With Married At First Sight (MAFS) 2026 about to kick off filming and Farmer Wants A Wife currently casting participants for the 2026 season, reality TV star wannabes have been flooding Evelyn Ellis with questions about what it’s really like.
The MAFS star, who is currently still loved-up with fellow MAFS contestant Duncan James, has done a tell-all on TikTok about the “truth about reality TV”. She’s been on Big Brother UK as well as MAFS, so she’s an expert in this arena.
“I get asked all the time, ‘Hey Ev, should I do this? This person contacted me’. So, here it is. Number one: nothing is for certain. The chances of you walking out with a love story like Cam [Merchant] and Jules [Merchant] or the success of someone like Molly Mae are unlikely, but not impossible,” she began. “If you haven’t got thick skin or are afraid of a little bit of self-criticism, then it’s probably not for you.”
She also warned aspiring reality TV stars that filming days are long, no matter which show they picked. This is true even for shows like MasterChef Australia, with Andre Ursini revealing recently filming days can stretch up to 12 hours long.
“It will push you physically and emotionally, but it doesn’t last forever, so you should probably try to enjoy it,” Evelyn added. Producers also confiscate your phone, so everybody is kept in the moment rather than staring at their screens. For Evelyn, she appreciated the forced break — something many of us could benefit from. “As someone who has really high screen time, I actually liked my phone being taken, because when does that ever happen these days?”
Does a ‘bad edit’ exist?
Evelyn briefly touched on the idea of a “bad” or “villain edit”, with contestants like MAFS‘ Olivia Frazer and Farmer Wants A Wife’s Clarette Goodhead being outspoken about the production technique.
“Time and time again we hear about participants blaming the edit, and the truth is that producers and editors are humans too, and they’re experiencing everything that you’re experiencing, so don’t be an asshole,” she said.
@evelyn.ellis Some of you guys may have noticed some shows are casting right now, so I hope this video helps for those who may be intrested. Everyone has had different experiences but this is my honest advice 🫶🻠#doinggodswork ♬ Carmen Habanera, classical opera(1283412) – perfectpanda
She told future reality TV contestants to be open when filming, and “show everything” on camera. “Be yourself. The good, the bad and the ugly. At the end of the day if you do get [cast] and decide to jump into reality TV, keep in mind that people are chosen because they have big, strange and confronting personalities. So you’re not going to be friends with everyone,” she explained.
“Lastly, if you do decide to do reality TV, remember it’s your life right now and not your life forever because it’s very easy to get involved in the drama and let it consume you. And also, you never know. You might just meet your forever partner,” she added.
If you’re still interested in applying for Farmer Wants A Wife 2026 after all of Evelyn’s warnings, you can check out the application form here.
You can stream Married At First Sight on 9Now.
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