Married at First Sight Sexual Assault Claims

Three women allege sexual assault while participating in the popular Channel Four reality show, Married at First Sight

By Claire Glasgow

What is consent? It's a basic concept that people navigate all the time. We learn to read cues and respect other people’s choices from childhood onwards. It’s about personal autonomy and boundaries, which crop up when decisions are made between two or more people about all sorts of routine everyday activities.

However, when it comes to sexual activity, news continues to break with allegations about men who seem unwilling or unable to carry understanding of this concept through to their interactions with women. Three women who participated in Channel 4’s hugely popular series ‘Married at First Sight’ have made allegations of sexual assault against their onscreen husbands.

The BBC has reported allegations including that one woman was told by her onscreen husband that she could not say no to sex because she was his 'wife' and that another, who had not consented to sex, was told: ‘You should've screamed and shouted. You should've pushed me off', and ‘you’re making me feel like a rapist’.

The format of the programme, which pairs a man and a woman in an onscreen ‘marriage’, must warrant particularly careful screening and scrutiny of applicants as well as reliable monitoring and safeguarding measures. Given the close quarters in which the participants exist, their vulnerability and the potential for exploitation seem obvious.

According to the BBC, the production company CPL has stated that its welfare system is ‘gold standard’ and ‘industry leading’. Nonetheless three women allege controlling, abusive behaviour and assault from their onscreen husbands including rough sexual activity, rape and non-consensual penetration without a condom. One woman says that she made allegations of assault by her onscreen husband to the production company and the broadcaster after the series was filmed but before it was aired, and it was aired anyway.

Women who participate in TV shows that generate revenue for production companies and broadcasters deserve to be kept safe by those who are profiting from their participation. The fallout of sexual assault can be devastating to a victim’s mental health and their sense of trust in themselves and other people. This can have equally damaging effects on their careers and personal relationships. It takes time and specialist therapy to begin to heal.

The BBC reports that Baroness Helena Kennedy KC, chair of CIISA (Creative Industries Independent Standards Authority), is calling on Channel 4 to bring in external investigators to assess the show's welfare system and that Channel Four has removed all episodes of Married at First Sight from streaming services.

For any queries regarding this post, please contact Claire Glasgow at ceg@deanwilson.co.uk