When it comes to controversial couples on Married At First Sight Australia, Alessandra Rampolla thought she had seen it all – but then Jacqui and Ryan walked in!
“Jacqui and Ryan are going to take everybody for a very interesting journey,” says sexologist Alessandra, 50. “We’re in for a ride with them – it’s a lot.”
Alessandra, alongside fellow relationship experts John Aiken, 54, and Mel Schilling, 53, are tasked with guiding season 12’s participants to make the right choices in their romantic journeys with the end goal of finding their forever person.
Evidently, it’s a job that’s harder than herding sheep. Kiwi bride Jacqui and hubby Ryan’s tumultuous relationship is a prime example of a situation that keeps the experts on their toes.
With the series in its 10th year of production, psychologist John reflects on how MAFS – a project he has been a part of from the start – has evolved over the years and how the job changed his life.
He recalls, “I was a psychologist working in a quiet private practice in Sydney when I got the gig and it exploded. I don’t think anyone thought it would be so huge. It’s the single biggest thing I do.”
With the rise of social media, Mel, Alessandra and John have had to pivot their roles to also being judge and jury. They feel a responsibility to prevent the spread of dangerous online rhetoric around serious topics. For example, comments about emotional manipulation resulted in a new approach to how they treat participants.
“The experts go much harder now,” reflects John, who played professional cricket in New Zealand for more than a decade. “We’re much more involved with how the participants behave.”
But that’s not the only thing that’s changed in the past decade. He adds, “The show’s bigger in terms of the number of couples that are involved each year. The production quality is magnificent now. It’s like watching a movie every episode. We also always try to do a little tweak every year to keep people guessing on what our couples are going to deal with, like Final Test Week.”
Final Test Week is a brand-new challenge. New partners tempt the couples who have made it to the end of the challenge. The, final Vows follow soon after, when they decide whether they want to continue a relationship with their partner outside of the experiment.
“One of the big challenges that a lot of couples experience in the real world is temptation,” explains Mel. “We throw temptation into the mix and see how they respond. Some couples double down and say, ‘No, not interested.’ Other couples say, ‘Yes, show me! Is the grass greener on the other side?’”
Filming, which took place last year, was “like therapy” for UK-based Mel. Doctors diagnosed the star with colon cancer just before Christmas 2023.
“I finished up with my chemo and came straight to Australia to record,” she recalls. “No one else was driving me to do it but myself. I felt like I lost so many aspects of myself being sick and going through such gruelling treatment. To be able to turn up on set and step into the role of professional Mel was such an important part of me still feeling like myself.”
Mel, who announced she was in remission in January, lives in London with her husband Gareth Brisbane and daughter Maddie. “I feel invincible,” she says proudly. “I just feel unstoppable. I’m going to be dangerous.”
While MAFS has courted controversy over the years, John knew producers were “onto a winner” after a night in with his wife, former Kiwi newsreader Kelly Swanson-Roe, and some of her friends.
“She was sitting there with all the girlfriends around. They’d broken open the Champagne, and they were yelling and screaming at the TV,” he laughs. “I remember sitting there thinking, ‘That is a really extreme reaction. We’ve got something here where people at home are becoming invested and I’ve not seen anything quite like it.’”
Alessandra, meanwhile, joined MAFS for 2021’s season eight and although she might have had an idea of what she was walking into, she wasn’t prepared for how many misconceptions there were going to be about her career.
“People think I’m thinking about sex 24/7,” she chuckles. “It could not be further from the truth!”
Married At First Sight Australia airs at 7pm Sunday to Wednesday weekly, on Three and ThreeNow.
Related stories
Native ad body.
Native ad body.
Native ad body.
