Breakfast host labels ratings winner MAFS ‘the cesspit of TV’
Nine Network veteran Ray Martin yesterday declared he was “saddened” by the direction television had taken after the hugely successful sixth season of controversial reality dating show Married At First Sight reports The Australian’s Lilly Vitorovich.
“I’m amazed at what it does, and I’m saddened that’s where television has gone but clearly if its getting 2 million people, it’s appealing to people,” he told The Australian.
ABC TV’s News Breakfast co-host Michael Rowland labelled the show, which pairs up strangers looking for love in a so-called marriage, as “the absolute cesspit of TV”.
“This is a show that destroys relationships, it doesn’t celebrate relationships. This is a show that encourages cheating and adultery,” Rowland said.
“What sort of message is this show setting to teenagers like mine, who I’m trying to teach about the nature of stable, loving relationships? It’s the absolute cesspit of TV.”
James Weir recaps Married At First Sight 2019 episode 41: The Finale
The most-read article across many News Corp sites early this morning including news.com.au and several of the metro dailies was the recap of the final episode by news.com.au journalist James Weir:
Married At First Sight’s hungover cheaters have been humiliated and exposed in the series finale, with secret footage publicly aired and a trail of destruction left in their wake, as scorned exes and furious contestants crush them like a stale handbag biscuit.
After eleven weeks, it has come – the finale. These people have jep-ra-dized everything to be here. But was it worth it?
It’s the second part to the reunion, because the first part came in the form of last night’s drunk dinner party where everyone glassed each other. Why not just end it last night? The glassing seemed like a nice full stop for the series. Well, it’s kinda like when you’re wasted at a party and it’s 2am and your friends start debating whether to call you an Uber or an ambulance, but then you secretly vomit in the homeowner’s wardrobe and, suddenly, you’ve got a second wind and you can keep partying.
After last night’s drunk glass-throwing hysterics, we’ve since thrown up and we’re ready to do it all again tonight.
9Honey the official home of MAFS: From audition tapes to recaps
If there is an official online home for Married At First Sight it is Nine’s 9Honey. Although there was not a terrible lot about the final episode on the home page early this morning, plenty of content was just a click away on 9Honey’s MAFS vertical dedicated to the hit series.
9Honey entertainment producer Aine Ryan has been recapping the series for the leading women’s web site and started the final ep recap:
It’s the Married At First Sight finale and part 2 of the reunion. It’s been two months of romance, drama and odd fashion choices, and me and my pile of empty Le Snak packets from the work vending machine are ready for this finale.
Mamamia twins Clare & Jessie: ‘The television event of the decade’
Journalist twins Clare and Jessie Stephens write for Mamamia’s Women’s Network and they have been recapping the series for the readers. They called the final episode the “television event of the decade”:
That was the best two hours of our lives thus far.
It’s the final night of the experiment and Mick why the f*ck is your shirt so dirty?
The experts decide now, in the final hours, would be a good time to talk everyone about their appalling behaviour and how it’s not appropriate to throw household items at one another which feels approximately eight weeks too late.
“We’re quite shocked at how quickly things escalated,” expert Mel says and REALLY? We’re shocked no one is DEAD. And that Cyclone Cyrell is not in PRISON…
We close on the experts pretending this show is about ‘learning’ and not about ‘violence’ and ‘betrayal’.
But… but.
When it ends… there’s no “next time on Married at First Sight”.
What are we meant to do now? We don’t understand.
Whimn’s Bek Day on most shocking comment in the MAFS finale
Writer and editor Bek Day recaps Married At First Sight for the News Corp Australia site whimn.com.au. The report sits in the Unwind section which lives in whimn’s Play vertical along with plenty of other content linked to the reality series:
And so we find ourselves here, friends.
The final episode of what has been a gruelling, enraging and unclean romp through the shadowlands of human ethics and we’ve ended up again, clumped together on poorly-styled Fantastic Furniture couches in a sweaty room, talking about our “journey”.
Tonight’s MAFS reunion finale left us sure of two things:
• The experts have literally zero idea of what they’re doing
• Even if they did, it would be pointless because these people are literally un-helpable.
There was so much to make you shout in blistering rage at the television tonight, but it was witnessing the birth of Mike the men’s rights activist that really set Twitter alight.
We expected appalling behaviour from the contestants throughout the experiment, but in their complete lack of willingness to call out some of the worst elements of the show, it’s the experts who have left a sour taste in our mouths this year…
And with that, we farewell MAFS for 2019.
And we wash, and we wash, but we just will never get clean.
Nine keeps Age & SMH readers up-to-date with Married At First Sight
It’s the biggest show on TV and has just pulled its biggest ratings in the six years since it launched.
And new newspaper owner Nine Entertainment is giving its expanded online news audience plenty of opportunity to read about Married At First Sight and its colourful characters. Since Sunday, the Entertainment sections of The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald have published at least 12 separate pieces on the ratings winner – many of them clips from the show or 9Life’s Talking Married.
Michael’s MAFS audition
Talking Married unearthed previously unseen footage from the Married at First Sight audition process.
Mel reflects on the MAFS reunion dinner
Speaking to Talking Married, MAFS bride Mel shared her thoughts on the drama.
What Martha really thinks about Cyrell
MAFS bride’s unlikely call for friendship.
Cyrell gushes over new boyfriend on Talking Married
MAFS bride is dating Eden from Love Island
What Cyrell really thinks about Martha
The MAFS bride did not hold back when asked about her rivalry.
Missed this moment? Mark and Ning reunite
The MAFS couple may be officially over, but is there still a spark?
MAFS’ Martha receiving ‘death threats’ after wine-pouring incident
Cheryl Maitland returns to Talking Married
Former MAFS bride teases big announcement.
MAFS’ Elizabeth will ‘never forgive’ Sam for ‘gaslighting’ her
“Sam is incredibly charming but also manipulative. It was gaslighting,” Elizabeth said about her former partner.
Nic discusses the MAFS finale on Talking Married
Nic revealed a secret rendezvous with former bride Cyrell.
Jess and Dan discuss the MAFS finale
The controversial couple appeared on Talking Married to discuss the tense reunion.
Heidi joins Talking Married to discuss MAFS reunion
The former MAFS bride is now happily single in the Sunshine Coast.