The latest season of Married at First Sight UK has caught everyone’s attention. Only, now, serious allegations against one of the contestants have come to light.
Financial adviser and divorced father of four, George Roberts, has been married on-screen to Miss Great Britain beauty queen April Banbury for the past five weeks. But after seeing George on a trailer for the show, three of his ex-girlfriends felt concerned. First, they contacted E4, but claimed their complaints were not taken seriously and went to the police.
The three women, who dated George following his divorce from his first wife, claim they experienced love-bombing - an abusive action whereby the victim is overwhelmed with attention in order to later influence or manipulate. The women claim his actions became controlling and coercive.
Following the allegations made, Metropolitan Police have confirmed that George was arrested.
A Met spokesperson said, “A 40-year-old man was arrested in Worcestershire on Thursday, September 29, on suspicion of controlling and coercive behaviour. He was taken to a police station and bailed pending further enquiries.”
George denies all allegations of abusive behaviour.
The show is pre-recorded, and Channel 4 have been criticised for their decision to still run episodes featuring George, despite these claims.
George and April remain in a relationship on the E4 show and have had a rollercoaster relationship so far. The main issue between the couple has been trust, as since April kissed a woman in a hot tub in a game of truth or date on their honeymoon.
In real time, she’s hinted on her Instagram Stories that she and George separated after criticising him for Googling her exact date of birth to find out about her past relationship.
Last night, she said, “These revelations have knocked me for six. My head is spinning too much to comment.”
A spokesperson from Channel 4, which runs E4, said: "We work incredibly closely with our production partners to ensure all Married at First Sight UK contributors are subject to rigorous background and psychological checks, including the most detailed police checks a production is able to undertake. Any allegations of this nature are taken extremely seriously by Channel 4."
Domestic abuse charity, Women’s Aid, said the entertainment industry should send a clear message — domestic abuse will not be tolerated.