The show that causes so much discussion around the water cooler, has created a MAFS cocktail party must-watch trend, and catapulted many participants into instant celebrity status is back for its ninth season.
The premiere of social experiment Married at First Sight introduces us to the brides - Domenica, 28; Ella, 27; Holly, 36; Olivia, 27; Samantha, 26; Selin, 32; Selina, 32; and Tamara, 29, at an atypical hen's night where nerves are obvious in some but one in particular is flat out narcissistic.
We meet grooms - Al, 25; Andrew, 39; Andrew, 38; Brent, 33; Cody, 30; Jack, 26; Jackson, 30; and Mitch, 26, who all seem reasonably non-competitive with the exception of one who thinks he is better looking than the rest.
Immediately the inkling of discord strikes.
But according to relationship experts Alessandra Rampolla, John Aitken and Mel Schilling, the couples they have earmarked for wedded bliss should all work out and joined the experiment looking for love, not fame.
"There is an upswing in people looking for love due to the pandemic. They haven't been able to date and socialise, so they are lonely and want to find a connection," Mel says.
Clinical sexologist Alessandra says there is a bank of pre-screening interviews and checks the potential brides and grooms go through even before the trio make their assessment of who will match best with whom.
Naturally the producers target who will make the best TV while the experts look for who are the most compatible.
"They all have big personalities," says Alessandra, "but we delve more deeply into commonalities if all other aspects work. We get more of the sense of the person."
When looking at all these beautiful people, one wonders why they don't have partners. John's answer is that all of the participants are very bad at relationships.
"One of our roles is to shine a light on this," he says.
