The Break-Up Diet - From ‘I Do’ to I’m Done. Marriage, Mess & MAFS UK with Steven Springett

Episode Date: December 4, 2025

This week on The Break-Up Diet, we’re joined by Steven Springett from MAFS UK Season 10 and trust us, the drama did not end when the cameras stopped rolling. From marrying a complete stranger to surviving an edit that had everyone talking, plus Hinge chaos, hate DMs, and one breakup story so wild it sounds illegal… Steven is finally telling all.We dig into everything Season 10 didn’t show: the mess, the pressure, the off-camera conversations, and the therapy that followed. And yes — Steven shares the breakup moment that lives in our heads rent-free: the time he tried to return his ex’s things… and ended up hearing her with another man on the other side of the door. Truly cinematic trauma.It’s raw, shocking, hilarious, and everything we love on this podcast.If you’re addicted to reality TV tea, modern dating disasters, and men being painfully honest for once… this episode is your whole personality today. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

let's switch it up we've been holding back way too much welcome to the breakup diet welcome to another episode of the breakup diet today we have a very exciting guest we have Stephen Springer from maths UK thanks for having me like I think for maths for me it was a shock the whole shebang sort of TV cameras around meeting Stranger for the first time in the altar but even like the people you meet on there like I don't know any of these people Yes that's actually really intense when you think about it

Even going into the group like And having to make friends I've never thought about that I was last in on the stack And do you know when you sort of tell up to a party late And everyone just looks like and mate it's nearly done Yeah yeah It felt like that from the start and I thought I don't know these people

I'm walking in with a white blazer on looking like, I said I was looking like a butler. I wasn't meant to go on the show. I was a very late replacement. I had 10 days notice to go on math. So I had a phone call and it was like, we know you're going for another show here, but you really want you on maths?

And I thought, did I apply for this? I was like, no, no, we just saw your tape and can you start filming next week? It was crazy how it worked. I got all my paperwork signed on the 14th of a Feb. Isn't that a Valentine's Day? Yeah. So I literally spent my Valentine's Day going into the studio signing documents to confirm myself for maths that's kind of nice though if it did work out like

it would have been really nice i've been single for the best part of five years i'd one short-term relationship back in 2023 and i was like say six months and that didn't end the greatest but i thought let's just leave it to the experts like they're saying they found the perfect person for me and you can take it with a pinch of salt but i thought well what have i got to lose yeah and then yeah when i got a phone call about mass it was like i knew of obviously maths got watched the Australian version And that was amazing. So I thought, yeah, let's just do it. It's really big in Australia, I think, Maas.

That's their show. It's crazy over there. My friend lives in Australia as well. And yeah, he was just like, mate, when I watch over here, that's all everyone talks about. Really? I was like, wow, that's mad. So I thought it would be the same over in the UK.

I mean, I feel like there was a lot of drama. So I feel like that it was good. You caused a lot of drama. Yeah, not intensely, that's for sure. I was drawn into a lot of it myself. Do you think you were ready for a relationship? when you went on? Before it, I did.

So I was dating someone before, from like November through to like January time. But it was like on and off. Went through January and met up with her a couple of times. And then the start of February, she sort of questioned my social media following. I thought, look, single guy, like, I'd asked you to be exclusive with me in January and you said no. And then it was like, well, why are we dating? So we still got a half spoke up until like the wedding. And I thought, look, I'm going away.

So I'm going to film a drama series, which is true to some degree. Yeah, you didn't lie. But I said it's for Netflix because she's got a friend who works in TV. Yeah, she done her digging. And then, yeah, when it all come about after, she was like, oh, my God, I found out he was on maths, dropped the whole three-part story on TikTok about me and how she was my girlfriend, which she wasn't. Oh, my God.

