Married at First Sight UK: Everything we know about Birmingham's controversial groom Alex Henry

Married at First Sight UK has returned to our screens once again, with a fresh batch of brides and grooms ready to tie the knot to a complete stranger.

Thousands applied and two contestants from Birmingham made it through, Sacha Jones, a former Miss Birmingham, and Brummie lad Alex Henry.

Read more about Sacha here: Everything you need to know about former Miss Birmingham Sacha Jones

So what do we know about local lad Alex?

Alex already caused controversy before the show aired. He was reportedly jailed after disappearing from his job to start filming.

Alex worked at RAF Spadeadam as an air specialist. When he asked his commander for additional leave to attend filming he was told no. However, he decided to go and film anyway.

According to national newspapers, he was seized by military police once he had finished filming and sentenced to 34 days in military prison before allegedly being sacked from his job.

Henry’s spokesman said: “He returned after filming of his own volition and handed himself into the military authorities. He was sentenced to 34 days in a military prison and served 24 as a model inmate.” The RAF said it could not comment.

Alex would like to become a professional boxer. He also works as a personal trainer.

Having been single for seven months, Alex is now eager to find love. He said he wants a a woman he can proudly introduce to his mum. Alex is on the hunt for "someone who has depth" and someone who can "keep him on his toes", to prevent any potential boredom.

Accusations and statement from Women’s Aid

When his promo reel was shared, one person branded him a “dangerous individual” and mentioned situations in the past concerning “domestic abuse”.

Women’s Aid responded to the decision to include him in the show, saying: “We are incredibly disappointed and concerned to hear that producers of Married at First Sight have taken the decision not to remove an alleged abuser from the latest series.

“Having seen the direct impact of abusive behaviours displayed on the show in previous years on survivors, we would have hoped that protection and tolerance levels for abuse would leave no room for perpetrators to be given a platform again, with their actions being televised as ‘entertainment’.

“Sadly, this decision demonstrates the lack of awareness that the production team still has when it comes to domestic abuse. At Women’s Aid we would urge the producers to reconsider how they approach this, for the sake of the contestants to whom they have a responsibility to protect; and to signal to survivors that the entertainment industry takes their experiences seriously.”

The ‘wife swap’ comments

In the very first episode of this season, Alex asked for a potential “wife swap”.

He asked: “What if I am not totally attracted to my wife? And there is another lady that I am attracted to?”

And now he’s doubled down on the potential of ditching his wife for another woman, writing on his Instagram story: “As long as I like my wife I’m chilling tbh… If I ain’t then I’ll think of a contingency plan. I won’t be staying with someone I don’t like.”

In response to the controversies, Channel 4 stated: "MAFS UK was filmed several months ago and is not live, so Alexander will feature in the programs that have been edited and are due for broadcast later this month. There will also be promotional activity on the channel's social media platforms during this time, in which Alexander may appear.

"MAFS UK contributors are subject to rigorous background vetting, including multiple independent psychological evaluations and a criminal record check before they can be cleared to take part. We cast contributors based on the information we are legally able to access and we continue to review this process to ensure checks are as thorough as legally possible."

How long is MAFS UK on for?

It is believed that Married At First Sight UK will last for nine weeks. This is the same length of time series eight lasted, with season seven lasting a total of eight weeks.

There will be 36 episodes of Married At First Sight UK 2024, with four episodes being aired weekly on E4.

After the episodes have been shown on TV, they will be available to stream on Channel 4.