It’s been a whole year since the chaotic cast of Love Is Blind UK hit screens and, with season two underway, the answer to whether love is really blind may have changed for the first season’s hopefuls.
The UK iteration of the hit US reality show saw hopeless romantics bundle into ‘pods’ to get to know one another sight unseen.
Falling in love based on personality as opposed to sizzling physical attraction, season one saw a whopping six couples get engaged with no idea how their future spouse looked.
Sabrina and Steven, Maria and Tom, Jasmine and Bobby, Demi and Ollie, Catherine and Freddie and Nicole and Benaiah planned to get married after just two weeks of dating.
And while not every couple actually went through with saying ‘I do,’ they still left the show with a deep bond.
So where has the cast ended up now, both in their personal lives and in their relationships that developed on-screen?
Jasmine and Bobby – Still Together 
Not only did Jasmine and Bobby remain together after their nationally-aired wedding day, but they are planning to start a family
The pair moved in together after the experiment, and are expecting their first child later this year
As they embark on the journey of parenthood, Jasmine and Bobby will have a keen grandmother on hand to change nappies
Not only did Jasmine and Bobby remain together after their nationally-aired wedding day, but they are planning to start a family.
The pair moved in together after the experiment, and are expecting their first child later this year.
A true Love Is Blind success story, the couple’s love flourished during the show, with Jasmine telling Netflix: ‘We weren’t afraid to discuss very difficult topics.
‘I didn’t want to hide anything from my future partner, so I felt like Bobby appreciated every single part of me.’
Their emphasis on trust and honest communication formed the foundation for their now-thriving romance.
‘My job is to really listen, hear her and try my best to make us secure,’ said Bobby.
And as they embark on the journey of parenthood, Jasmine and Bobby will have a keen grandmother on hand to change nappies.
Jasmine’s mother Marissa has become involved in the couple’s lives, despite Marissa being less than optimistic about the origin of their love story.
Jasmine feels her mother needed time to ‘ease into the dynamic,’ and adjust to the bizarre reality of her daughter getting married within mere weeks.
‘They’re besties now,’ she said, adding: ‘This is real life. Families do argue and have misunderstandings.’
Nicole and Benaiah – Still Together 
Despite Benaiah being sceptical about how successful the experiment could really be, meeting Nicole exceeded his expectations
Although they faced bumps on the road to the altar, the couple are still happily married and are even planning another wedding
Despite Benaiah being sceptical about how successful the experiment could really be, meeting Nicole exceeded his expectations.
Although they faced bumps on the road to the altar, the couple are still happily married and are even planning another wedding.
‘Throughout the whole experience it was always a challenge. I always felt on edge,’ Benaiah said. ‘Now I’m very comfortable and confident in us.
The pair felt they benefitted from the year away from the cameras, and their romance has since blossomed.
In the spirit of moving forward, Nicole and Benaiah have insisted that Sam, Nicole’s former fiancé and a complicated part of season one’s love triangle, will not be part of their life.
‘I’ve not spoken to him [since the reunion] and I don’t think he’s going to be part of our future, really,’ Benaiah added.
But Nicole has not been so quick to forget Sam’s indiscretions, and maintains that he was ‘spewing false things’ midway through the season to hurt her and Benaiah.
‘Sam was lying about our physical intimacy and saying I was trying to sleep with him. That was all a lie.’
Leaving the past behind, the couple are planning another ceremony to celebrate their love, as many of their family members were not able to attend the first.
Sabrina and Steven – Not Together 
Avid fans will remember that Sabrina and Steven bravely said ‘yes’ in season one’s finale – committing to spending the rest of their lives together
But their romance dissipated within less than a year, and the couple subsequently split owing to the difficulties of long distance and real life responsibilities
Avid fans will remember that Sabrina and Steven bravely said ‘yes’ in season one’s finale – committing to spending the rest of their lives together.
But their romance dissipated within less than a year, and the couple subsequently split owing to the difficulties of long distance and real life responsibilities.
The exes are in the process of getting their marriage annulled, and are navigating the grief of the end of their relationship – one that fans were heavily invested in.
‘I was rooting for us, too,’ Sabrina told Netflix. ‘Obviously life is very different than I imagined it was going to be after the show, so it’s been a bit of a roller coaster.’
Steven puts the break up down to pure incompatibility, saying the pair had different communication styles and mismatched expectations.
‘In the real world, you’ve got the added pressures of work, lack of sleep, et cetera,’ he said.
Ireland-based Sabrina believes Steven was not prepared for the responsibilities of a real marriage.
‘You see him telling my family that he has the flexibility to come and spend time in Belfast,’ she said.
‘But three days after the cameras stop rolling, he tells me that he’s not in a position to spend time in Belfast.’
