MAFS Australia chaos as producer ‘stood down over intimate message’ scandal as bosses fear show ‘could be axed’ like UK
LESS than a week after Married At First Sight UK was axed amid rape allegations behind-the-scenes, bosses of the Australian version of the show fear it will meet the same fate.
Concerns have sparked after a second producer on the series has been stood down by production company Endemol Shine Australia, while an investigation is carried out concerning private messages sent by one of the upcoming contestants were played to his on-screen bride.
Groom Kayne Buik has issued a complaint, prompting an internal inquiry and corresponding police investigation, according to The Daily Mail.
Buik will appear on the forthcoming season of the show, and is said to have flagged his concerns to the police while filming was underway, stressing that his privacy had been compromised.
Buik alleges that his on-screen bride Kristen Goedecke was played personal audio messages Buik had exchanged with a woman he knew prior to taking part on the show.
The woman is said to have heard about Buik’s involvement on the show via an online article, contacting producers and supplying texts and voice notes, as well as taking part in video interviews.
She denied that any other media was provided, telling Inside Mail: “No photos or videos were sent.”
Buik is said to have refused to ignore the matter ahead of the show’s debut, worrying producers that the series will be axed, similarly to the UK version which airs on Channel 4.
NSW Police referred the matter to WA Police, and an investigation was subsequently launched, in which phones were seized from the Endemol Shine Australia office and staff involved were given access to legal representation.
A spokesperson from Australia’s Channel Nine, who broadcast the show, told the Daily Mail that any enquiries should be directed to Endemol Shine Australia, who declined to comment.
Channel Nine counts Married At First Sight as one of its biggest ratings hits averaging 2.76 million viewers per episode across total TV, and is scheduled to air in the first quarter of 2027.
“There is a lot riding on the new season,” a source told the Mail. “‘No one wants this to be the last season.
“While it might seem unthinkable, all it takes is one big scandal combined with ratings or revenue not being where they need to be and Nine could make that call.”
Contradicting this, a source on the MAFS production team told the publication that the new season is set to be “a change of pace” than previous seasons, focusing on various couples instead of one main pairing.
This scandal comes after one couple on the new season left the show early, after things became “too toxic” between them during filming.
Since the British series was hit by scandal, Australian showrunners are said to be ensuring any “risky” couplings are removed from the process if things look to turn unsavoury in any way.
The Australian version of MAFS will already no longer air on Channel 4 or E4 in the new year, as it has done in the past.
The broadcaster “has no plans” to televise or stream any international seasons of the show after axing the UK’s incarnation of the reality series.
The external investigation into MAFS UK was commissioned by Channel 4 Chief Executive Priya Dogra following serious allegations made by three female stars in a Panorama special.
Two former brides claimed they were raped by their on-screen husbands, while a third accused her show husband of performing a non-consensual sex act.
All three men have denied the claims.
Dogra said she was “very sorry for the distress the women felt” but the review could not adjudicate on their claims.
The decision to drop the show means a full pre-recorded MAFS UK series that was filmed before the review took place will never be broadcast on the channel.
While the programme has been scrapped, the review found that Channel 4 and production company CPL did provide an adequate duty of care and did not breach Ofcom’s Broadcasting Code
Lawyers pored over 20 hours of aired and unaired footage from series three to six, analysed 31,172 documents and carried out 15 interviews with show stars.
It was found that a number of “isolated incidents” didn’t follow the welfare framework fully and that both C4 and CPL could have conducted a more structured long-term review of contributor welfare.
A second part to the review, carried out by ex BBC One Controller Lorraine Heggessey, concluded that the show could run in the future with format adjustments in place.
However, it also stated that the show’s focus on intimacy could put pressure on contributors to be intimate with their partners.
Panorama’s Mafs UK exposé aired in May.
In the programme, one of the brides who claimed she was raped said she had suicidal thoughts for the first time after her series aired.
While another bride, Shona Manderson, who appeared on the show in 2023, said she had an abortion after claiming her on-screen partner Bradley Skelly ejaculated inside her without permission.
She admitted she did not know if the pregnancy resulted from the alleged incident.
The couple stayed together for six weeks after leaving the show, but separated shortly afterwards.
Bradley said he understood Shona had consented to him ejaculating inside of her.
In a statement to the BBC, he said he categorically denied “any allegations of sexual misconduct” or that he was “controlling”.
He said their relationship “was based on mutual consent, care and affection.”
A third bride told bosses she was raped before her series was aired.
She said both she and her on-screen husband had been engaging in consensual sex, but he had proceeded on one occasion after she said no.