Married At First Sight staff bet on which contestants would have sex first and high-fived each other when they did, whistleblowers say

Published: 09:49, 28 May 2026 | Updated: 09:54, 28 May 2026 Married At First Sight staff placed bets on which contestants would have sex first and celebrated with high-fives when they did, whistleblowers have said. The Channel 4 show was the subject of a recent Panorama investigation that saw two former cast members claim they were raped by the men they were paired up with while another said she was subjected to a non-consensual sex act. The accused partners have denied any wrongdoing and lawyers for CPL, the production company which makes MAFS UK, said the allegations are from a small minority of workers. It added that the company's 'commitment to welfare... is evidenced by the high consecutive return rate of crew across the MAFS series'. Channel 4 says contributor welfare is 'always our primary concern across all productions'.  But former workers on the show have spoken out, alleging senior staff had an 'unhealthy' focus on whether the cast were having sex. The show sees singletons paired up with strangers who they 'marry' on the same day they meet them for the first time. Soraya Spiers, who worked on the show, told the BBC there is an 'expectation' on the wedding night for workers to 'get some sort of hint if the couples are going to sleep together', despite only having just met. Ms Spiers thinks the show's model is 'completely flawed' and believes it should be axed. Another former employee dubbed the show 'a car crash waiting to happen', adding they are 'not surprised' at what has so far emerged and they left because they could 'see something like this coming'. Shona Manderson (left), who has waived her anonymity, alleged that Bradley Skelly (right) engaged in a non-consensual sex act while they filmed the Channel 4 show, a claim he denies Soraya Spiers (pictured), who worked on the show, thinks its model is 'completely flawed' and believes it should be axed Another staffer, who worked on the show for several years, claims she had raised concerns that some cast members may not want to sleep in bed together on the first night, especially since they were 'strangers' and 'not really married'. However, she alleges a senior member of production responded: 'Don't you get it? We want them to sleep together.' She said the crew would make bets on which couples would have sex first and high-fived each other when they got it right. The whistleblower clarified that the bets didn't involve money, but it highlighted how 'clear' it was that it 'was all a joke'. CPL's lawyers say the allegation staff took bets on whether contestants would have sex 'is not something which our client recognises at all'.  Production's 'unhealthy' emphasis and focus on sex ran throughout the entire show, according to staff, who said seniors would express concern if a couple were getting intimate because 'it wasn't good for storylines'. Ms Spiers acknowledged people could find themselves on dates in real life where the person they are with could also put an unhealthy emphasis on sex, but argued that its easier to walk away from a date than it is from a TV show. Lawyers for CPL say contributors are not pressured or expected to have intercourse, adding that cast members are informed there is no expectation to share a bed on their wedding night and alternative sleeping arrangements can be made. Another former worker felt cast members were 'manipulated' more than was the norm on other reality TV shows. Ms Spiers, who was on a short-term contract and later turned down an offer for more work, explained that the show's advertised focus - finding love - becomes 'boring and icky' to viewers, claiming what they really want to see is 'fireworks, clashes and drama'. Others claimed producers would create confrontations between cast by telling them the negative things they had said about each other behind their backs. 'The idea would be to get that person angry,' they said. One former worker said lots of crew members would gather round to watch when tensions between cast were high, adding: 'It was sickening how into it they were.' It was also claimed production staff were instructed to 'ramp up trigger points', while another former employee said she saw cast members plied with alcohol at one of the set-piece dinners. CPL's lawyers say alcohol intake during dinner parties is limited and overseen by executive producers and the welfare team, adding it is not true that cast members are allowed to drink as much as they want. Three women who have appeared on MAFS spoke to the BBC, including two who allege they were raped by their on-screen husbands They said CPL refutes any suggestion it prioritises entertainment over the welfare of contributors or that drama is engineered by production at the expense of the contributors. Just before the Panorama episode came out, CPL sent an email to current and former crew and contributors telling them support was available and to be 'mindful' of commenting publicly on the episode and the rape allegations. Some people who received the message told the BBC it was a 'hush email' sent in an effort to do 'damage control'. Another said it made her 'furious' because they are 'real people going through trauma, and they should've been protected'.   Ms Spiers replied to the email, accusing CPL of 'a spectacular lack of duty of care to both cast and crew' and said she hopes the Panorama investigation would reveal the 'toxicity that oozes out of every pore of this show and production company'. CPL's lawyers have accused some of the former staffers who spoke to the BBC of having 'an axe to grind' against the production company.  