So, yeah, and the drama started from literally the second episode for me. And that was away from the show. So I'm like, oh, my God, like, this is coming out two episodes in when I'm actually coming across really good on the show. Yeah. And I'm thinking, oh, my God, like, when it starts going bad, they're going to have that. And then it's going to be like, oh, you're a cheat, you're this, that,

the other. I'm thinking, this isn't going to end well for me. Oh, no. So, yeah, it was just, there's so much that's been missed, and I'm never going to blame the edit. Yeah, yeah. Like, I said what I said, I can own that. I've put my hands up to it.

I've been apologetic for that as well. But what done me was the whole, the context behind certain situations. I thought if only you'd seen that small part of what led to that, it'll make a little bit more sense to people. I was just caught up in my own head thinking if I want to move on now if she sees this Yeah what's she going to think

She's going to see one side of me And then she's going to see that on TV And think like Are you actually this person or is this fake or is that fake? With reality TV It is like a edit Be it good or bad And I feel like most people are smart enough

To realise that it's like People like watching drama as well So they don't want to show like all the boring mundane things too So I think they'd realise from that A lot of them have, because obviously people I've worked with before for over a decade or people I grew up with, I said, look, Stephen, that ain't you. I've said that's the worst version anyone would ever see in me.

Like, there was so much stuff that come out on the show, like my stepdad being in hospital, then it was like, I was missing my kids. I remember saying to Nelly, obviously I married, it was like, if I left now, I wouldn't come back because I'd be back in the outside world and I'd want to stay until we was fine. Yeah, yeah, of course. But that was probably two weeks when we got into the apartment and we'd already gone through like that small little blip.

Yeah. And I was like, it's not fair on you who is giving it their rule to the marriage. And it's also not fair on me to a degree because there's still so much I want to give to someone. Yeah. So I thought, I'll stay and hopefully I've got more updates, which eventually I did. That was tough. And then, of course, it sounds silly because you're on a TV show.

You don't want everyone knowing your business. Yeah. Because there's some conversations that people haven't seen. The whole Nelly broke her rib. Just remind me, the whole drama with that was that you went out. and didn't come back or something, right? She had slipped in the bath the night before. I'm in bed.

I hear a bang in the bath. Didn't hear her scream or anything, just heard a bang. She came through to bed, holding a rib, and I was just falling in the bath. I was like, oh, my God, you're okay? And she's like, yeah, like, a bit in pain. So I thought, look, let's sleep on it, see how you are tomorrow. Because she was filming the girls day and I was filming the guy's day out.

It was our first lads and girls day as well. So she was up letting me, I was up, helped to get out of bed. And I was like, look, let me see if it's bruised. because if you've broken it, it'll start to bruise and it'd be swollen. So she lifted it up and was like, well, does it hurt here? And she said, yes. I went, well, badly.

And she was like, yeah, I thought, okay, well, it's not bruise, which is good, but get it checked. Yeah. So she spoke to cast liaison. They went to walking with her because I wasn't allowed. Cast liaison have got a place up London where they go to over the series, which they know, obviously. So they took them there. I was then filming, so we got no cast production phones on us whilst we're filming. Our days finished, I think it was like four.

and then the girls they finished about seven so by that point us and the boys have gone down to box park in wembley had a couple of drinks had a bite to eat and we're talking about general lad stuff what our ex-partners look like our types do you think we matched up with our type what's one thing that we say we like that we probably shouldn't say out loud okay so it was drunken lads talk having a laugh and joke we went up to the pub where we used to go out quite a lot everyone went there's like everyone and by this point david had said oh just let's know nellie's back at the apartment she's with kea and the rest of the girls so julia riff had met up with divani mav had met up with joe and sarah had met up with dean in the pub where we were we were laughing joking a couple of shots

couple of drinks now we've been drinking all day yeah so when i went back i was like look i'm sorry i should have come back sooner we set up till three o'clock in the morning just talking about things which was nice was our first proper chat but obviously when it went on to the couch And it was like, oh, Stephen stayed out. I went, no, I come back to the apartment because I had to. It's not like I stayed out overnight. It was, no, I come back home. And it was like, well, what about the conversation we had, like, pillow talk?

