MARRIED At First Sight has come under fire from a leading woman’s charity for casting a man who has been accused of abuse.
A groom named Alex Henry has been pelted with allegations after the broadcaster shared his promo reel online, with one user branding him a “dangerous individual”.
Women’s Aid have now condemned his involvement in a lengthy statement, saying the decision to feature him is both “disappointing and concerning”,
On top of the pressure from the organisation, a group of women have clubbed together to ask Channel 4 to reconsider airing scenes including the personal trainer from Birmingham.
They have created a petition, which currently has nearly 2000 signatures.
Despite acknowledging the claims, Channel 4 has confirmed Alex will remain in the edit.
In a statement today, Women’s Aid wrote: “We are incredibly disappointed and concerned to hear that producers of Married at First Sight have taken the decision not to remove an alleged abuser from the latest series.
“Having seen the direct impact of abusive behaviours displayed on the show in previous years on survivors, we would have hoped that protection and tolerance levels for abuse would leave no room for perpetrators to be given a platform again, with their actions being televised as “entertainment”.
“Sadly, this decision demonstrates the lack of awareness that the production team still has when it comes to domestic abuse.
“At Women’s Aid we would urge the producers to reconsider how they approach this, for the sake of the contestants to whom they have a responsibility to protect; and to signal to survivors that the entertainment industry takes their experiences seriously.”
In response a spokesperson for Channel 4 said: “The welfare of our contributors is of paramount importance and, as such, we take all allegations of unacceptable behaviour seriously.
“We are aware of a single allegation against a Married at First Sight UK 2024 contributor and we have responded directly to those who came to us with that allegation.
“As part of our responsibility to safeguard our contributors, everyone taking part in MAFSUK undergoes a rigorous vetting process, involving a criminal record check and multiple psychological evaluations, before they can be cleared to take part.
“The DBS (criminal record) check carried out on the contributor raised in the allegation was returned clean. We cast contributors based on the information we are legally able to access and we continue to review this process to ensure checks are as thorough as legally possible.”
The claims came to light after a number of women posted about Alex online.
A user called Shannon Munnelly wrote: “@alexander.henry_ should never have been allowed on this show.
“In situations where people are marrying each other at first sight, allowing a domestic abuser to join the show is not acceptable at all. I have seen first hand the damage that this man has done. Something needs to be done about this situation. @e4mafsuk @e4grams domestic abusers should NOT be provided platforms.”
It is understood Shannon is campaigning on the behalf of a friend who dated Alex.
In another comment, she wrote: “We have messaged, pictures, videos everything required and we have not yet received an update on the urgent matter that you are investigating.
“We are petitioning to not have him aired on this show as he is a dangerous individual @e4mafsuk @e4grams.”
The allegations have thrown the show into chaos just days before its launch.
The show, which invites singles to meet for the first time at the wedding altar, is one of Channel 4’s highest-rated shows.
Here's who you can expect in the Mafs 2024 cast:
