Married At First Sight has enough of drama on-screen, but there are also plenty of covert antics going on behind closed doors.
The concept of E4’s show is that two strangers marry and then get to know each other after the ‘I do’.
The popular series first aired in the United Kingdom in 2015, but the broadcaster really stepped it up in 2021 by copying the Australian model.
Instead of being spread out throughout the country, the couples all relocated into a London apartment complex together. In addition, all participants must attend weekly dinner parties and commitment ceremonies together. Because of their continual proximity and inability to catch everything, certain things do get overlooked.
Fortunately, Zoe Clifton and Jenna Robinson, the only couple from the 2022 season still together, are here to reveal 9 secrets from one of the nation’s favourite dating programmes…
Secret dinner party
Jenna and Zoe, who have their own podcast Life With a Wife, said that the group eats before the dinner party begins.
‘That was hard for me to get my head around,’ said Jenna.
The 33-year-old went on to say that the group would benefit from substantial catering because they may be filming for hours before getting to eat, and no one wants a hungry cast on their hands.
You now know why newlyweds don’t seem to be eating the food in front of them!
Unknown wedding location
Everyone, including the actual brides and grooms, is kept in the dark about the beautiful wedding settings featured on the show.
‘We still don’t know where we got married,’ stated Zoe, 30.
‘We were taken to an unknown hotel, then driven to our wedding venue, then whisked away for the honeymoon.’
She claimed that she only knew they were on their honeymoon in Iceland because of the language on the menus.
Swanky apartments don’t impress everyone
The cast is housed in luxurious London flats, with everything paid for, including groceries and dates.
However, Zoe and Jenna recall several of their castmates being dissatisfied with their accommodations.
‘They’d sometimes complain about things like not having a balcony, but to me, it was 12 weeks off work in a free apartment with all the bills paid for, so I was having a lovely time,’ recalled Zoe.
‘I was lucky that me and Jenna got on so we just had lots of fun. I remember just being in my socks walking between apartments, visiting people when we had time off from filming.’
Unaired sweet moments
With so many couples and tales to follow, viewers can’t possibly see everything.
During the period on the programme that we didn’t get to watch, Jenna and Zoe had lots of cute moments, including a one-month anniversary party, Zoe cooking a vegan roast for her vegan wife, and Jenna sending Zoe flowers throughout the experiment.
‘There are often stereotypes within the lesbian community that the more masculine partner gets the femme partner flowers, but it was a reoccurring thing in our relationship that I got roses for Zoe. I wish that was shown,’ shared Jenna.
Zoe and Jenna can now exhibit all aspects of their relationship on their podcast, which they record at home following Thursday’s episode of Married At First Sight to discuss the week’s turmoil!
Long filming days
The dinner parties and commitment ceremonies, when they discuss their connection with Paul C Brunson, Mel Schilling, and Charlene Douglas, are not for the faint of heart and can take up to 12 hours each.
Even outside of major occasions, couples may anticipate producers to pay them visits in order to get additional video of the couples spending time together.
When it wasn’t the producers, it was their castmates, so they didn’t get much downtime.
‘We’d settle down to watch a movie, and then the door would start going and it was someone explaining their drama. It was constant,’ said Zoe.
‘I think they thought we were the extra relationship experts!’
Repeating lines
In reality television, contributors are frequently asked to repeat themselves for the sake of shooting.
‘Jenna’s vows were so long, and they made her repeat about 10 times,’ said Zoe.
Jenna responded: ‘If I’d have known that I would have to say my vows that many times, I’d have made them half as long.’
Sneaking off from chaperons
‘We had to tell the team whenever we wanted to go anywhere, even if it was just a 10-minute walk,’ explained Zoe.
‘One time we did decide to sneak off to the local Alchemist, and we did it by leaving in ten-minute intervals. We got found out and had to go back to the flats… but not before finishing all the food we’d ordered.’
The cast would frequently throw their own parties, which is why turmoil on-screen lacks context.
‘They’d tell us that they were going to start turning up with cameras at the parties, and I told them they’d be welcome to, but they never did,’ shared Zoe.
Quiet word with producers
Zoe and Jenna claimed that they could typically predict what narratives the show would follow, but they became bored of the show’s constant pursuit of one specific narrative.
Jenna’s veganism was a reoccurring topic for the couple, with Zoe not fully supporting her. The couple had really struck a happy medium, but producers continued to question them about it.
‘It was causing problems, so I had a quiet word with production and asked them to stop it. They did respect it and we weren’t asked about it again,’ Zoe revealed.
Limited contact with the outside world
The cast’s phones are confiscated for the experiment so that they may fully immerse themselves in the event.
They can, however, be reconnected with their mobile devices if they need to finish a task.
Zoe would inform the show’s personnel that she needed her phone to pay a bill, and she would utilise the five minutes of reunion time to FaceTime her family. There is a way where there is a will!
Married At First Sight UK continues tonight at 9pm on E4.