Can you mention what that talk was about and say how sorry I was about leaving you at home? And it was like, no, it got spanning to, oh, Stephen doesn't like you. Like, he would come back straight away. If that's on the outside, then you'd get rid of him, basically, like, you can't have that. Like, I don't know Nellie. She doesn't know me. once we have conversations and go through the weeks together you'd like to think the closeness would be there

but that was like two weeks in where it was just like yeah you don't know each other they're complete strangers that got blown out of proportion and when Julia Roof came into the mixer when she said at the mixer oh Stephen was gloating about his dating escapades before like two weeks before I went no wasn't I said I was dating two weeks before because I didn't know till 10 days before the experiment started

that was going to do on the show I didn't want to bring in the other guys to be like, well, hang on, you was talking about this, you was talking about that, we all were talking about everything. Yeah, that's when I was like, do you know what? I just got up and walked off frustrated and said, oh, you know, this, like, you'll see words, which is wrong. And when I went back in, they kept me aside from going to the dinner party until like

halfway through. And I was like, come on, now it looks like I've got the out with everyone, which I haven't. Yeah. So when they sent me in, it was like, oh, like, everything went quiet. And I thought, yeah, cheers. it's like it put me in a situation which has made it a bit worse and it was like 16 people just attacking me and I'm like look

you know what I'm going to shut down literally I don't think I showed it on the show but you literally see me put my head down and just refuse to talk because I was like look I'm not having everyone come at me I just need to process everything I don't need everyone to say you're this or that you don't fancy

Nelly you've been off of her since you come back from the honeymoon and I thought no she knows why I pulled back we told the experts why we pulled back and I'll bring it up now. It was more, we had obviously been intimate on the honeymoon. You know, we got on really well on a honeymoon. It was like, well, this connection is really good.

Yeah. So when it comes to the apartment, she had obviously opened up at the dinner party when she said, look, like, the way it's going right now, if it carries on this way, I can see myself falling for you. But I'm sitting there like, oh wow, this has got deep really quickly for me. So I said, look, I don't want to continue being that level of intimate with you. I'm not saying let's just stop cuddly and kissing. and stuff because that's normal right but I didn't want to be fully intimate with her if she's

ahead of me so I said look you're currently three steps ahead and I'm here so until we start getting that emotional connection and I find that why you're you like tell me about your breakups you said you've been cheated on three times let's talk about how that made you feel and what creates a safe space for you what creates a safe space for me you just got freaked out because you said I could see myself falling yeah why do you think that freaked you out I understood where she's coming from that weak honeymoon felt like two weeks and it felt like he was on cloud nine for both of us but it was very base level getting to know one another yeah of course where did you live before where did you live now i mean you have a lot to like cover which is like

just normal stuff without actually being like who are you as a person when you're in that environment it was very much like we needed to fast forward feelings so i said i'd been cheated on had someone say they felt out love me who i'd had kids with and a mortgage with So we never spoke about how that made each other feel. You've been cheating on three times. You've told me what kind of guys you dated before, which is fine. But like, how did you find that out? How did it make you feel?

What can I do to then give you that reassurance? Now, I knew I didn't want to give reassurance too much because I felt like too much too soon would just lose value. And then she was very much like, well, I need reassurance at times when I feel down, which I totally understand. I felt for me, if I'd done it once already, I didn't really do it again so soon Yeah

And I didn't find her needy at all It was just like I just didn't like someone Who wanted to rely on me too much Yeah Because there was so much that I needed to work on myself Before the show I thought I was ready for Marriage and the next step

