We know how Married at First Sight Australia 2024‘s Ellie Dix and Jonathan McCullough‘s cheating scandal plays out and you’ll want to sit down for this one.
ICYMI: It was revealed that Ellie, who was partnered with Ben Walters, and Jonathan, who was matched with Lauren Dunn, were messaging each other throughout the marriage experiment and are now dating IRL.
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As reported in episode 355 of the So Dramatic! podcast, the pair were defo cheating (by MAFS standards, anyway!) on their respective partners.
“Jono and Ellie were messaging each other during the experiment,” one source told So Dramatic!.
“They started messaging even more when Ellie left the experiment. They were texting all day every day while Jono was still on the show with Lauren.” Yikes!
Married at First Sight’s Ellie DIDN’T have a rocky relationship with Ben
Whilst it seemed like Ellie and Ben had a rocky relationship on-screen (which is still no excuse for cheating), it turns out the pair were quite close IRL!
In a video obtained by So Dramatic! Ellie admitted that she “doesn’t hate” Ben and that producers have “made it seem like a huge drama”. A second clip showed them laughing about the bulge in Ben’s pants.
Another series of leaked videos showed the duo going on a series of dates and singing together (RIP our eardrums), and they seemed pretty loved up to us!
How did Married at First Sight’s Lauren find out about the cheating scandal?
Jonathan’s wife Lauren only found out about the scandal at the Commitment Ceremony after homestays, around the second last week of the marriage experiment.
“Tori [Adams] and Lucinda [Light] tell Lauren that Ellie has been telling the rest of the cast that she’s been speaking to Jono every day,” one source told So Dramatic!. “Lauren was blindsided. It was so awful.”
They added: “Jono had told Lauren he reached out to Ellie when she left the experiment to make sure she was okay… But Lauren had no idea it was a romantic thing and that there had been more messages exchanged.
“She couldn’t believe Jono would cheat on her after everything they had been through.
“Lauren may’ve suspected Jono might’ve had a crush on Ellie, but she never in a million years thought he would ever act on it,” they finished.
MAFS‘ Jonathan and Ellie’s messages are EXPOSED on the show
According to our source, the other brides and grooms demanded to see the messages between Jonathan and Ellie, leading Jonathan to share them with the cast at the following dinner party.
“There were over 300 messages between them. Back and forth, chatting constantly… It was a lot,” the insider dished.
“Then Lauren and Jono got into a huge fight. She called him a c*nt, a dog, a snake, a loser, a moron, a gaslighter. She went postal.” And we can’t wait to see this!
Everyone was aware of Ellie and Jonathan’s connection during filming
According to the contestants, everyone was aware of Ellie and Jonathan’s connection throughout filming.
“Jono and Ellie were messaging each other the whole time during the experiment and flirting whenever they saw each other. Everyone noticed it,” one participant spilled.
“They would talk off-camera a lot. We all suspected something was going on between them.”
Another cast member added: “Jono never stood up for Lauren. Even when Jack was being downright horrible to her, he never said a word.
“But Jono stood up for Ellie when Ben was treating her badly… That’s when everyone started to think there must be something going on between them.”
Ben found out about the cheating scandal at the MAFS reunion
It turns out Ben was even more blindsided than Lauren because he only learnt about the cheating scandal when Jonathan and Ellie rocked up at the reunion “hand-in-hand”. Eep!
“I didn’t find out until the reunion that they were a couple,” Ben told So Dramatic!. “I wasn’t surprised. They seem well-suited. I predicted many weeks before. I suspected something fishy was going on.”
He added: “Jono’s a nice guy. Ellie’s a nice woman. I don’t have a problem with them and I honestly do wish them the best and want them to be happy.
“I feel bad for Lauren, though, given [her and Jonathan] were on the show a lot longer than we were.”
Where do MAFS’ Ellie, Ben, Lauren and Jonathan stand today?
Another contestant revealed that there’s no bad blood between Ellie, Ben, Lauren and Jonathan.
“Lauren’s happy that they found love with each other. There are no hard feelings now, and she wishes them all the best.
“She’s been supportive of them being together. She just wishes they had been honest and told her about it so she didn’t have to find out from other people.” And a little honesty goes a long way!
Ellie and Jonathan are still going strong
It looks like Ellie and Jonathan are still going strong IRL!
In a series of photos obtained by So Dramatic!, the pair can be seen on a date at Ambarella Fine Foods in Queensland’s Burleigh Waters in January.
Whilst they don’t look too loved up, they were in the middle of a meal. And we look more like gremlins than people when we’re eating… Just saying!
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