Both are single, with Steven unsure how he can get into a serious relationship while his previous marriage is available to watch online.
Sabrina, meanwhile, has established her own marketing agency and is on the hunt for her first employee.
Maria and Tom – Not Together 
Maria and Tom did not make it past their wedding day, and opted not to say ‘I do,’ when finally at the altar
While it seemed to fans the couple had fundamental differences, Maria says she felt deceived by Tom
Maria and Tom did not make it past their wedding day, and opted not to say ‘I do,’ when finally at the altar.
While it seemed to fans the couple had fundamental differences, Maria says she felt deceived by Tom.
She believes her former fiancé told her what she wanted to hear – that he was a ‘traditional’ man with the same values as her – instead of being honest.
Maria said: ‘Tom enjoyed how I made him feel and ran with that, rather than taking into consideration, “I’m probably not everything she’s looking for, and this might all fall apart when we come to meet each other in real life.”‘
But Tom insists it was ill-fated from the start, saying: ‘There were clearly things that we didn’t match on in terms of our values, but hopefully we can look back on it and really celebrate the positives in our relationship.’
Luckily, neither regret the ‘once-in-a-lifetime experience,’ and both are single and open to new and exciting connections.
Demi and Ollie – Not Together 
Although Demi and Ollie did not leave the show as newlyweds, their relationship kept going after the cameras stopped rolling
But in the months after the experiment, the pair decided their connection was better kept platonic
Although Demi and Ollie did not leave the show as newlyweds, their relationship kept going after the cameras stopped rolling.
But in the months after the experiment, the pair decided their connection was better kept platonic.
‘We’re in a really good place now and genuinely best friends,’ Ollie said.
‘We speak quite regularly, comment on each other’s Instagrams, and wind each other up. I’m glad that not making it to marriage wasn’t necessarily the end of our friendship.’
And while Demi was hoping to find the man of her dreams, she feels her self-love journey was the most valuable thing to emerge from the show.
Although neither of them have any regrets, Ollie admits he may have been slightly less ‘ready,’ for marriage than Demi.
Despite this, Ollie is now engaged to AD from Love Is Blind season six after the couple met on Perfect Match – and the pair are expecting a child together later this year.
In a bombshell social media post, they wrote: ‘We couldn’t be more excited for our little bundle of joy – Mom & Dad’
Catherine and Freddie – Not Together 
Catherine and Freddie bonded over their love for hitting the gym, but after Catherine said ‘I do,’ Freddie walked away
Fans saw a heartbroken Catherine leave the show, but the pair actually tried to revive their relationship after the tragic scene
Catherine and Freddie bonded over their love for hitting the gym, but after Catherine said ‘I do,’ Freddie walked away.
Fans saw a heartbroken Catherine leave the show, but the pair actually tried to revive their relationship after the tragic scene.
‘We gave it a go for a little bit,’ said Freddie. ‘But it just wasn’t meant to be.’
Freddie nonetheless has ‘a lot of love’ for his once wife-to-be, and insists they are still friends.
Freddie said once they had left the pods and headed for the romantic retreat, the relationship began to crumble owing to Catherine’s ‘short temper’.
But Catherine says she was only irritable because there was ‘a lot of stuff the public didn’t see.’
‘Freddie was saying one thing to my family and friends and another to me off camera. There’s a very different side to Freddie.’
Catherine is now happily dating fellow season one pod member, Jake, and the couple are approaching their one year anniversary.
Still-single Freddie said that seeing Catherine move on so quickly was ‘difficult.’
Sam – Single 
Sam has been working on himself since filming, although he feels he was unfairly portrayed as a ‘villain and a walking red flag’
Sam has been working on himself since filming, although he feels he was unfairly portrayed as a ‘villain and a walking red flag.’
He is not looking for a new relationship, as he’s occupied by his ‘healing journey,’ in order to be the best version of himself when Cupid next strikes.
‘I’m in no rush to find someone,’ he said. ‘I’m just going to take a little bit of time for myself and be surrounded by my friends, family and work colleagues.
‘When the time feels right, I will then start to open up a little bit more.’
Natasha – Single 
Natasha did not walk away with her dream man, but she did gain a more secure outlook on dating
Natasha did not walk away with her dream man, but she did gain a more secure outlook on dating.
‘Before, I was looking for someone to complete me, whereas now I’m waiting for the right man to meet me, so we can do life together,’ she said.
Natasha is not looking for a partner at the moment, preferring to let the life lessons from season one sink in before moving on.
However, she insists she is ‘genuinely sad’ to hear about Tom’s split with Maria.
Despite her connection with Tom in the pods and their new singledom, they will not be igniting the flame.
She said: ‘I’d be silly to explore that again. I put up a big wall because I needed to keep myself guarded.’
Love Is Blind: UK season two is available to stream exclusively on Netflix now.