Travel operator Tui Group has terminated its sponsorship of Married At First Sight (MAFS) UK and its Australian spin-off following serious allegations of rape and sexual misconduct made by former contestants on the reality show.
Allegations and Response
Former participant Shona Manderson accused her on-screen partner of sexual misconduct during the Channel 4 programme. Additionally, two other anonymous women alleged they were raped by their on-screen husbands, as detailed in a BBC Panorama documentary. All three men deny the allegations.
In a statement to the Press Association, a spokesperson for Tui UK and Ireland said: “Following the broadcast of the Panorama programme and discussion with Channel 4, we have taken the decision to end our sponsorship of Married At First Sight.” The company had already paused sponsorship of both versions of the show on Monday after the accusations emerged.
Regulatory and Parliamentary Scrutiny
Ofcom chief executive Dame Melanie Dawes described the allegations as raising “really serious concerns” and indicated that the regulator is prepared to tighten its guidance on reality television if necessary. Appearing on ITV’s Good Morning Britain, she stated: “What we always try to avoid is being really specific about ‘you can do this and you can’t do that’, because fundamentally the responsibility is with Channel 4 and its production company… If they have not got right, this is going to be a serious issue.” She added: “Sometimes we do have these wake-up calls where, as a country, we just go, ‘This has gone too far’.”
Channel 4 launched a review into contributor welfare last month after being contacted by the BBC regarding the allegations. Chief executive Priya Dogra dismissed reports that the show had been cancelled as “wholly inaccurate” and stated that “no decision has been made” regarding the next series. New episodes of MAFS UK have been “substantially filmed” and are currently being edited, according to chief content officer Ian Katz.
On Wednesday, MPs on the Culture, Media and Sport Committee wrote to Channel 4 and Ofcom about their response to the allegations. Committee chairwoman Dame Caroline Dinenage called the accusations “horrifying”, adding: “Both Channel 4 and Ofcom, as the broadcasting regulator, have urgent questions to answer.” The letter asks about the complaints process for contestants, steps taken to investigate the allegations, and the broadcaster’s duty of care to participants on other reality programmes.
Police have urged potential victims of sexual assault on the show to come forward.