But during the show I was thinking Oh my God like this someone is actually super ready And I didn't realize what she was putting herself through Her family, her culture Her friends, her image Like her career And then I'm like well if I say certain things then look I'll own it but if people don't like me then I'm not going to try

and change that so when I'm like that was my mindset I'm not going to please everyone on the show and I will say some dumb stuff but I don't judge me for that like we're human we do make mistakes I just happen to make more than what everyone else did on the show but you were in a really really stressful time especially with like everything you had personally going on and then also it's a massive show that you're meeting all these strangers and then you have all these cameras and lights on you. Like, it would be stressful for anyone. Oh, honestly, it's crazy because as much you're getting a nice relationship with everyone,

the other brides and the grooms who fundamentally are going to be your friends at the end of it. Because you've shared this experience together. Because you've only known in a short period of time, it's not like you're chatting to your girls, but back at home or your guys back at home thinking, like, I'm dating someone. And this has happened, like what kind of advice would give me, or your brothers or your mom, your parents, whoever you talk to. it was more like what's being said to me by the guys and the girls is that being said from

production to say to me or is that actually genuinely how you feel yeah because when we speak afterwards and like some of the guys still speak now is when you watch it back they're like Stephen like we were telling you this and I'm like were you I remember said a partner shop I had with April she was like the first person actually said to me look Stephen like cut out the BS, do you think you're staying annoyed at situations because X, Y, Z? And I thought, huh. I'm thinking, where were you, like, three weeks ago when you could have just been brutally honest with me?

On TV, it looks like me and April were flirting one another. Yeah, because didn't you cook some breakfast or something and everyone was thinking what the hell was going on? I knew nearly never ate breakfast. She loved her cup of teas in the morning. Did you make a cup of tea in the morning? Yeah. Okay, good.

Yeah, so, like, whoever woke up first, it was like, right, put the kettle on. and we'll go from there, but she had about four cups of tea in the morning. Okay. But she would chill out. She'll have a morning routine. Sometimes I'd go to the gym with like Bailey, Ash, Reese when he come in. But afterwards, we'd actually go to like bread ahead to get some breakfast there. So then I'd come back and I'd always get something for Nellie.

Granted, I didn't do that as much as probably what I should have. And I'm like, when I made the breakfast for April, she obviously she had said to me, look, don't cook for her. And I was like, okay, well, I won't cook. Because April cooked the spaghetti bon and a paste for me the night before. production and me were like, well, I kind of need to do something for her because you can't just come into the apartment and cook for me and nothing happens. So I thought, okay, well, I'd do that.

It's not really cooking. Took him in, but I think what's worse, like, she was sitting in bed whilst I gave it to her. And obviously, I sat on the bed eating as well. And, of course, April asked me the question, have you done it's for Nelly? And I'm like, no. After the retreat, I said to Nelly, like, I'm not 95% like done. What do you think was the point that made you do that? Was hearing her say the love thing?

Partly, it was part of it, of it, of course. like someone fallen with me way ahead of schedule in my head. I think maybe we slept together too soon, given the experiment, and I caught my head up to that. It just happens, right? Especially if you're away and a really romantic, like in Jamaica, you said, and on a honeymoon just together having the best time, it's obviously going to happen. Yeah, so obviously we've done that, and I thought, like, I just stopped it.

So I'm like, for me, I didn't want to rush that. And if I carried on sleep, and I said this to her, and never showed on camera, I said we can carry on doing this but I don't want to get to a point where your feelings are way far ahead of my and I'm stuck here if I didn't break it off it'll be well why did you carry on doing this then I could see it though from her to be fair like if I was sleeping with somebody

and then they suddenly stopped it you would feel rejected oh 100% and that's probably why she was having those thoughts about you know whether you were into her yeah and so I didn't realize until I'd actually done the show and obviously done the therapy I was like oh actually men I guess not all men probably sound myself in goodness we're so narrow-minded with those things it's like well I think I'm trying to do good by not doing this but actually in reality you know if I was you and someone like to me like how would I feel now everyone's so

accessible with what I noticed in the dating world you date someone the minute you can't see them they'll make plans of someone else yeah scary and it's like well hang on we had this really good connection. Like, what's going on? You have to be on the ball 24-7 in the dating world. So when you're married, yes, you need to be on the ball button, not as much because you're married to that person. So you're lazy when you get married? I got lazy. I did get lazy for sure, but I think now knowing what entails with a marriage, I'd understand a lot more. So I'm like, okay, well, the little things matter the most. I've got the champagne cork from Jamaica. I wrote Stephen Nelly Honeymoon on there, put it in a bag. She popped the box. She popped the box.

