Get to know the brides and grooms ready to enter the experiment! Who will be paired together in the latest series of Married At First Sight NZ?
Samantha Best, 26. Influencer from Auckland
What are your biggest turn-ons? A man in a suit who is dominant and confident, who challenges and motivates me. He should look after himself and have a great sense of humour. Someone older, taller and with a few tattoos is hot.
What are your relationship red flags? Someone who vapes or drunks too much, is cocky and immature, and who makes me feel uncomforable or disrespected.
Who is your dream celebrity date? Divergent actor Theo James. Not only is he insanely hot, but he has the most gorgeous accent.
What’s your worst dating disaster? I started talking to a guy in Oz thinking it could work. Four months on, it didn’t.
What’s the greatest challenge you’ve ever faced? Being a single mum. I love it and I’m lucky to have a great relationship with my five-year-old son Kaelin’s dad, but it’s still challenging. I have to parent on my own, provide a full-time income and take care of a whole house.
What’s a fun fact about you? I had a psychic reading saying I’d be on a TV show. Eight months later, I married a stranger!
James Hunt, 31. Primary teacher from Christchurch
What are your biggest turn-ons? A good sense of humour, eye contact and someone who is a good kisser.
What are your biggest relationship red flags? Someone who has commitment issues, eats with their mouth open and is rude
Who’s your dream celebrity date? Emma Stone seems like an incredibly humble and beautiful woman who can give a lot of banter.
What’s your biggest dating disaster? I wouldn’t call it a disaster, but travelling to Melbourne for a second Tinder date probably wasn’t the wisest of decisions. Do I regret it? Not really.
What’s the greatest challenge you’ve ever faced? Overcoming depression. It was an extremely difficult and dark time, but reaching out and receiving counselling was the best decision I ever made. It’s something more men should do.
What’s a fun fact about you? I can make a mean carrot cake and a batch of date scones.
Stephanie Archer, 31. Marketing from Auckland
What are your biggest turn-ons? Intelligence! I’ve struggled to meet anyone I can connect with intellectually.
What are your relationship red flags? Someone who lacks ambition and doesn’t want to better themselves. Also, I can’t stand people who just agree with everything and don’t have any firm opinions.
What’s your worst dating disaster? When I was on the dating apps, I ended up matching with someone who could’ve been very loosely related to me.
Who is your dream celebrity date? I feel like I’d really vibe with rapper J.Cole. He seems like a deep thinker. We’d have so much fun spending his money.
What’s the greatest challenge you’ve ever faced? When my parents separated. I’ve come to recognise how not having a stable, secure relationship to look up to has influenced my approach to love.
What’s a fun fact about you? Hosting dinner parties is how I express my love.
Michael Wilson, 36. Auctioneer, & The Apprentice Aotearoa contestant from Auckland
What are your biggest turn-ons? An authentic, adventurous woman in her sexual power, who has done the work to know what she likes and is able to ask for it.
What are your biggest relationship red flags? Shallowness, being judgemental, having a victim mentality and someone who gossips about other people instead of concentrating on her own life.
Who is your dream celebrity date? Megan Fox is radically herself and walks on the wilder side of life. A date with her would be a deep dive into a lot of epic topics.
What is your worst dating disaster? There were never disasters, only experiences. Every person I’ve been with were lovers or partners who helped me see myself a little more.
What’s the greatest challenge you’ve ever faced? I’ve had many difficult moments, from my brother dying and my parents divorcing, to my sister being born with Crouzon syndrome and then nearly dying in a car accident.
What’s a fun fact about you? I’m really a big teddy bear. I have a big heart and I love love.
Piripi Clarke, 28. Brewer from Hamilton
What are your biggest turn-ons? A woman who can make me ugly-laugh, knows where she wants to eat and loves a cold beer.
What are your biggest relationship red flags? Someone who’s rude, vapes or smokes, has no girl mates and knows the bouncers at the clubs.
Who is your dream celebrity date? Kim Crossman. She was my first crush when I was a kid!
What is your worst dating disaster? Not being loyal and not considering the consequences of my actions.
What is the greatest challenge you’ve ever faced? My mental health and facing my depression.
What’s a fun fact about you? I love karaoke. Burnin’ Up by the Jonas Brothers is my go-to.
Madeleine Gilbert, 38. Account manager & reiki healer from Tauranga
What are your biggest turn-ons? A fun personality, how he holds himself and treats others, confidence and old-school gentleman qualities, a gorgeous smile with soulful eyes and a cute butt.
What are your relationship red flags? Being in the presence of a man whose ego takes over, smokes cigarettes and has no awareness of how to treat his lady or others. Oh, and obsessive gym junkies!
Who is your dream celebrity date? Ryan Reynolds! He’s a funny, hot, genuine, nice guy. The Labrador of the celebrity world, he’s like the perfect cake without too much icing!
What is your worst dating disaster? He wanted to show off his hunter-gatherer skills and cooked a full roast dinner for me as a surprise, but I’m a pescatarian. Epic fail! If it was seafood, it would’ve been a winner.
What’s the greatest challenge you’ve ever faced? Leaving an unhealthy relationship, but it led me to make sacrifices and achieve dreams, like buying my first home, which was a huge milestone for me and something I’m really proud of.
What’s a fun fact about you? I was a swimming champion and have a shoe bag full of medals.
Nathaniel Drury, 30. Aviation officer from Wellington
What are your biggest turn-ons? An independent woman who is smart and knows her worth. Someone who’s got her own thing going but occasionally wants to be treated as a queen.
What are your biggest relationship red flags? Poor hygiene, a poor kisser, a disrespectful person who thinks they are above all or someone who doesn’t look after herself.
What’s your worst dating disaster? Taking a girl out on a date when I was young, I forgot to check my tank, so when I was driving her home, I ran out of petrol in the middle of the road. We had
to walk to the closest station with a gas canister to fill my car.
Who is your dream celebrity date? Singer Jorja Smith is such a babe, has an incredible voice and is just a boss-ass lady. It’s sexy.
What’s the greatest challenge you’ve ever faced? Leaving my mum and family behind in Nigeria to move to New Zealand on my own to get to know my dad and have a better life.
What’s a fun fact about you? When I was a baby, I thought babies were bought from the market, so when me and Mum went to the market, I asked her
to buy me a sibling.
Kara Lester, 33. Car saleswoman from Christchurch
What are your biggest turn-ons? I like a tall man. Confidence, intelligence and humour also go a long way!
What are your relationship red flags? Smoking, vaping and excessive drinking. Also dishonesty – actions not matching words is a big red flag.
Who is your dream celebrity date? Chris Hemsworth. Other than the fact he’s drop-dead gorgeous, he appears to be pretty humble.
What’s your worst dating disaster? I once turned up to a date with a guy who told me he was 6’2” [1.88m], but he would’ve been 5’10” [1.78m]. When I confronted him on arrival, he said, “You wouldn’t have met up with me if I had told you.” He wasn’t wrong. I left.
What’s the greatest challenge you’ve ever faced? Losing my brother has been incredibly tough for my family. He was a great guy and I’d love to have him here to lean on for advice when it comes to potential suitors.
What’s a fun fact about you? I used to run an Instagram where people would order brownies with cheeky messages on them, but I had to give it up because it got too busy.
Married At First Sight New Zealand premieres Sunday 26 May on Three and ThreeNow.
