Channel 4 commissions external review of Married at First Sight UK

Channel 4 commissioned an external review of Married at First Sight UK in spring 2026, after the BBC's current affairs programme Panorama approached the broadcaster with serious allegations from former contestants. The review was to examine safety and duty of care, meaning the production's responsibility for the welfare of the people taking part.

Panorama's investigation, broadcast on 18 May 2026, featured two former women contestants who said they were raped by their on-screen partners. A third said she was subjected to a non-consensual sex act. Lawyers for the two men disputed the claims. Channel 4 described the allegations as uncorroborated and disputed, and said the show operated under robust welfare protocols.

Channel 4's chief executive, Priya Dogra, said she ordered the review within days of the BBC first making contact. The broadcaster also asked former BBC One controller Lorraine Heggessey to consider whether the show's protocols needed to change. Past series were removed from Channel 4's streaming, television and social channels while the work continued. The review mattered because its findings were expected to shape whether the programme had a future, which is the decision later cast cast members were reacting to.