WEBVTT - The Downfall of MAFS: The Truth About The Experts (Part 2) 0:00:00.440 --> 0:00:03.320 Welcome to the second episode of the Downfall of Married 0:00:03.360 --> 0:00:07.040 at First Sight Australia, an investigation by the Maths Funny 0:00:07.080 --> 0:00:11.080 podcast hosted by me Joshua Fox. After we took a 0:00:11.119 --> 0:00:13.600 deep dive into the origins of the show last week 0:00:13.960 --> 0:00:17.800 and the methods that executive producer Tara McWilliams and her 0:00:17.880 --> 0:00:21.360 merry team of like minded puppet masters go to in 0:00:21.440 --> 0:00:24.240 order to ensure that Maths continues to generate tens of 0:00:24.280 --> 0:00:27.600 millions of dollars a season. This week are we shining 0:00:27.600 --> 0:00:31.880 a spotlight on the show's self proclaimed relationship experts, with 0:00:32.040 --> 0:00:36.040 the current lineup consisting of John Aikin, Mel Shilling and 0:00:36.120 --> 0:00:37.600 Alessandra Rampola. 0:00:38.440 --> 0:00:41.720 Like, how do you call yourself experts and you say 0:00:41.720 --> 0:00:45.080 that you're matching people because you know your own payper 0:00:45.200 --> 0:00:46.440 It would work amazingly. 0:00:47.080 --> 0:00:49.920 I think from the very beginning this was just two 0:00:49.960 --> 0:00:53.280 people matched purely for car crash television. 0:00:53.520 --> 0:00:56.240 If you ask Channel nine. These three are the most 0:00:56.240 --> 0:00:59.840 integral part of the experiment. Their combined backgrounds on the 0:00:59.840 --> 0:01:05.680 studies across psychology, relationship counseling, human behavior, and clinical sexology 0:01:06.200 --> 0:01:09.000 provide each of the couples that they carefully match together, 0:01:09.800 --> 0:01:12.400 not just the tools to build solid foundations for their 0:01:12.440 --> 0:01:16.200 new found relationships, but for those relationships to thrive as well. 0:01:16.720 --> 0:01:18.600 Or that's what they're meant to do. 0:01:19.160 --> 0:01:22.840 Oh guys, the experts have nothing to do with matching 0:01:22.880 --> 0:01:24.319 the people, nothing at all. 0:01:24.520 --> 0:01:25.679 They're paid actors. 0:01:25.800 --> 0:01:26.520 They speak at you. 0:01:26.640 --> 0:01:29.039 It's not a two way conversation, because you'll be like, 0:01:29.360 --> 0:01:31.880 my husband yelled at me last night, and they respond 0:01:31.920 --> 0:01:34.560 by going, uh, actually, we're out of time. 0:01:34.560 --> 0:01:35.880 We're not going to address that today. 0:01:36.240 --> 0:01:39.640 Stay or leave. So it's like you're like, but he's 0:01:39.720 --> 0:01:41.120 yelling at me, like help me. 0:01:41.640 --> 0:01:44.000 In the ten years that this show has been running now, 0:01:44.319 --> 0:01:47.240 only six of the one hundred and seven couples they've 0:01:47.240 --> 0:01:49.120 matched have actually stayed together. 0:01:49.600 --> 0:01:50.800 How about the experts? 0:01:51.360 --> 0:01:52.840 They haven't got rubbish. 0:01:52.880 --> 0:01:54.200 I have no idea. 0:01:54.280 --> 0:01:56.920 And is that because they're truly terrible at the job. 0:01:57.440 --> 0:02:00.000 They're there to even to a point to divide people 0:02:00.160 --> 0:02:02.920 and split them up. It's fucking awful. 0:02:03.280 --> 0:02:06.880 Or is it because they're being advised to purposely mismatch people? 0:02:07.120 --> 0:02:11.880 The maths experts masquerade as relationship warriors when their real 0:02:12.000 --> 0:02:16.520 job is to manufacture drama to test the contestants' breaking points. 0:02:16.840 --> 0:02:18.960 Just so they can clash and explode. 0:02:19.320 --> 0:02:26.240 I felt ethically, professionally, morally compromised. Now I have to 0:02:26.280 --> 0:02:28.560 take responsibility for this as well. 0:02:29.360 --> 0:02:32.160 And if that's true, is this something the experts have 0:02:32.160 --> 0:02:35.000 happily agreed to or did they have no say in 0:02:35.040 --> 0:02:35.480 the matter. 0:02:35.880 --> 0:02:40.760 I felt they were attempting to booky me. After that meeting, 0:02:41.000 --> 0:02:44.200 I was completely out of the loop. I did not 0:02:44.360 --> 0:02:47.080 know anything that was going on. They didn't want to 0:02:47.120 --> 0:02:47.679 include me. 0:02:48.160 --> 0:02:50.640 With a success rate as small as theirs, in any 0:02:50.680 --> 0:02:54.000 of a job, you'd be out the door. Yet despite that, 0:02:54.320 --> 0:02:57.840 the three of them are still sat there calling themselves experts. 0:02:58.200 --> 0:03:00.440 And I think that it's about time that we, the 0:03:00.520 --> 0:03:04.120 viewers of this show, question what exactly are they experts of? 0:03:04.720 --> 0:03:07.560 Because I'm yet to see any expertise in anything. 0:03:08.400 --> 0:03:11.200 You know, mel Alessandra Marsels. One of our roles as 0:03:11.240 --> 0:03:14.320 experts is to hold a mirror up and show them 0:03:14.320 --> 0:03:16.239 what they're doing wrong and how to put it right. 0:03:16.560 --> 0:03:17.680 And it's not always pretty. 0:03:17.720 --> 0:03:19.160 Sometimes when you hold that it's. 0:03:19.120 --> 0:03:20.000 Very ugly at times. 0:03:20.000 --> 0:03:26.040 Allie Well John, mel Alessandra, perhaps it's now time I 0:03:26.160 --> 0:03:29.160 hold that mirror up to you free and show you 0:03:29.480 --> 0:03:30.880 what you're doing wrong. 0:03:33.200 --> 0:03:34.240 Before we get to all that. 0:03:34.320 --> 0:03:37.480 Though, since the first episode of this podcast series dropped, 0:03:37.840 --> 0:03:41.360 I've seen the same comment repeated over and over and over, 0:03:42.360 --> 0:03:45.119 people stating that they have no sympathy for anyone left 0:03:45.160 --> 0:03:48.280 broken and push to the brink after finding themselves part 0:03:48.280 --> 0:03:51.680 of this experiment as they chose to sign up to it, 0:03:52.600 --> 0:03:55.920 which is something I've often questioned myself too. Why would 0:03:55.960 --> 0:03:59.640 any person who is thinking rationally subject themselves to this 0:03:59.720 --> 0:04:02.640 when so much stuff out there saying do not do it. 0:04:03.000 --> 0:04:05.160 In an attempt to answer this, I put the question 0:04:05.280 --> 0:04:08.920 to doctor Isabel Morley, who is quite possibly the best 0:04:08.960 --> 0:04:11.840 person in the world to answer it. Not only is 0:04:11.880 --> 0:04:16.400 doctor Isabel Morley a practicing clinical psychologist, she's also a 0:04:16.400 --> 0:04:20.160 board member of the YUKAN Foundation, which stands for Unscripted 0:04:20.279 --> 0:04:25.320 Cast Advocacy Network, an American based organization that's providing mental 0:04:25.360 --> 0:04:28.720 health support and legal advice to past, present, and future 0:04:28.720 --> 0:04:33.240 stars of reality television. Since the foundation was established by 0:04:33.240 --> 0:04:36.479 a star of Netflix's Lovies Blind in twenty twenty three, 0:04:37.040 --> 0:04:40.040 doctor Isabel Morley and her team have slowly been challenging 0:04:40.080 --> 0:04:43.279 the law surrounding reality TV in America to provide the 0:04:43.279 --> 0:04:46.800 people on these shows with basic human rights, and so 0:04:46.960 --> 0:04:51.440 far they're successfully bringing changes. And when I asked doctor Morley, 0:04:51.520 --> 0:04:53.839 why would anyone ever sign up to a show like 0:04:53.880 --> 0:04:57.480 Married at First Sight, she responded by telling me this, I. 0:04:57.440 --> 0:05:00.839 Think that modern dating sucks. I think are sick of 0:05:00.960 --> 0:05:04.360 swiping left and right and wasting time and not finding love. 0:05:04.839 --> 0:05:06.960 And the idea of going on a show and having 0:05:06.960 --> 0:05:09.680 somebody do that legwork for you and maybe pick out 0:05:09.800 --> 0:05:13.800 your dream partner sounds very appealing. And the secondary gain 0:05:13.920 --> 0:05:17.920 of maybe becoming famous or getting a following or launching 0:05:18.000 --> 0:05:21.520 a career also sounds fantastic. And I think people don't 0:05:21.560 --> 0:05:24.480 realize that a lot of the time people are approached 0:05:24.640 --> 0:05:27.440 to be on these shows, they are recruiters are finding 0:05:27.520 --> 0:05:30.359 them on their social media and their LinkedIn and asking 0:05:30.400 --> 0:05:32.760 them to be a part of the interview process. So 0:05:32.839 --> 0:05:35.840 a lot of people aren't actually volunteering themselves. They're being 0:05:35.920 --> 0:05:39.560 pulled into the process without expecting to be and from 0:05:39.640 --> 0:05:42.640 there they're told it will be a certain experience. These 0:05:42.720 --> 0:05:45.600 producers are really good at telling you we'll take care 0:05:45.640 --> 0:05:47.560 of you. We're going to find an amazing person to 0:05:47.640 --> 0:05:49.800 match you with. You won't have to worry about dating 0:05:50.040 --> 0:05:52.040 you'll get a good edit. Don't worry, You're going to 0:05:52.120 --> 0:05:52.880 be the hero. 0:05:52.720 --> 0:05:53.279 Of the show. 0:05:53.600 --> 0:05:56.640 And everyone is told that story, but not everybody ends 0:05:56.680 --> 0:05:59.200 up being the hero of the season. But why wouldn't 0:05:59.200 --> 0:06:01.359 you believe someone's saying don't worry, We'll take care of 0:06:01.400 --> 0:06:02.120 you the whole time. 0:06:02.440 --> 0:06:04.839 And that's exactly how Dean Well has found himself on 0:06:04.920 --> 0:06:08.799 season five back in twenty eighteen, which he previously revealed 0:06:08.800 --> 0:06:10.359 to the ABC, there. 0:06:10.160 --> 0:06:13.919 Were some casting people, a man and a woman walking 0:06:13.920 --> 0:06:18.760 around the bar, hitting up men and asking them questions. 0:06:18.880 --> 0:06:20.719 You know, I saw them. I thought, oh, what's going 0:06:20.760 --> 0:06:25.599 on there. Then they came over to me and just said, Hey, 0:06:25.640 --> 0:06:28.440 we're recruiting for this TV show, Married at First Sight. 0:06:28.560 --> 0:06:30.480 Could we have a little chat with you? 0:06:30.680 --> 0:06:32.039 And I was like, okayeah, no worries. 0:06:32.560 --> 0:06:34.680 They pulled me over to the side of the bar 0:06:34.960 --> 0:06:37.840 and just said, look, this is the concept of the show. 0:06:38.040 --> 0:06:41.280 You know you're going to marry a stranger. Can you 0:06:41.279 --> 0:06:43.640 tell us a little bit about yourself and are you 0:06:43.680 --> 0:06:44.800 looking for a relationship? 0:06:44.880 --> 0:06:45.560 Are you single? 0:06:46.360 --> 0:06:49.480 And I was just like, yeah, I'm single, definitely looking 0:06:49.920 --> 0:06:52.680 for a relationship, looking for the right partner. 0:06:53.200 --> 0:06:56.039 Speaking to doctor Morley, I also wanted to ask her 0:06:56.040 --> 0:06:59.040 if there's a level of naivety behind anyone's decision to 0:06:59.080 --> 0:07:02.400 sign up to any reality show again, because there's so 0:07:02.520 --> 0:07:03.640 much out there saying. 0:07:03.520 --> 0:07:04.320 Do not do it. 0:07:04.640 --> 0:07:07.920 Oh absolutely, I think people also believe you know, I 0:07:07.960 --> 0:07:11.560 will act true to myself. I won't get caught up 0:07:11.760 --> 0:07:14.680 in whatever the demands of the show are. I won't 0:07:14.720 --> 0:07:18.440 say anything I regret without realizing that the conditions they 0:07:18.480 --> 0:07:21.680 put you in are incredibly stressful. It is a time 0:07:21.760 --> 0:07:25.320 pressured situation, it is emotional, and you will undoubtedly say 0:07:25.320 --> 0:07:27.600 things that you regret. So everyone has the best of 0:07:27.640 --> 0:07:29.640 intentions and thinks that they won't be the one to 0:07:29.640 --> 0:07:33.440 get dragged. But guess what, every season, everybody gets dragged. 0:07:33.720 --> 0:07:36.160 As much as that does make sense, I then asked 0:07:36.200 --> 0:07:38.200 doctor Morley if she could put me in the mindset 0:07:38.240 --> 0:07:41.240 of any potential participan in the day the show's contract 0:07:41.280 --> 0:07:44.480 finally arrives at their door, and why anyone would so 0:07:44.560 --> 0:07:48.600 willingly sign that given what's in those contracts. Yeah, these 0:07:48.600 --> 0:07:51.640 one clause in it, and if I read this, I 0:07:51.680 --> 0:07:55.880 would run a mile, And it says I understand my 0:07:56.040 --> 0:07:59.080 actions and the actions of others displayed in an in 0:07:59.120 --> 0:08:03.160 connection with the program may expose me to public ridicule, humiliation, 0:08:03.720 --> 0:08:10.680 or condemnation. My actions may be seen as disparaging, defometry, embarrassing, shocking, surprising, 0:08:11.160 --> 0:08:13.440 or of an otherwise unfavorable nature. 0:08:13.800 --> 0:08:16.760 The contracts in the US are exactly the same, the 0:08:16.800 --> 0:08:20.960 same wording, the same warnings I would say of condemnation 0:08:21.080 --> 0:08:24.560 and humiliation, And I think a lot of people read 0:08:24.600 --> 0:08:27.080 it and think they have to put that in here. 0:08:27.400 --> 0:08:30.480 You know, they're covering their legal bases, but maybe it 0:08:30.520 --> 0:08:33.240 doesn't apply to me, And at least in the US, 0:08:33.280 --> 0:08:35.400 I don't know Howard is. In Australia. People don't have 0:08:35.440 --> 0:08:37.960 a lot of time with their contracts. They get it 0:08:38.000 --> 0:08:40.200 and they get a certain number of hours to read 0:08:40.200 --> 0:08:43.160 through and sign it, and there's pressure because the production 0:08:43.240 --> 0:08:45.319 company is saying, listen, let us know because we have 0:08:45.840 --> 0:08:48.600 fifteen other people who are dying to be on this show. 0:08:48.880 --> 0:08:51.560 So if you're out, somebody else is in. They have 0:08:51.640 --> 0:08:53.960 no chance to talk to a lawyer, they have no 0:08:54.080 --> 0:08:57.040 negotiating power to ask for things to be removed from 0:08:57.080 --> 0:09:00.000 the contract. So basically you've already stunk a lot of time. 0:09:00.040 --> 0:09:02.719 I'm an energy and you've imagined yourself on this show. 0:09:02.840 --> 0:09:05.120 You get a contract, it's got a clause like that, 0:09:05.360 --> 0:09:06.920 But what are you going to do? You don't have 0:09:07.000 --> 0:09:09.880 much opportunity to negotiate or to say no at that point. 0:09:10.160 --> 0:09:12.840 But even then, what can you really say? Ask the 0:09:12.880 --> 0:09:14.960 production company to take out a clause and they'll say 0:09:15.480 --> 0:09:17.520 no and thank you very much for your time, We're 0:09:17.520 --> 0:09:19.560 going to go with somebody else. So it puts all 0:09:19.640 --> 0:09:22.560 the cast in a very difficult position. And again, I 0:09:22.600 --> 0:09:26.600 think partly is who reads a contract that carefully, who 0:09:26.640 --> 0:09:29.960 goes through a line by line. Nobody has a legal background. 0:09:30.040 --> 0:09:32.680 They don't know what they're signing on to exactly, and 0:09:32.720 --> 0:09:35.000 people are just they don't have a chance to be informed. 0:09:35.400 --> 0:09:38.240 So they sign it and they're suddenly a part of 0:09:38.960 --> 0:09:40.840 a show and they're part of the process. 0:09:41.679 --> 0:09:44.360 That's true. They are indeed a part of a process now. 0:09:45.080 --> 0:09:47.320 And although it may have been a cumbination of being 0:09:47.360 --> 0:09:51.040 soda dream blissful, naivety and a whole lot of pressure 0:09:51.080 --> 0:09:54.120 and manipulation that got them there, these days, we do 0:09:54.200 --> 0:09:57.280 have to also acknowledge that the potential of gaining fame, 0:09:57.400 --> 0:09:59.400 of following on a platform to make a lot of 0:09:59.440 --> 0:10:03.439 money is also a major incentive but long before appearing 0:10:03.440 --> 0:10:06.720 on the show spawned any opportunities like that. The real 0:10:06.800 --> 0:10:09.199 selling point, so many cast members have told me, convinced 0:10:09.200 --> 0:10:12.320 them to sign on the dotted line was the relationship 0:10:12.400 --> 0:10:16.280 experts and what they represented. That's certainly what made Dean 0:10:16.320 --> 0:10:17.160 Wells say yes. 0:10:17.440 --> 0:10:20.439 The wording they used was we use a scientific method 0:10:20.679 --> 0:10:25.079 to find the perfect partner for you, and I think 0:10:25.120 --> 0:10:27.600 they even said we've got the perfect woman for you. 0:10:28.160 --> 0:10:31.120 And did they have the perfect woman waiting for Dean No, 0:10:31.559 --> 0:10:35.600 not quite. To take things back to the very start 0:10:36.040 --> 0:10:39.360 when Married at first first launch in Australia in twenty fifteen, 0:10:39.880 --> 0:10:42.479 the entire premise of the show centered around the experts. 0:10:43.080 --> 0:10:45.640 They were the stars of this show, which was made 0:10:45.640 --> 0:10:48.599 clear from the very first minute of the very first episode. 0:10:49.600 --> 0:10:52.679 This basically will put the relationships on steroids. 0:10:52.880 --> 0:10:58.840 Three of Australia's top relationship experts are leading this radical experiment. 0:10:58.440 --> 0:11:03.400 Cam matchmaking produce a long lasting relationship. 0:11:03.120 --> 0:11:07.320 Using a mix of neuroscience and psychology. They'll try to 0:11:07.320 --> 0:11:09.400 create four perfect matches. 0:11:09.600 --> 0:11:11.760 I think he's too strong a personality. 0:11:12.120 --> 0:11:15.360 Is she going to be resilient enough in this pressure cooker? 0:11:16.480 --> 0:11:18.720 I want to find someone. I want to have kids 0:11:18.720 --> 0:11:21.200 one day, so why not do it this way? 0:11:21.440 --> 0:11:22.160 At least this guy. 0:11:22.200 --> 0:11:24.600 They did a criminal check. You know, that's good. 0:11:24.840 --> 0:11:25.640 That's a good start. 0:11:27.080 --> 0:11:31.360 Their expertise gave the concept credibility, integrity, and it said 0:11:31.400 --> 0:11:33.720 that hey, this isn't car Crush TV in the making, 0:11:34.040 --> 0:11:37.040 but a genuine attempt to help strangers find love. When 0:11:37.040 --> 0:11:39.679 you hear the show referred to as an experiment, initially, 0:11:40.240 --> 0:11:44.600 they were the ones test in the hypothesis and were experimenting. 0:11:45.440 --> 0:11:49.679 Couple's pairing for romantic love is a recent innovation in 0:11:49.720 --> 0:11:51.160 our evolutionary history. 0:11:51.800 --> 0:11:56.680 The first expert relationship psychologist John Aiken, puts couples under 0:11:56.720 --> 0:11:58.000 the microscope. 0:11:58.240 --> 0:12:00.760 I've been doing this now for twenty years, dealing with 0:12:00.800 --> 0:12:03.760 singles and couples day in, day out, teaching them what 0:12:03.760 --> 0:12:05.880 they're doing wrong and then showing them how to put 0:12:05.960 --> 0:12:06.320 it right. 0:12:06.920 --> 0:12:13.240 Through extensive psychological evaluations. He's created detailed personal profiles of 0:12:13.280 --> 0:12:19.000 the potential matches. The second expert, neuros psychotherapist, doctor Tricia Stratford, 0:12:19.320 --> 0:12:22.880 looks at how the brain reacts to love and attraction. 0:12:23.480 --> 0:12:27.400 The final expert, psychologist Sabina Reid, wants to make sure 0:12:27.440 --> 0:12:30.920 the recipe for a successful match is just right. The 0:12:31.000 --> 0:12:34.160 idea behind these arranged marriages is that we're more mindful 0:12:34.200 --> 0:12:36.199 of the ingredients that we're putting into the mix. 0:12:37.440 --> 0:12:37.720 Yeah. 0:12:37.960 --> 0:12:40.600 Over the years, the roles of the experts has somehow 0:12:40.600 --> 0:12:45.600 gone from assisting the couples to antagonizing them. 0:12:45.679 --> 0:12:48.640 What do you think that you can do, Colins that 0:12:48.679 --> 0:12:50.679 will bring her close and make her feel special? 0:12:51.960 --> 0:12:54.160 No, I'm sorry. I came to you for advice. What 0:12:54.240 --> 0:13:00.439 should I do? Just think about it if you decided 0:13:00.480 --> 0:13:03.040 to stay together. No, no, no, no, no, no, I'm sorry. 0:13:03.920 --> 0:13:05.680 I'm not here to tell you what to do. 0:13:05.720 --> 0:13:07.480 You're not here to give me advice. 0:13:08.320 --> 0:13:11.320 Over the years, expert John even now makes no secret 0:13:11.360 --> 0:13:13.120 of the fact that the way he believes he can 0:13:13.160 --> 0:13:15.240 help the couples is by calling them up. 0:13:15.960 --> 0:13:19.400 Certainly, the commitment ceremonies are where we really come out 0:13:19.400 --> 0:13:22.080 hard at them. Okay, so tell us about the commitment ceremonies. 0:13:22.200 --> 0:13:23.960 How are you going to help some of these couples 0:13:23.960 --> 0:13:25.000 to get back on track? 0:13:26.080 --> 0:13:26.280 Well? 0:13:26.320 --> 0:13:30.240 I tend to just come out and you know, tough love. Yeah, 0:13:30.600 --> 0:13:32.360 call him out, call out the bad behavior. 0:13:32.440 --> 0:13:35.960 John has even previously admitted that former expert doctor Tricia 0:13:36.000 --> 0:13:38.400 Stratford would have to tell him to rein it in 0:13:38.559 --> 0:13:40.000 on SAT while they're filming. 0:13:41.200 --> 0:13:44.160 I have a lot of great memories with her. I mean, 0:13:44.240 --> 0:13:47.680 she got so excited about anything to do with the 0:13:47.720 --> 0:13:51.640 brain and love. And she brought into this experiment, the 0:13:51.640 --> 0:13:55.800 pheromone test, where people would smell clothes, and she just 0:13:55.880 --> 0:13:59.040 gets so excited about all of that. And you know, 0:13:59.120 --> 0:14:02.000 she also wore this white lab coat, you know, which 0:14:02.080 --> 0:14:05.080 was amazing. She made it look, you know, kind of fashionable. 0:14:06.000 --> 0:14:08.280 She was great as well because she'd keep. 0:14:08.120 --> 0:14:08.680 Me in check. 0:14:08.800 --> 0:14:11.040 You know, sometimes I'll be yelling at the participants and 0:14:11.080 --> 0:14:13.839 she'd say, you know, John, don't get too preachy. Bring 0:14:13.880 --> 0:14:14.520 it down a notch. 0:14:14.679 --> 0:14:15.320 Yeah, you know. 0:14:15.440 --> 0:14:18.480 So she was always like, you say, that calm voice 0:14:18.520 --> 0:14:19.000 of reason. 0:14:19.440 --> 0:14:22.320 But the issue there is John shouldn't need someone there 0:14:22.440 --> 0:14:24.880 to keep him in check. If his role on the 0:14:24.920 --> 0:14:27.880 show is to guide and advise, it should never reach 0:14:27.920 --> 0:14:30.000 a point where he's told, hey, you're yelling at them 0:14:30.000 --> 0:14:32.440 too much, because why is he yelling at all? This 0:14:32.560 --> 0:14:35.680 isn't what you'd expect of a clinical psychologist, is it, Which, 0:14:35.960 --> 0:14:37.960 as we all know, is why John was hired to 0:14:37.960 --> 0:14:39.840 be part of the show. In the first place because 0:14:39.840 --> 0:14:42.360 of his work as a clinical psychologist in New South 0:14:42.400 --> 0:14:46.640 Wales helping real life couples. But what a lot of 0:14:46.680 --> 0:14:50.240 you don't know is the fact that in late twenty seventeen, 0:14:50.960 --> 0:14:54.000 just after the show's fourth season went to air, which 0:14:54.040 --> 0:14:56.880 was also Tara's first season as the EP of the show, 0:14:57.160 --> 0:14:59.880 where she started supersizing the former and bringing in new 0:15:00.000 --> 0:15:03.720 twists and scandals, the Psychology Council of New South Wales 0:15:03.760 --> 0:15:07.160 were forced to intervene. An unnamed cast member from season 0:15:07.160 --> 0:15:10.960 four launched an official complaint against John to the Psychology Council, 0:15:11.080 --> 0:15:14.080 and after the Council conducted an investigation, they said in 0:15:14.160 --> 0:15:16.920 this email, which was previously published by The Daily Mail, 0:15:17.160 --> 0:15:20.360 mister John Aiken is no longer participating on the TV 0:15:20.480 --> 0:15:23.720 program as a psychologist and he has updated his bio 0:15:23.800 --> 0:15:26.840 on the nine Now website to reflect this. Please note 