" her with an acid attack if she ever told anyone. "I completely froze with fear. I never thought that anything could scare me that much," she said. "As soon as he'd left the apartment, I texted welfare and told them how he said I can't say no because I'm his wife." She now wants to pursue action against the show's production company, CPL. In response,
lawyers for the production company told the BBC that bruises were described by the accuser at the time as having been the result of rough, but consensual sex. They said the bride did not tell CPL about the groom saying she "can't say no" to him, and that the acid remark had been reported as a passing comment, not a threat. The production company said they acted immediately once she had said she felt unsafe. Channel 4 told the BBC it was only made aware of the rape allegation after the series had been broadcast.
Another anonymous bride also accused her onscreen husband of rape. She described how they had previously engaged in consensual sex, but on one occasion, she said he proceeded after she had said no. The bride claimed she told Channel 4 and CPL about the allegation before the show was broadcast, but her episodes were still aired. Lawyers for CPL told the BBC that the bride had told them she had felt safe, was not uncomfortable and did not want the welfare team to discuss it with her on-screen husband. They said they followed welfare protocols, took her concerns seriously and that before making the allegation that she had said all sexual activity was fully consensual. They also said the accuser was supported throughout the process and afterwards and that she didn't asked to be removed from the show.
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As a result, the bride says her mental health suffered. "After I left the show, I felt I had completely lost my grip, and I had intrusive thoughts of my own death," she explained. "And then when the show went out, that really intensified into suicidal thoughts, which is not something I had ever thought of before."
Lawyers for her on-screen husband challenges details of her account, telling the BBC that the sex had started consensually, and he stopped immediately when she communicated through body language that she was no longer consenting.
The third bride, Shona Manderson, accused her onscreen husband, Bradley Skelly, of a non-consensual sex act. She said he ejaculated inside her without her permission. Following that, Shona said she went to get the morning-after pill and was accompanied by one of the show's welfare producers. According to the BBC, lawyers for CPL said Shona had told the production company at the time that Bradley had not asked for permission to ejaculate inside of her, but that she said she did not have an issue with it. Lawyers also said Bradley told CPL he had been wearing a condom.
Lawyers acting for Bradley Skelly have subsequently told Panorama he was not wearing a condom, but that he understood Shona had consented to him ejaculating inside her. He categorically denies any allegations of sexual misconduct or controlling behaviour.
Days later, Shona and Bradley were removed from the experiment, and she discovered she was pregnant. "I made the choice to go through with an abortion. It was really hard," she told Panorama, adding that she doesn't know for sure if the pregnancy was a result of the alleged incident with Bradley. They stayed together for six weeks after leaving the show, but then split.
How has Channel 4 responded to the MAFS UK abuse allegations?
In response to the allegations made by the three contestants in the Panorama documentary, Channel 4 shared a press release. It also removed all episodes of the programme from its streaming service, alongside MAFS UK social channels.
"MAFS UK is produced under some of the most comprehensive and robust welfare protocols in the industry. These include the most thorough background checks available, a Code of Conduct, which clearly sets out behavioural standards, daily contributor check-ins with a specialist welfare team and access to additional support before, during and after filming," the channel said in its statement. "The physical and psychological well-being of all contributors is of paramount importance throughout the process. All duty of care processes are regularly reviewed and, where appropriate, strengthened."
The statement continued: "In April, Channel 4 was presented with serious allegations of wrongdoing against a small number of past contributors, allegations that we understand those contributors have denied. The channel is mindful of the privacy and continuing duty of care towards all contributors, and cannot comment on or disclose details of those allegations."
As well as the "actions taken at the time" per the existing welfare and production protocols, Channel 4 said its recently appointed CEO, Priya Dogra, ordered an external review of contributor welfare on MAFS UK. "Alongside the lawyer-led review, Channel 4 has commissioned an external industry expert to examine if any changes should be made to current protocols for MAFS UK to further strengthen contributor welfare," it added.
Read Channel 4's full statement here.
How have the MAFS UK husbands responded to the abuse allegations?
Following the allegations made by the former MAFS UK brides, their onscreen husbands issued individual responses to Panorama.
Lawyers for the first bride's husband said her onscreen partner denied rape and said that all sexual contact had been entirely consensual. He also denied being violent towards her or making violent threats to her.
Lawyers for the second woman's onscreen husband said he had challenged details of her account. He said the sex had started consensually, but that she communicated through her body language that she was no longer consenting. As a result of that, he says that he stopped immediately.
Responding to Shona's allegations, Bradley said that he believed she had consented to him ejaculating inside her that night. In a statement, he said he categorically denied "any allegations of sexual misconduct" or that he was "controlling". He also claimed that their relationship "was based on mutual consent, care and affection".
What is next for MAFS UK after the abuse allegations?
The UK version of MAFS has been running for 10 seasons and, up until this week, all episodes have been available to stream on Channel 4's streaming platform, All4. Audience figures are understood to regularly reach over three million when it airs, and the show's primetime broadcast is evidence of what a hit it is for Channel 4. That said, the future of MAFS UK is now in question, although the latest season has already been filmed and was due to air later this year.
Beyond the response from Channel 4, holiday company TUI has paused its sponsorship of the show, per the BBC.
Cosmopolitan UK has reached out to Channel 4 and CPL for comment.
