{"id":3999,"date":"2021-09-06T14:49:02","date_gmt":"2021-09-06T12:49:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.radiotimes.com\/?p=1337975"},"modified":"2021-09-06T15:19:10","modified_gmt":"2021-09-06T13:19:10","slug":"married-at-first-sight-has-switched-up-its-format-but-has-it-lost-its-sincerity-in-the-process","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/rss_feed\/married-at-first-sight-has-switched-up-its-format-but-has-it-lost-its-sincerity-in-the-process\/","title":{"rendered":"Married At First Sight has switched up its format \u2013 but has it lost its sincerity in the process?"},"content":{"rendered":"

The series is copying its Australian counterpart \u2013 but at the cost of its groundbreaking premise, says Kimberley Bond. <\/p>

By Grace Henry\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Monday, 06 September 2021 at 12:00 am<\/p>

\n\n

By: Kimberley Bond<\/strong><\/p>\n

Married At First Sight UK has returned \u2013 with a new home and a brand new look for season six.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s no surprise Channel 4 has had a change of strategy when it comes to the \u2018extreme\u2019 dating show. Married At First Sight UK<\/a> has been entirely revamped for 2021 to mirror the smash hit Australian version, which, thanks to its compelling cast and its jam-packed dramas, became a cult hit in lockdown.<\/p>\n

Now on air four times a week, documenting the ups and downs of our eight couples through dinner parties and to-camera confessionals, Married At First Sight UK looks set to rival an increasingly tired Love Island<\/a> \u2013 but its newfound popularity seems to have come at a price.<\/p>\n

Married At First Sight first aired on UK television in 2015, but despite the extremity of its premise, it never quite reached a similar cult status.<\/p>\n

The show prided itself on its rigorous matching process and its supposedly \u2018foolproof\u2019 scientific methods to see whether love could be fostered in almost laboratory-like conditions.<\/p>\n

\""Married\"<\/div>
Channel 4<\/i> <\/span>\n<\/div>\n

Its original panel of experts in the British version included an evolutionary anthropologist, a psychosexual therapist, a psychology professor and even a priest, to cover all bases. From the several thousand applicants, data would be collated from each individual based on workshops, interviews, background checks, various tests and personality questionnaires as well as scientific studies (including your DNA test and your body measurements) to pair you up with what science deems to be \u2018The One.\u2019 Once suitable matches were made, couples were expected to genuinely marry their alleged perfect partner when they first locked eyes at the altar.<\/p>\n

The original format of the series was certainly unlike any other dating programme out there, and initially saw some viewers complain that its premise stuck two fingers at the supposed \u2018sanctity\u2019 of marriage. Yes, it yielded fewer couples to document \u2013 with some series only following two couples \u2013 but it was a truly ground-breaking social experiment: watching real people brought together by scientific methods get married, and doing their all to actually make it work.<\/p>\n

These earnest attempts to use science to find true love, which were apparent in these early editions of Married At First Sight UK, have all but vanished in the revamp.<\/p>\n

\""Married\"<\/div>
Channel 4<\/i> <\/span>\n<\/div>\n

The rigorous matching process, and the variety of scientific experts that made this show so different to any other matchmaking series, have all melted away for more TV-friendly matchmakers to take to the fore.<\/p>\n

Paul Carrick Brunson, a matchmaker who joined the series last year and has also appeared on First Dates<\/a>, has lifted the lid on the matching process, telling his 109k Twitter followers: \u201c[It\u2019s a] very challenging process for matchmaking. We start with a massive pool (thousands), and they go through various tests (including psychological, STDs, etc.). You\u2019d be surprised how small it gets. That becomes our viable pool. We match from that.\u201d<\/p>\n

But it doesn\u2019t appear so rigorous or transparent just exactly <\/em>how they\u2019re matched beyond generic statements such as \u201cshared values\u201d. We\u2019ve now seen couples with hugely differing expectations in a relationship being matched \u2013 for instance Morag and Luke<\/a>. Morag said quite plainly she didn\u2019t want children, while Luke\u00a0literally runs a foster home.<\/p>\n

Paul has explained this himself, again on his Twitter feed.<\/p>\n

\u201cA desire for children is taken into account,\u201d he said. \u201cIf you see a mismatch in this category it could be because someone hasn\u2019t fully disclosed their position yet.\u201d<\/p>\n

But that seems to be against the original concept of Married At First Sight, leaving us pondering just how rigorous this testing may be.<\/p>\n

The faces in the revamp are also disappointingly familiar. The Australian version has made no secret that some of their participants are scouted on social media, and while none of the participants in the UK version have disclosed how they found themselves part of the process, several of our contestants are no strangers to the limelight. The previously mentioned Morag starred on Take Me Out in 2018, while Nikita featured on Comedy Central\u2019s Your Face Or Mine and MTV\u2019s True Love Or True Lies. Ant and his ex also featured on Your Face Or Mine, Amy tried to couple up with Spencer Matthews on The Bachelor under her glamour model moniker \u2018Brandy\u2019, and Josh was on Shipwrecked.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s nothing immediately wrong in having contestants that have appeared on other shows before, but for the more cynical amongst us (namely, me) may question whether they\u2019re really looking for love or to prolong their 15 minutes of fame. Nikita and Ant\u2019s vicious argument on their honeymoon, in which Nikita accused Ant of wanting to be in an \u2018Instagram power couple\u2019 only reinforced my inner cynic.<\/p>\n

\""Married\"<\/div>
Channel 4<\/i> <\/span>\n<\/div>\n

It seems that the new editions of Married At First Sight UK has turned down the sincerity in order to ramp up the drama to levels bordering on comedic. Matt and Daniel\u2019s \u2018age-gap\u2019 was hyped up in teasers, and interspersed with cuts of the couple looking serious as they posed for pictures, only for it to not be much of an issue at all.<\/p>\n

Similarly, Bob\u2019s \u2018confrontation\u2019 with Megan\u2019s twin brother was somewhat over-egged, again spliced with cut scenes to make things look tense when their conversation was perfectly reasonable. These more dramatic scenes are perhaps to make up for the fact that each \u2018wedding\u2019 is no longer legally binding \u2013 meaning that couples don\u2019t necessarily have the same determination to make their relationships work, and leaving Married At First Sight UK without any real stakes.<\/p>

There\u2019s no denying that the opening few episodes of Married At First Sight UK have been hugely successful among its audience, reaching 820k viewers (triple that of E4\u2019s usual 9pm slot) and retaining that number throughout the week. It\u2019s certainly addictive viewing and will likely only gain more popularity as the series progresses and more twists, turns and bombshells are unveiled.<\/p>\n

The show has evolved from being almost documentary-like to yet another reality dating series. It may no longer be the grand social experiment it claimed to be, but judging by the reaction from fans, who love to see the high drama behind eccentric relationship dynamics, it hardly seems to matter at all.<\/p>\n

Married at First Sight UK airs Monday \u2013 Thursdays at 9pm on E4.<\/b>\u00a0Check out what else is on with our\u00a0TV Guide<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/strong>or visit our hub for more\u00a0Entertainment<\/a>\u00a0news.<\/strong><\/p>\n

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