all I kept the first glass we cheers with I got a little Jamaica towel I got the frame picture with us kayaking in the sea it come out later on when we had a conversation I'm talking week eight by this point she was like when you've done that little thing for me

in my head was like when is it going to go wrong and I think that's where we probably fell because she's like if she had just said in the moment that after off camera said I'm really appreciated what you've done it is very romantic but I am scared because of this

but we just never had those conversations and probably more on me than what was her because she was very forthcoming as everyone saw but when obviously Paul said look Steve like you've been gaslighting her I'm like what got a bit defensive and like that's the label with me now and my first thought was my nine-year-old daughter

is going to be like daddy's a gaslighter because she'll Google it she'll look it up yeah of course I got such on a defensive train I didn't actually see okay well what do I need to do here to get this back and understand how she was feeling and say when you're in that whole bubble you don't understand it

and you're like oh my god watch it back and you're thinking well hindsight is a big thing in general even in relationships like when you have a breakup and then you come back and like maybe you speak to them how many months later you can see a little bit a lot of the time where they're coming from but in the moment you can't like my head was just like you've messed up steve start shutting shutting down. Have you spoken to Nellie Dawson's? I'd message on Insta to just say it looked like the whole story that come out about a free part of the girl

was dating beforehand. I wasn't messaging her throughout the honeymoon. I'd message her when I left the experiment because I'd met up with her after the experiment once. But during the experiment, no, I didn't message her at all. And she just replied back, like, just a screenshot of something. And it was like, okay, I've just written this essay to you, apologising, I'll have your back.

like it's emotional to watch some bits back because you're watching something in a good space and I'm also watching me emotionally break someone down now I'm like at this point I had like 12 sessions like EMDR therapy what is that so it's like iron movement desensitation sort of therapy it's like process and trauma how come you did that from the show yeah okay so when I spoke to psych last this was after the reunion I said look like yeah I think I will be open to therapy now and obviously psych obviously told you told me me, look, I think the best therapy for you is, is this. Do you know why they said that?

Yeah, it helps process trauma that you've said you've swept under the carpet, but clearly you haven't. Like, we've noticed that from the show. Like, you've got so many things that you need to talk about, but you're not. My attack, I gave snippets of things to people, but never to fall shabang. Yeah. And it was like, well, why was I doing that? Like, why do I feel that like, I don't want a trauma dump?

Like, if you're with someone who actually generally cares for you, they'll be like, well, no, offload onto me. Like, let me make you feel. a certain way. The only person at times that made me feel a certain way after my attack was the kid's mum. She got me out of that headspace and that was I was 24 when I met her and that same person was a person who turned around and said, oh look, during lockdown, the life's not there anymore. Yeah. So for me, I'm like, I shut down emotionally from that moment. It took me like two years to get over her. Yeah. And then when I met, my most recent ex, obviously, having a Nelly,

but whenever we met up, it was just fun. And it was like, oh my God, like, it's good. We've been together six months and there's a bit of weirdness to it as well so me and the kids mom split up in october in 2020 got to october in 2023 back end of it again i'm now with this new girl come back up holiday been to egypt and then she spit on me up via text when she was out she went to an after party mesh me saying i look like we're like i can't do this anymore what the hell another one via text like okay is that how you got breaking off yeah all all three of my relationships before were all either facebook chat or text messages.

Would you prefer it in person? Yeah, 100%. Because it's like, let me see how you're saying it. It definitely is different. Yeah. I've been broken up in person though. And honestly, I kind of wish it was over text. Like I was like, don't come down from Manchester.

