MAFS’ Alissa reveals harsh truth behind Commitment Ceremonies

Have you noticed the hot water bottles that pop up at the Marriage At First Sight (MAFS) Commitment Ceremonies? Everyone on the show does their best to keep them hidden, but when they do peek through, you’ve got to ask: just what kind of conditions are these people filming in? And is there someone we need to call?

When Chattr spoke to bride Alissa Fay, we got the inside scoop on what’s going on with the rogue heat pads. “So obviously, it’s a bit cold,” Alissa tells Chattr. “Because in winter, you know, we’re filming when it’s still in the middle of winter, in that big industrial shed where we film in,” she adds.

“It doesn’t have much insulation, so it is freezing. It is either stinking hot in the summer, where you’re sweating bollocks, or it’s bloody cold, and you can’t feel your toes or fingers,” the MAFS bride explains.

“So we had, like, hot water bottles on our backs, or we had those little heat pack warmers that we had in our pockets or in our hands or underneath our butt cheeks when we sat on the couch.”

“These are all memories I’m going to remember forever, because these are the things you don’t see on camera, because they obviously happen behind the scenes.”

Apparently, the hot water bottles usually come out during filming breaks, but plenty of viewers have clocked them on the actual show — most noticeably, on Episode 11, the one where Brook “goes to the toilet” only to never return.

Given the unusual circumstances around that episode, we see expert John Aiken rise from his seat and chat to a producer, with his red emotional support water bottle left on the couch in his place.

The big industrial shed that Alissa refers to, according to Real Commercial, is apparently in an “unassuming warehouse” at 91 Canal Street in the Sydney suburb of Lilyfield. The warehouse is rented out by Endemol Shine — the people who produce the show for Nine — setting them back just $7000 a week. Wow, all that and frostbite thrown in for you? Where do we sign up?

The warehouse is used for both the show’s Commitment Ceremonies and Dinner Parties, with furniture and other items used to zhuzh everything up and tone down its default “cold and desolate” theme.

Fun fact: It is also a former Army parachute regiment store, that dates back to the 1940s, so… do what that information what you will.

Married at First Sight (MAFS) 2026 airs Sunday – Wednesday on Channel 9 and 9Now.