The new season of Married At First Sight 2024 is just days away and there’s already tea involving a runaway groom. Don’t you just love MAFS? I know I do.
In the latest MAFS trailer, we see expert John Aiken discover that one of the grooms has done a runner.
“In all of our years of this experiment, this is unprecedented,” John says in the clip, followed by a bride whispering to another contestant: “Did you hear one of the grooms… is gone.”
While the official channels haven’t confirmed who it is — the rumour mill has pretty much worked out that the runaway groom is 39-year-old Simon Flocco.
One of the main giveaways was the cast list which featured photos of each cast member. While all the other pics were colour-graded to the gods, Simon’s pic seemed low resolution and his expression was extremely serious — kind of an odd vibe for a guy about to find love on a reality show, no?
‘But why is the pic so dodgy?’ I hear you ask! Well, because it seems like Simon walked out on the show before the cast made it to the photoshoot day.
So to get around it, a source told Yahoo Lifestyle Australia that they used a pic he’d already sent in.
“The picture of Simon is one he submitted to producers himself during pre-production to show them his suit,” the source said.
“Shortly after filming his backstory and the groom’s bucks party, he changed his mind about doing the show and quit.”
According to the Daily Mail, Simon is shocked that he was even included in the lineup.
“Why am I even in the lineup? I suppose they’d do anything for ratings,” Simon apparently told the news site.
The Daily Mail also reported that as a result of leaving the show, he’s refusing to hand over his Instagram login to Channel Nine like all of the other contestants.
“Simon thought he was completely out of the picture. Seeing that photoshopped image was a real shocker for him,” a source said.
I can’t say I can blame him when he’s only in an episode, TBH.
Why did Simon quit Married At First Sight?
Simon appears in the first episode of Married At First Sight which features the bucks and hens nights before the nuptials take place. But after, he decided that the MAFS experience wasn’t for him.
“MAFS wasn’t what I thought I wanted at this point in my life, that’s all,” he told the Daily Mail in October.
“I just felt bad for whoever they set me up with. I did initially leave, but they managed to coax me back… I gotta look out for myself.”
So true! We love a king who upholds his own boundaries!
Originally, Simon was set to be marrying Michael Felix on the show. Instead, rumour has it that Michael has now been set up with Perth-based hairdresser Stephen Stewart.
As a romantic who believes in the divine intervention of the universe, I hope this is what needed to happen so Michael and Stephen could find true love.
Unlikely, yes, but I still hope so!
PEDESTRIAN.TV has reached out to Simon for a comment.
