An eruption of tears, theatrics and unexpected decisions turned the final Married at First Sight Australia commitment ceremony into a melodramatic circus of emotions, one that saw Kiwi bride Jacqui given a major scolding by the experts.
Flip-flopping grooms Teejay and Ryan both wanted out by this point and wrote “leave”, but their wives Beth and Jacqui kept them tethered to the experiment after they both wrote “stay”.
Clinging on to her husband like a lemur on a tree, by the end of the night Jacqui was begging and pleading with Ryan to stay so the couple could attempt to make things work.
This was despite constantly berating her husband for not meeting her standards or not being able to have “curious intellectual conversations”.
“I feel like a project being worked on,” Ryan told the experts.
Jacqui then let out a snigger, causing expert John Aiken to snap back like a grumpy headmaster.
“Explain yourself, why are you laughing at something that is so important? I’ve asked him a very personal question ... and you laughed. Just sit with that”.
When Jacqui said that Ryan doesn’t compromise, Aiken asked for proof.
“Like when he turns the TV off late at night,” she chimed as the group stared at her in disbelief.
“These situations are very niche,” Aiken said, but he couldn’t even finish his sentence before the waterworks and grovelling started.
Even Beth and Teejay were united in the belief that Jacqui's behaviour was out of order. Photo / Nine AU
After more back and forth, Jacqui eventually played the “poor me” card, as she has done many times this season.
“If you want to go just go. I just wanted to talk about it, that’s all,” she said through watery eyes.
“If you want to talk about it, we’ll talk,” Ryan frustratingly replied, entering the hamster wheel of emotional turmoil for what could be the last time.
Earlier, a previously heartbroken Jamie admitted she was not “in love” with her husband Dave at the present time, but both agreed to stick it out until the final vows.
“I came here for love, and I don’t want to be scared anymore,” Dave told the group.
Carina and Paul had rekindled their love after homestays week and have started thinking about what the future could look like long term and, as usual, Jeff and Rhi are blissfully looking into each other’s starry eyes with not a problem in the world.
On-and off-lovebirds Adrian and Awhina are still on the fence about the Perth-Sydney long-distance relationship, but decided also to see the experiment through and make the most of it.
But it seems as though Teejay is slowly reaching villain territory with his treatment of Beth, refusing to give straight or coherent answers, much to the displeasure of the group and the experts.
“Is it just really as simple as you’re just not that into her,” Aiken bluntly asked the groom, who had written “leave” on his card.
“I needed to give myself time and space to see how I was feeling,” Teejay said, but the group wasn’t buying it one bit.
Beth said she “wasn’t the kind of gal that walks away from something” and wrote “stay”, so the pair have another final week to see if a miracle spark can emerge.
Now, with just a few episodes to go and the circus reaching its climax, I’m pretty certain we’ll only get one or two couples who last outside the experiment.
A revelation at the final gathering could be the difference between having new families together or having a spectacular fallout.
Mitchell Hageman joined the Herald’s entertainment and lifestyle team in 2024 and has taken on the unofficial role of Mafs correspondent for this season. He previously worked as a multimedia journalist for Hawke’s Bay Today
