Personally I think it wasn’t just Married At First Sight, but the entire genre of dating, relationship and wedding TV which peaked in 2019.
While I’d personally be delighted to to see MAFS crash and burn in the ratings (Wake up Australia, you’re falling for a massive con job!), I think it’ll still do good business for Nine this year albeit nowhere near the heights of last year when nearly two million metro viewers tuned into see one of the female contestants pouring wine on another’s dress.
My Kitchen Rules on the other hand…2020 very well could become the final year for that show IMO but this discussion is to be had in another topic.
It wouldn’t surprise me if the show does even better this year. A lot of people seem to be really invested in the show in a way no other Australian show can match at the moment.
Married at First Sight will be airing Monday - Thursday for it’s first week. It will have free reign on the Thursday as 10 have Ambulance scheduled and 7 have Cricket.
I’m assuming Thursday is only for the first week as it’s not on Sunday. But yeah it will give it an opportunity for some viewers of other shows to check it out. Smart.
One of this year’s contestants (Natasha Jayne Spencer) has spoken to The Sunday Telegraph about her experience on the show. While Spencer went on the show in hopes of finding a husband, she “…soon realised production company Endemol Shine and Nine wanted bombshell television rather than successful pairings.”
Spoilers
“Look if I have to go off the partner they gave me, we were not well suited,” she said.
“You had two strongly opinionated people. They put an ex-drug addict with a police officer. I just think the combinations were there for the clash. They got what they wanted. There were some sensational fights.”
Just saw an ad where a bride’s mother basically trashes the show – says she can’t stand the show, and calls it manipulative and highly edited. It’s unbelievable how arrogant and confident Nine are of the show’s success that they can put that out as an ad and think it’ll attract viewers!
Agree. I reckon this will be the last season high.
I have a feeling they will push the absolute boundaries with drama this season, this does become tiresome eventually.
What would also be damaging is the large chunk of these contestants who are apparently ax agencies, become very public. Also few contestants starting to speak out over the show last season regardless of no comment contracts signed.
There isn’t really anyone in there for marriage reasons as we know. I’m sure one will be in the jungle next year.
I don’t think MAFS will lose top spot. MKR is on the decline and Survivor has struggled with lesser competition. Would be happy to be proven wrong though.
For Married At First Sight to receive a serious damage to its reputation in the eyes of the public, we’d probably need to see Four Corners do a massive expose on the program…but I doubt this will happen anytime soon because (quite understandably) there are far bigger issues worthy of an investigation by the ABC’s flagship public affairs program.
Don’t think that ad has anything to do with Nine being ‘cocky’ about MAFS. The people who’re avid fans of the show would probably ‘lap up’ such ads which feature people criticizing it
Got a hunch as well it might be foreshadowing a character ‘narrative’ whereby since the ‘relationship’ the ‘bride’ has with her ‘partner’ is ‘successful’, the mother later walks back her criticisms