Media are slamming a MAFS dinner party for its content. But viewers could not look away. … both things are true.
A Married at First Sight dinner party managed to draw bumper ratings while igniting media outrage at the same time.
First the good news, 2.01m was a season high for Nine.
Now the bad…. News.com.au called it “too disgutsting to watch.” Even TV Week said 9 minutes of the show “should not have gone to air,” adding the show was “horrific” and “crossed a line.”
“I can’t even repeat the lines that Brook uttered at the women because it is not suitable to be published,” noted editor Amber Giles.
But for Nine MAFS and 9Now were a “perfect match” a press release stated, buoyed by BVOD and winning Wednesday.
Meanwhile the Winter Olympics drew 1.00m / 625,000 / 497,000.
7:30 drew 768,000 then The 1% Club UK (615,000), Hard Quiz (571,000) and I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here (485,000).
Later The Weekly with Charlie Pickering was 506,000 then Highway Patrol (333,000), Dog Park (229,000) and Elsbeth (172,000).
Nine News pulled 1.31m for Nine then A Current Affair (1.09m) and Tipping Point (731,000). All were timeslot wins.
Seven News scored 1.24m then Home & Away (898,000) and The Chase (534,000). Operation Dark Phone: Murder By Text managed 180,000.
ABC News drew 923,000. Hard Quiz rpt (340,000) and QI followed.
10 News was 287,000 for 10 then Millionaire Hot Seat (263,000), Deal or No Deal (143,000), 10 News+ (140,000) and 10 Late News (80,000).
On SBS it was SBS World News (172,000 / 137,000), Saving Yellowstone (92,000), Seven Wonders of the Ancient World (106,000) and Trespasses at just 39,000.
Sunrise: 419,000
Today: 319,000
News Breakfast: 213,000
National Total TV: Wednesday 18 February 2026