Slam

Married At First Sight Australia brides Brook and Gia have both issued public apologies on Instagram after viewer backlash over dinner party drama

Married At First Sight Australia brides Brook and Gia have both issued extensive apologies online after viewers criticised their “vile” conduct during a fiery dinner party.

The duo clashed with several of their co-stars in awkward scenes which were broadcast on E4 on Thursday (March 26) evening, primarily targeting Alissa and Stella.

Numerous viewers expressed their disapproval on social media about how the disputes shouldn’t have been permitted to occur and both Gia and Brook have since spoken out and publicly apologised.

In response to the backlash, Brook accessed her Instagram page to release a statement, writing: “Last night and the past few episodes of Married at First Sight was an extremely difficult watch.

“What you saw last night was the worst version of myself and unfortunately Alissa and Stella were on the receiving end of that.”, reports OK!.

“I want to firstly sincerely apologise to Alissa and Stella for my words and the hurt that I have caused.

“My actions were appalling and not at all a reflection of the kindness and respect that you both deserve and I hope in time you can forgive me. I am truly sorry.

“To other couples in the experiment and audience who had to witness my behaviour, I am deeply sorry. Bullying should never be condoned and I am extremely embarrassed by the way that I acted.”

Brook continued to say that the dinner party was filmed in August last year and she’s since had time to reflect and learn from her actions.

She concluded: “This behaviour is not a reflection of who I am at my core and I hope that Australia will one day see this. I know trust is rebuilt through actions, not just words and I will continue doing the work to be better.

“I’m looking forward to moving on with my life with more kindness and hope that those watching will choose to do the same.”

Gia took to her Instagram Stories to express regret, penning: “I could speak on why I didn’t connect with Alissa, or things that were said and done to me, but two wrongs don’t make a right.

” Engaging in a cycle of dragging one another to deflect from our own behaviour is not something I want to participate in.

“I’m choosing to focus on growth. On being a better person. On working on my privately and being a present, loving mum. And a supportive partner. That is where my energy is going.

“To Alissa and Stella, I am genuinely sorry for the way I handled myself that night, and throughout the experiment. Regardless of what was said or heard, my delivery and my behaviour was appalling.

“I apologise for the disgusting language and the way I made you both feel. I am deeply sorry for the hurt I have caused you both, and I wish you nothing but peace moving forward.”

Married at First Sight Australia airs Monday to Thursday on E4 at 7.30pm

Hungarian leader sparks EU outrage with veto on $103bn Ukraine aid, citing pipeline dispute amid tense election campaign.

European Union leaders, meeting for a summit in Brussels, have piled pressure on Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, accusing him of hijacking and blocking a vital aid package for Ukraine and undermining EU decision-making as Russia’s war on its neighbour is now in its fifth year, with any peace deal remaining elusive.

The EU’s top diplomat warned on Thursday that it was urgent to show support for Ukraine’s war effort.

“It’s really, really time to show our support to Ukraine,” Kaja Kallas told reporters on arrival at EU summit talks where leaders hope to unlock the 90-billion-euro ($103bn) funding, which Hungary had signed up to in December along with the rest of the 27-member bloc.

EU leaders agreed to the $103bn loan in December, but Orban has clashed with ⁠Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and blocked its implementation last month, citing a dispute over a war-damaged pipeline.

Orban, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s key ally in an unfriendly bloc, has taken a stance that has angered other EU leaders, as Kyiv could run short of money in weeks if it does not receive new funding. His U-turn has called into question the credibility of the European Council, the EU’s highest decision-making body.

Several leaders arriving at the summit said Orban, who faces a difficult election next month, had to stick to the December deal and stop blocking the loan.

“He’s using Ukraine as a weapon in his election campaign, and it’s not good,” Finnish ⁠Prime Minister Petteri Orpo said, accusing Orban of betraying fellow EU leaders.

Orban, a strident right-wing nationalist admired by United States President Donald Trump, is trailing in opinion polls ahead of elections on April 12.

Part of his election campaign has been to portray Zelenskyy as an existential threat to Hungary.

At the summit, leaders ⁠are expected to point to an agreement by Zelenskyy this week to fix the Druzhba pipeline with EU technical help and funding, and to try to convince Orban to drop his opposition to the loan, diplomats say.

The pipeline carried Russian oil through Ukraine to Hungary and ⁠Slovakia but was damaged by a Russian attack in January, officials say. Ukraine says it will take some time to repair. Hungary says it is already ready to operate.

THE Brit Awards have always been known for controversial moments and risky jokes – especially when you have Jack Whitehall as host.

But it seems this year’s glitzy bash may have gone too far as horrified viewers slammed ITV with complaints to Ofcom following Saturday’s ceremony.

At the weekend, the Brits was broadcast on ITV with a slight time delay from Manchester‘s Co-Op Arena.

However, viewers were left disgruntled by a series of static sounds that were heard throughout the broadcast, which were used to censor the show.

This came about whenever ITV deemed a joke or a comment too risky to air, and instead edited out what had been said before it went out live.

But viewers weren’t happy that the show had been censored so much, and took to Ofcom to complain.

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They were also unhappy about some of host Jack‘s jokes, which included his swipe at the Bafta Film Awards following its N-word controversy during last weekend’s ceremony, which aired on the BBC.

Ofcom have confirmed to The Sun there were almost 150 complaints in total and the majority related to elements of the show being edited out, including acceptance speeches.

While other complaints related to jokes made by presenter Jack.

The comedian, who has hosted the Brits for five years now, is known for his close to the mark humour.

Earlier in the show, Jack had one of his links bleeped after he spoke to a table of politicians including Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham and Lisa Nandy.

After commenting on the table, he was bleeped as declared: “So many politicians! I thought I saw Peter Mandelson on the list.

“Oh no sorry, that was another list, my bad.”

Meanwhile, fans were also unhappy that big moments on the show were being edited out by ITV, and replaced by the static noise.

This came when I’m A Celeb winner Angry Ginge took to the stage alongside darts champ Luke Littler to present an award.

Salford native Ginge – real name Morgan Burtwistle – told the audience that he was glad that “people are realising that London is a s**thole”, which was also muted from the air.

After that, any insulting or risky language or jokes were taken out of the broadcast.

When Geese picked up their award for International Group, the New Yorker also suffered the static noise when the band’s drummer Max Bessin took to the stage, thanked the crowd before the award, before declaring: “Free Palestine, F**k ICE”.

Shaun Ryder and Bez also got in trouble when talking to Jack about their famously-hedonistic and drug-fuelled youth, some of which was also cut from broadcast.

Noel Gallagher also got muzzed towards the end of his appearance on stage as he was awarded Songwriter of the Year for his 35-year career with Oasis and the music that has influenced the generations since.

The comment clearly divided the audience, with cheers and boos alike, but we can confirm it was actually “Up The Blues” as a nod to football team, Manchester City.

Meanwhile the big winner of the night was Olivia Dean, who won three of the five awards she was nominated for.

These included Album of the Year and Artist of the Year.

She also performed on the evening, as did Raye, Harry Styles and Mark Ronson.

The Brit Awards are available to watch now on ITVX.