0:15:26.920 --> 0:15:30.800 that mister Aiken is still able to participate in the show, however, 0:15:31.200 --> 0:15:33.680 he is no longer able to refer to himself as 0:15:33.680 --> 0:15:38.640 a psychologist or undertake psychological practice. This means that so 0:15:38.760 --> 0:15:41.080 long as all reference to him being a psychologist has 0:15:41.120 --> 0:15:44.480 been removed from the show, mister Aikin can continue to 0:15:44.520 --> 0:15:47.720 work on it. In that email, which was sent on 0:15:47.800 --> 0:15:51.960 September fifth, twenty seventeen, the Psychology Council of New South 0:15:52.000 --> 0:15:55.680 Wales also added this, The Council acknowledges that this may 0:15:55.680 --> 0:15:58.320 not be the outcome you had hoped for and understands 0:15:58.320 --> 0:16:01.800 that you may be upset. However, I would again reassure 0:16:01.800 --> 0:16:05.200 you that the Council considers all complaints seriously and takes 0:16:05.240 --> 0:16:07.680 what it considers to be the most appropriate course of 0:16:07.720 --> 0:16:12.880 action available to it. As far as I can tell, 0:16:13.360 --> 0:16:15.640 that ruling macked a huge change on the show and 0:16:15.720 --> 0:16:18.280 for the roles of the experts because John and the 0:16:18.280 --> 0:16:21.960 others were no longer restricted by their professional titles. Losing 0:16:21.960 --> 0:16:24.560 that official title in connection to the show meant John 0:16:24.840 --> 0:16:27.760 and the others could go harder, be louder, and push 0:16:27.840 --> 0:16:30.920 boundaries in ways they likely wouldn't have done before, and 0:16:31.000 --> 0:16:33.920 if they wanted to. They could also now conspire with 0:16:34.000 --> 0:16:37.440 producers to help start drama instead of helping resolve it 0:16:37.560 --> 0:16:40.080 like they were initially hired to do. This is John 0:16:40.240 --> 0:16:43.040 from last season sharing his experiences with the Experts in 0:16:43.080 --> 0:16:44.600 a recent TikTok. 0:16:44.320 --> 0:16:48.640 The Experts they're actually nice favor it was so weird 0:16:48.640 --> 0:16:51.960 because I'd get roasted by them, absolutely roasted by them. 0:16:52.440 --> 0:16:56.080 And then in the last episode of filming theme, I'm like, John. 0:16:55.840 --> 0:17:01.360 O, you're such a great guy. Our congratulations, Like mel 0:17:01.680 --> 0:17:04.280 gave me a hug, and I just remember being this 0:17:04.359 --> 0:17:07.760 out of body experience because I just got my asshole 0:17:08.160 --> 0:17:09.680 handed to me by them. 0:17:10.320 --> 0:17:12.400 They tore me to shreds, and then they just gave 0:17:12.440 --> 0:17:16.280 me a hug, and I realized that they're paid actors 0:17:16.480 --> 0:17:20.640 and they have earpieces in You'll see every now and again, 0:17:20.720 --> 0:17:25.880 John in particular will stop and sort of look when 0:17:25.920 --> 0:17:29.639 you're sitting across from him, because he's actually listening to 0:17:29.720 --> 0:17:33.520 what he's he's been told what to say. 0:17:33.880 --> 0:17:36.159 This has been one of the longest running rumors on 0:17:36.320 --> 0:17:39.800 Married at First Sight. Are the experts fed questions for 0:17:39.880 --> 0:17:43.280 a secret earpiece by producers who are telling them exactly 0:17:43.280 --> 0:17:47.439 what to say in order to steer things further, Well, yeah, 0:17:47.680 --> 0:17:53.840 they are, which former expert neuropsychotherapist doctor Tricia Stratford previously 0:17:53.880 --> 0:17:56.600 confirmed herself, and she cited that as one of the 0:17:56.600 --> 0:17:59.000 many reasons that led to her quitting the show. 0:18:00.200 --> 0:18:04.520 Are on camera, the executive producer would ask us to 0:18:04.560 --> 0:18:10.080 ask questions we could ask our own questions, but the 0:18:10.119 --> 0:18:14.680 producer would ask us to ask questions. I would either 0:18:14.960 --> 0:18:18.600 reframe those questions or I wouldn't ask them. 0:18:19.160 --> 0:18:22.520 Not only this, but these days on this current season. 