She’s the fiery, unapologetic powerhouse who has already proven herself to be a standout on this season of Married At First Sight Australia and Lauren Dunn has come out swinging against this year’s biggest villain, Jack Dunkley, saying her radar went off as soon as she met him.
“I felt that something was off,” says the 32-year-old Perth PR and marketing maven, speaking exclusively to Woman’s Day. “My gut was telling me he was suspicious.”
It turns out her initial trepidations were correct, with Lauren set to have a major face-off with 34-year-old Gold Coast personal trainer Jack on MAFS this week.
Insiders tell us Lauren steps in to defend her TV bestie, Jack’s wife Tori Adams, at this week’s dinner party and things get so heated, Lauren’s husband Jonathan McCullough has to step in to defend her.
“I felt protective of Tori as I knew she was there for the right reasons and felt she deserved someone who was as genuine as her,” explains Lauren. “I’m there for back-up if she ever needs me.”
Lauren hints that her husband’s loyalties to Jack may prove to be a point of contention on the show, admitting she wasn’t overly enthused to learn Sydney businessman Jono, 39, had become close to Jack.
“Jono saw a good side to Jack and felt Jack deserved to have someone support him at times. I don’t love it, but I would never tell my husband who he can and cannot be friends with.”
Lauren struck up a close bond with Melbourne entrepreneur Tori, 27, on the first night of the experiment, with Lauren taking a liking to Tori’s “cool, calm and collected nature”.
Lauren says, “She’s very articulate and intelligent, and we laughed together a lot.”
While she’s certain Tori had genuine reasons for entering MAFS, she casts major doubts over Jack, admitting her gut tells her he’s in it for the fame.
“The cast are aware that 15 minutes of fame come with this, though, and if we didn’t want that, we’d have joined [dating website] eHarmony,” she quickly adds.
Lauren says she was “slightly surprised” when Tori chose to stay with Jack after the bombshell revelation that he had a girlfriend before he entered the experiment, but she acknowledges that Tori “knows Jack better than we do, so we have to respect her decision”.
She concludes, “Tori is a confident and fiercely independent woman who can easily protect herself.”
Tori’s tears
When Tori is ambushed by her fellow brides at this week’s dinner party, she is left questioning whether any of her friendships in the experiment are real.
“I’m not a girl’s girl,” admits Tori. “So when all the girls pulled me aside to tell me what Jack had been saying, I really didn’t give a f**k. But to have Lauren say it as well was a low blow – I thought we were good friends.”
Tori is referring to a comment that her husband Jack makes to some of the boys, where he “jokes” that if there were to be a couple swap, the other grooms were welcome to sleep with his bride as he had no interest in doing so.
“Jack and I had already made this joke,” Tori insists. “We have a dark sense of humour and it probably should have stayed between us, but he ‘bro’ed’ out at the gym a little too hard and the comment got back to one of the wives.”
That wife was Tori’s best friend Lauren – and when Lauren gets wind of this information, she brings it to Tori’s attention in a way that leaves the latter unimpressed.
“It really hurt me that she did it at the dinner table,” Tori says. “It strained our relationship and made me realise we’re obviously not genuine friends. It was a part of her game plan. I thought, ‘That’s great for you. That’s your journey.’ My journey isn’t about a game plan.”
And to those who believe Tori is blindly standing by her man despite him displaying some questionable behaviour, she has some advice.
“People who believe I’m this mute, lovesick puppy that worships the ground he walks on probably need to research MAFS,” she says. “They need to take the show with a grain of salt.”
