Channel 4 pulls episodes of ‘Married at First Sight UK’ after sexual misconduct claims
LONDON (AP) — Broadcaster Channel 4 has removed all episodes of “Married at First Sight UK” from its platforms after three contestants claimed they were sexually assaulted by their on-screen partners during matchmaking. television program.
The broadcaster said the allegations were “very serious” and the British government said on Tuesday there should be “consequences for crime or wrongdoing”.
“Married at First Sight” is an international reality TV series inspired by the Danish original, with prints in countries including the United States, Australia and South Africa. Strangers are matched by experts and begin living together after a fake wedding ceremony.
Two women on the British show claimed they were raped by their on-screen husbands, while the third claimed she was subjected to sexual intercourse without her consent.
The allegations were made during an investigation carried out by the BBC’s current affairs program “Panorama”. The BBC said the plaintiffs did not contact the police and the people involved disputed the allegations.
Conservative MP Caroline Dinenage, who chairs the House of Commons Culture, Media and Sport Committee, told the BBC the show clearly involved “an element of risk”.
“It’s a TV show that almost expects and predicts that people who have just met should actually become quite close to each other,” he told the BBC. “They are expected to share a bed and life together within minutes of meeting. It almost feels like an accident waiting to happen.”
The UK version of the program was produced by independent production company CPL. It ran for 10 seasons on Channel 4, with its 11th season scheduled to air this year. CPL did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The broadcaster said the program was produced under “some of the most comprehensive and robust welfare protocols in the industry”, including background checks, a code of conduct that sets standards of conduct and “daily contributor checks with a specialist welfare team”.
He ordered a review of welfare standards and procedures.
“I would like to express my condolences to the contributors who have clearly suffered after appearing on ‘Married at First Sight UK’,” Channel 4’s chief executive Priya Dogra said. “The well-being of our contributors is always of paramount importance.”
The allegations are the latest incident to fuel debate in Britain over the ethics of reality TV and the pressures placed on participants. Two former contestants of the “Love Island” program died by suicide in 2018 and 2019, and the former host of the program, Caroline Flack, committed suicide in 2020.
The controversy has also irritated the BBC, Britain’s publicly funded national broadcaster. The BBC has introduced chaperones to its ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ dance competition in 2024 following allegations of bullying and harassment. Cooking competition “MasterChef” hosts Gregg Wallace and John Torode were fired last year following investigations into allegations of inappropriate behavior.
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