The BBC said other former crew they spoke to said CPL was a good company to work for and highlighted that former cast members have recently been more positive about their experiences on the show on social media. A spokesperson for Channel 4 said: 'Contributor welfare is always our primary concern across all productions. Within days of being contacted by the BBC in April, we commissioned an external review of contributor welfare on MAFS UK, which is underway.' It said that review now 'needs to run its course'. Daily Mail has reached out to Channel 4 and CPL for further comment.  Channel 4 bosses have axed the new series of the show in light of the allegations, and all ten series of MAFS UK were removed from the channel's streaming service. A Met spokesperson said this last week: 'We are aware of media reporting relating to allegations of rape and sexual assault following the airing of a television programme on Monday, 18 May. 'At this time, we have not received any criminal reports in relation to this matter. We will be making approaches to the relevant production teams to ensure that anyone they have spoken to is aware of how to report any criminal allegations to police. 'We continue to encourage anyone who believes they have been a victim of sexual assault, no matter how long ago it happened, to get in touch with us.' The dating show was set to return to screens for its eleventh series in September, but plans to air the episodes, which wrapped last month, have now reportedly been scrapped. Among the alleged victims is Shona Manderson, who says she got an abortion after her on-screen husband, Brad Skelly, took things 'too far' during sex and 'a boundary was crossed' when he ejaculated inside her without permission. Waiving her anonymity, she described how she 'completely lost her light' during filming, which saw experts raise concerns about Mr Skelly's alleged 'controlling' manner towards her that saw them ultimately be asked to leave the show. Two other female contestants reported being raped by their on-screen husbands, with one informing both Channel 4 and the production company only for the episodes to be aired anyway. The other described being left with bruises from the alleged assault and said her partner also threatened to have acid thrown at her All the men are understood to deny the allegations against them. The women say the show, produced by independent firm CPL, did not do enough to protect them and that welfare protocols were not sufficient. And it's been warned the series could even face a police probe. Security Minister Dan Jarvis has said he is 'extremely concerned', adding: 'I think it's highly likely that there will be a referral to the police and it will be a police matter for them to investigate.' Ms Manderson, the only woman of the three who is identified, alleged her partner, Mr Skelly, ejaculated inside her without her permission leaving her 'shocked' and 'confused' as 'we said we weren't doing that'. Ms Manderson later went to get the morning after pill and was accompanied by a welfare producer. But soon after she discovered she was pregnant and made the difficult decision to have an abortion. She says she does not know for sure whether the pregnancy was a result of the incident. Ms Manderson later informed production company CPL about it, but lawyers for the firm say she told them she did not have a problem with it. Around the same time, Mr Skelly was being called out on air by the show's experts for speaking to his partner in a controlling manner. The couple were later removed from the show due to concerns about their relationship. In a statement to the BBC, Mr Skelly said he categorically denies 'any allegations of sexual misconduct, or that he was controlling'. A second woman, referred to by the pseudonym Lizzie, told Panorama her on-screen husband raped her and subjected her to violent sex that often left her with bruises, despite her telling him to stop. She described how one night: 'He tried to have sex with me. And I kept saying no, that I didn't want to do it. 'But he kept saying, "You can't say no, you're my wife". And he just did it anyway.' Lizzie added that she was too scared to tell anyone about what was happening as: 'He said that if I told anybody what had happened, that he would get someone to throw acid at me.' Lawyers for CPL told Panorama that Lizzie did not mention the 'can't say no' comment to its team and the 'acid' remark was mentioned as a 'passing comment', not a threat. CPL took action as soon as Lizzie said she felt unsafe, the lawyers added. A third woman, Chloe, also described being raped by her MAFS husband, with her allegations being raised both with CPL and Channel 4 prior to them being shown to the public - but the episodes in which she featured were aired anyway. She told the programme: 'He smirked and climbed on top of me, moved my leg… By that time, I'd really given up and I just didn't want him to be angry at me when the cameras came. 'I just lay there, and I stared out the window.' Chloe - also a pseudonym - added that once her partner noticed she was not participating, he told her: 'You're making me feel like a rapist'. It is understood that both men implicated in the allegations deny the accounts. No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. 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