The ‘MAFS’ Cast Have Alyssa In Tears Again
Of all the things on my 2023 Bingo card this year, seeing the Married at First Sight contestants join forces to create a catchy #FreeAlyssa campaign wasn’t one of them. Alyssa Barmonde has been at the centre of some pretty nasty trolling since her, well… unflattering TV portrayal. Honestly, if she’d been paired with a more problematic guy (I’m looking at you Shannon), we could all be calling her a queen instead.
We’re smart enough now to know how producers can easily craft a “villain edit”, and if we go by what her pals have been saying — maybe we’ve judged her a little bit too quickly. With a different spin, would she have been considered a caring mother instead of an emotional wreck? Were we simply blinded by Duncan James’s chiselled jaw?
Boss babe Melinda Richelle started the hashtag to defend the MAFS bride, describing Alyssa as “one of the best people” from the show. Fan faves Tahnee Cook, Layton Mills and Lyndall Grace also jumped on the bandwagon.
“She is a gem, one of my best friends from the show,” Lyndall wrote on Instagram. “She’d go to war for me and I’d do the same for her. She’s not perfect, but she has a heart of gold. She deserved better, we ALL agree.”.
“Alyssa is one of the most beautiful people I have ever met,” Tahnee said. “She is that friend that will always be there for you no matter what. I know this show can really bring out the worst in people and highlight more negative aspects but I really wish you got to see more of how warm and kind she is.”
Alyssa is currently in Utah to visit her family (and no, she didn’t flee the country; it’s called a holiday) and tells Punkee she was overwhelmed by her fellow cast members’ support.
“When I woke up to my inbox flooded with such genuine, heartwarming messages from my fellow contribs — I was literally in tears (no surprise me crying lol),” she says. “But in all seriousness — never in a million years would I have thought the first week in getting our [Instagram] accounts back my friends would come to my defence.
“I will speak out more about it after I’ve done a bit more healing and when I’m ready. As there is so much to my side of the story that needs to be told about reality TV.”
Now that the show has finally wrapped up in the UK, she’s ready to move on and find her voice again.
“My inbox has been brimming over with strangers sending their love, support and even apologies!! Yes! People all over the world apologising to me after judging me from the ‘edit’. I feel so validated. And filled with peace,” she adds. “This is just the beginning of my journey now. And I can’t wait to show the world the real Alyssa.
“A healing, brave, strong, fierce, single mama. An anxious, mental health advocate — who has so much love to give. Even to the trolls.”
It’s easy to hide behind a keyboard and pass judgement, but Alyssa reads every single message. While the tide seems to be turning, there’s no doubt damage has already been done.
So let’s all take a pause when the next reality TV villain appears on our screens, because let’s face it, there’ll be a new Cyrell Olivia Alyssa before we can say MAFS.