I applied for MAFS while drunk & met the love of my life but I wouldn’t do it now… it’s been changed beyond recognition
MANY of us have made questionable choices after a few beers – but Owen Jenkins’ rash move likely tops them all.
The IT manager, 35, from Sheffield, spotted an advert asking for people to marry a complete stranger on TV while he was down the pub – and after a couple more pints, he sent in an application.
Luckily for Owen, it led him to meet the “love of his life”, Michelle Walder, and their touching romance was captured on Married At First Sight back in 2020.
Now the couple, who are expecting their first child in December, are the E4 show’s longest-lasting pairing.
Teacher Michelle, 29, tells us: “I just feel very lucky and thankful that it has worked out – and excited for everything to come.”
Michelle and Owen, then 25 and 31, were both sick of dating apps when they applied in 2019.
Owen recalls: “I had been out for some drinks with a friend after work.
“While he was out for a cigarette I was scrolling on Instagram waiting for him to come back in.
“The MAFS advert was the last thing I saw, and I joked, ‘Wouldn’t it be funny if I signed up?’
“A few beers later when I was back at home I sent in the application, and the rest is history.”
Meanwhile Michelle, from Sussex, liked the challenge of MAFS because she was “never one for small talk” and liked the idea of “being in at the deep end”.
She adds: “In a ‘why not?’ moment I chose to apply. It was similar but less drink-fuelled than it was for Owen.”
The couple describe the audition process as “pretty rigorous” as it included several hours of psychological testing.
Producers also asked to speak to Owen’s ex-girlfriend – and thankfully they were on good terms.
He recalls: “I still worked with her, so we interacted fairly regularly and it was a relatively easy conversation.
“When I told her what I was doing she laughed in my face for 10 minutes but then said, ‘Sure, absolutely’.”
They were invited to a ‘Singles day’ – a five-hour audition process with screen tests and further interviews.
Owen says: “I was expecting it to be like The X Factor, with thousands of applicants and just two seconds in front of the camera to see if your face fits.
“But I was just one of nine men and after several hours there were about four of us left.”
Huge change
Unlike the subsequent series of MAFS, Michelle and Owen were legally married at their ceremony, which they believe meant they took it more seriously.
Owen says: “It puts quite a lot of additional pressure on you because if it doesn’t work, you have to go through the process of getting a divorce.
“Legally being married solidified the fact that we were together from day one and helped us to get through initial problems and work through things straight away.”
Because the marriage was legally binding they also had to supply credit checks, sort out a prenuptial agreement and do their wills.
Owen adds: “From the prenup we could see each other’s assets and salaries. Because Michelle earned a random number rather than a round figure I knew she worked in the public sector.”
He admits they could have sneakily found out each other’s last names and looked each other up, but they chose not to because they “didn’t want to cheat the process”.
“There was a piece of paper with all of Michelle and her dad’s details, which was covered with post-it notes,” he says.
“The cameras legally have to leave when you sign the document so there was nothing to stop us peeling off the post-its to find out.”
It wasn’t until their big day that the couple’s nerves set in – with Owen’s kicking off after he put on his suit jacket and Michelle’s moments before walking down the aisle.
Michelle adds: “I could hear everyone inside and was like, ‘Oh, I’m actually getting married’. Thankfully Owen had a very calming effect on me.
“As soon as I was at the end of the aisle and we had said our vows, I knew it was all going to be fine.”
After the wedding party finished the couple stayed up until 4am chatting about their lives and going beyond the “surface-level chat” they had on their big day.
Owen says: “We touched on exes, how we got to this point and all sorts until we realised it was 4am and we had to be up in two hours to start filming again.”
TV tricks
Shortly after they finished filming their honeymoon, the UK went into lockdown.
The couple decided to isolate together, which despite being “a very high-pressure situation”, brought them closer together.
It meant TV crews couldn’t film them, so they were given handheld cameras to document their journey for several weeks.
Michelle believes this time away from the production team helped them enormously and gave them the opportunity to have genuine chats.
She says: “We were blessed in many ways because we did have a bit more time together without the cameras constantly on us.
“Owen learned all my bad habits early on and thankfully has put up with them ever since, so that’s been great too.”
Owen adds: “We were way more reserved on camera with each other and the nice, intimate moments we have from early on are memories.
“It was a blessing for us – for the TV show less so, because they had less content. We were both quite happy that the cameras weren’t always there.”
Michelle says they had a bit of back and forth about where they were going to live.
“The reality is we knew what we would do very early on and that we were in it for the long haul,” she says.
Owen adds: “We settled the debate in about 10 minutes, whereas on the TV show it was spread out over a few weeks.”
Sweet proposal
The Jenkins chose to stay together at the end of MAFS – but in the months that followed the experiment, Michelle had one concern about the relationship.
She says: “It seems so silly, especially now that we are on our second house together and expecting a child, but back then I was worried Owen hadn’t chosen to be with me.
“When you go on a show like MAFS, you are choosing to be matchmade and not choosing the person. I struggled, thinking, ‘Does he actually want to be with me?’
On their first wedding anniversary, Michelle’s fears melted away when Owen presented her with an engagement ring and a sweet note declaring his love for her.
Michelle said: “He wrote this lovely passage about how he 100 per cent does choose me.”
Owen added: “The engagement ring was to give Michelle confidence. It was more of a symbol than, ‘Let’s get engaged and redo the marriage’. It was a symbol to say I definitely, definitely choose you.”
‘Crazy’ decision
Three years on from MAFS they claim they’re a “boring married couple” but that suits them down to the ground.
Reflecting on the experience, Michelle says: “I think in hindsight it was completely crazy and a massive thing to go on the show, but I don’t regret it.”
They are one of three surviving MAFS couples – the others are Zoe Clifton and Jenna Robinson and Adam Aveling and Tayah Victoria – out of a total of 34 pairings so far.
For future singletons considering appearing on the show, the Jenkins say keeping an “open mind” is essential.
Michelle says: “I don’t think either of us had a big list of ‘deal breakers’ or expectations about what the other person had to be.
“It meant there weren’t any boundaries in our heads and we were really excited about every step of the process.
“If you’re looking for too many things, the risk of things not working out is probably higher.”
Owen believes there is “a lot more pressure” in the new format because there are multiple couples and dinner parties to contend with.
He says: “There are pros and cons – having more couples can be a distraction and take you away from focusing on your relationship.
“But it may also help to have someone to go to for advice who understands your situation.”
They also say “learning how to communicate properly” is a must.
Owen adds: “You often see one partner communicating their feelings and then the other person talking instead of listening.
“Communication is about listening and understanding and knowing that you are going to have to compromise on whatever you are agreeing or disagreeing on.
“The last thing is to just have fun because it’s a crazy once-in-a-lifetime experience, so you may as well enjoy it!”
You can follow Owen and Michelle’s lives on: www.instagram.com/mafs_owenandmichelle.