Nathanial QUITS Married at First Sight and calls it ‘manipulative’ and a ‘complete sham’

Nathanial Valentino has quit Married at First Sight UK 2023, and called the show a “complete sham” whilst going in on the production of the series.

In the show, we have just seen Nathanial have a huge row with new bride Ella, with each other questioning how much the other was putting it all on for the cameras. Ella branded Nathanial a “showman”, but now he has said the show has no interest in finding couples who are in the experiment to find true love.

During the series Nathanial was matched by experts with Ella, who is the show’s first transgender bride, but he has now claimed he told bosses when describing his ideal match that he didn’t want to be with someone transgender. He said he also made it clear he didn’t want to be matched with a smoker or someone who had worked in the sex industry. He said Ella smokes, and we saw him shout at her that she was once a stripper, on the show.

In an interview with The Mirror, Nathanial claimed MAFS participants were fed scripted lines by a team known as The Story – nicknamed ‘the little bitches and witches’ and Ella was turned into ‘a monster’ by the production team. He also claimed couples were confined to their rooms after reports one person had taken drugs.

Nathanial said he quit Married at First Sight UK 2023 early on, and added: “The way some were treated on the show became very dark. Pretty much from the start it was a complete sham. I told producers that I wanted to marry a man, or a woman with a very masculine energy, because that’s normally who I go for.

“Then I was told they matched me with a lovely girl who was transgender. My first reaction was ‘no’ because I felt that just wasn’t me, and I told them so. But they encouraged me to think about it, saying if I didn’t take part it would ruin this girl’s story.

“And by that point I had also turned down a work contract because I thought I’d be going on the show. So I agreed. My only deal-breakers were that she didn’t smoke and didn’t work in the sex industry.

“That’s why I was angry when I learned, before we went on honeymoon, Ella worked as a stripper. But when I asked to speak to my welfare person, I was told it wasn’t a good time. Another occasion, a producer told me I wouldn’t be asked about my family. Not long after, Ella asked me why she was being encouraged to ask me about my family.

“That was the kind of manipulation that went on. I’d be having a great conversation with Ella, she would be pulled away and, five minutes later, we’d have an ­argument about the exact same thing. One couple were really broken down by their manipulations.”

Last week it was revealed Ella cheats on Nathanial later on in the show, and Nathanial said he too had a connection with someone else, but was told by producers not to explore it, which was the point where he knew he had to quit.

He said: “Myself and another girl grew close and we sneaked on to a balcony to confide our feelings. But she told me that when she spoke to producers about it, the response was: ‘That won’t be believable. Nathanial is gay.’

“At that point I knew I had to get out. I felt I was being strangled and it brought out an ugly side of me. I knew I was going to tear the place down, so I quit. Since I left I’ve texted Ella saying: ‘You’ve broken my trust and loyalty and you never said sorry.’ She didn’t reply. I’ve asked for an apology from C4, which they have never given me.

“That’s why I am speaking out. I don’t want to upset the good, kind people who work on the show, but what happened to me can’t happen to another person. This show needs to have a ‘For Entertainment Purposes’ all over it. If you go on, you will have a devil whispering in your ear the entire time.

“There are couples with a beautiful connection. But with Ella, the show created a monster. I didn’t know who I was marrying. Some of the welfare just wasn’t there.”

In a statement to The Mirror, Channel 4 said: “Nathanial entered this process voluntarily with full and informed consent and was provided with more information than we would ordinarily share, to make him aware that his bride was trans. The matching process entails a detailed interrogation of participant’s preferences and none of these would be overlooked when deciding who to pair them with.

“The welfare of all contributors is our top priority and we ensure support is available before, during and after filming – including 24/7 access to welfare or psych support. The show is an unscripted reality series which follows real events as they naturally unfold and is in no way scripted.”

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