0:18:23.040 --> 0:18:25.399 Morena recently told me that as filming wrapped in the 0:18:25.400 --> 0:18:28.280 early hours of the morning for one of her commitment ceremonies, 0:18:28.680 --> 0:18:30.520 and as all the casts were leaving the studio and 0:18:30.560 --> 0:18:33.400 getting into their taxes, she snook off from the group 0:18:33.440 --> 0:18:35.800 and went back inside to go to the bathroom. And 0:18:35.840 --> 0:18:38.280 when she went back in the building, she then saw 0:18:38.320 --> 0:18:41.040 the experts doing something that she never expected. 0:18:41.240 --> 0:18:44.119 I looked through the payphole of the door like a 0:18:44.200 --> 0:18:50.520 little kid, right like that, and I see the three puppeteers. 0:18:50.560 --> 0:18:53.000 Sorry you keep referring to them as the experts, they 0:18:53.080 --> 0:19:02.080 really anyway, and camera crew, one by one they're being filmed. 0:19:02.400 --> 0:19:09.360 One liners, what did I hear? Nobody likes you. You're 0:19:09.400 --> 0:19:15.159 a disgrace. That behavior is not warranted on our watch. 0:19:15.720 --> 0:19:19.399 Blah blah blah blah blah blah blah. You ought to 0:19:19.440 --> 0:19:22.520 be ashamed of yourselves. So they don't mention any names. 0:19:23.119 --> 0:19:25.720 So then they make sure that when they look back 0:19:25.720 --> 0:19:29.000 at their footage, whatever they're going to grab for that person, 0:19:29.080 --> 0:19:32.280 not just me, anybody. They're being going to throw that 0:19:32.320 --> 0:19:36.720 one liner in you ought to be ashamed of yourselves. 0:19:37.160 --> 0:19:39.920 To me, that proves that not only has the role 0:19:39.960 --> 0:19:43.640 of relationship expert transformed over the years into essentially being 0:19:43.680 --> 0:19:47.320 a prop for production, but they're also now just acting 0:19:47.400 --> 0:19:51.320 as well. They're playing the role of a relationship expert 0:19:51.400 --> 0:19:57.399 and actively contributing to manufacturing storylines. As I've already said, 0:19:57.800 --> 0:20:01.359 the current lineup of experts consist of unical psychologist John 0:20:01.640 --> 0:20:05.040 who has been there since season one, dating coach Mel Schilling, 0:20:05.400 --> 0:20:09.040 who replaced human behavioral experts Sabina Read in season two, 0:20:09.640 --> 0:20:14.399 and sexologist Alessandra Rampola, who replaced doctor Tricia Stratford in 0:20:14.480 --> 0:20:17.840 season eight. I reached out to Sabina Read earlier this week, 0:20:18.280 --> 0:20:20.400 wondering if she'd like to talk about what made her 0:20:20.480 --> 0:20:23.199 walk away from Married at First Sight after just one season, 0:20:23.800 --> 0:20:25.960 when it was obvious to all back then that this 0:20:26.000 --> 0:20:28.359 little show they'd just worked on was set to become 0:20:28.400 --> 0:20:32.280 a huge hit. Sabina politely declined to come onto the podcast, 0:20:32.320 --> 0:20:35.480 but she said, and I quote, her involvement in the 0:20:35.480 --> 0:20:38.600 show was ancient history now but she did add that 0:20:38.600 --> 0:20:41.720 the well being of the participants was always paramount to her. 0:20:42.920 --> 0:20:45.560 So does that mean that even back then ten years 0:20:45.560 --> 0:20:48.280 ago some of the people involved could see the direction 0:20:48.359 --> 0:20:51.879 Married at First Sight Australia was already heading That's just 0:20:51.920 --> 0:20:55.040 me speculating, of course. But one person who did make 0:20:55.040 --> 0:20:57.600 it clear that she was not comfortable with how the 0:20:57.680 --> 0:21:00.719 show was slowly changing over the years was former expert 0:21:00.880 --> 0:21:04.880 doctor Tricia Stratford, who suddenly passed away in twenty twenty three, 0:21:05.240 --> 0:21:09.080 age seventy two. When Doctor Tricia's exit was announced in 0:21:09.119 --> 0:21:12.520 early twenty twenty one, she was quoted in a statement 0:21:12.560 --> 0:21:15.440