You can just dump me. Oh, God, yeah. That's different. I say, don't come coming down. Like, I'm doing that. It's a long way to travel to break up with someone. But it was like, I said to her, I've got your flat key. I've got like this foldable computer desk, which she left.

And then she had a makeup bag. And obviously, girls in makeup is expensive. I thought, look, you might want to have back, right? So I said, I'm over that side of the water on the Friday. And she lived in Ken. I lived in Essex. And it was like, I'll drop it off to you. But she said that she's out with clients at work.

So I went, well, what I'll do is because she lived in a block of apartments. I'll get a key. I'll put the stuff by the door, so I can't leave that in the letter box. But then I'll put your key in your letter box downstairs. Because obviously, you've got your own fob anyway. Yeah. So I've drove down her road, parked up, and I saw her light was on, but I thought she very much, she turns every laugh before she lived.

So I'm thinking, like, I'm not going to go up to chat to her. I'm just going to just do what I said and just leave stuff. But as I've walked into her apartment, like I smelled her perfume and after shave. Oh, no, you've gone full FBI agent, haven't you? I've got this computer desk in my hand, like a foldable one from my IKEA, and her wash bag up with makeup in, thinking I can't just walk back now. It looks weird. And then as I've got closer to the door, I've heard her and this guy,

going at it and I'm like having said it yeah her bedroom was very close to the door as well and I'm like what? Yeah so my emotions going through that moment was like Wait so what did you do what did you do when you heard that

Instead of just placing the computer desk there I'm like it sort of dropped out of my hand and like hit her door so it made a bang on her door so the noise is stopped but she's come to the door and opened it stark naked and I'm standing there with a wash bag in my hand computer desk and her key like having fun or

it like that kind of thing and obviously I can't say anything because I'm not with her you can't say anything but like but like you want to say something I've been in that like I haven't had that happen I would go nuts you wouldn't think that was real no you see it on films

and you think that's not going to happen to me checked out turn around got in the if I sat in my car for ages yeah processing and I rang my friend Kane was on the phone for four hours and they got a lot and I thought I was shaking that much

so I couldn't even like drive home yeah so I remember sleeping in my car that night but I got in and played football next day and when I say that when that final whistle went my emotion had just left my body it was just like release did you cry then I got I got emotional with it

because I was like oh my God like if things were going so well I hate October month now because it's like what someone's going to break up with me because of having two experiences ending in that month Maybe this is something to think about.

Do you think you might be a bit more touchy around certain situations because you're paranoid? Oh, yeah. Yeah, no, 100%. And I thought it wasn't a thing before. Because trauma gets stuck in your body. Yeah. What do you look for in a partner? I think be understanding that I'm a parent.

So if you understand that I've got kids and they are going to be a priority, obviously my son's got different needs as well. So just like, it sounds cliche, be family-orientated. But like, just be you. If you were dating someone and you've got, your schedule, like, if you do Pilates, yoga, you go get coffee with the girls on certain days. I don't want to change that for anyone. You want somebody that's independent.

But don't just say, like, I've cancelled my entire diary just to see you. Because I'm like, I feel like lots of people do do that at the beginning of relationships because they want to spend so much time with the person. It's nice. It's good to be wanted, isn't it? So what would you do if you really like the person, but then there was something you didn't like? For example, I'm going to throw out like, you really like this girl, beautiful, you have an amazing time together, but say she posts a lot of bikini photos and you're not into that

for this scenario, right, at all. You don't like that, whatever. So what would you do then? I'd have to conversation. I think if you asked me this four or five years ago, a bit different answer. I'm not going out there, well, I've got a great body, but I'm not going out there posting myself in a gym or like on a sun lounger. for people to like or people to comment on so like

I would like you not to do it like obviously still post pictures yourself and stuff but what are your intentions for this would you like other girls photos that had those up if you're in a relationship if I'm a relationship no like if I'm single like it's fair game like I'm not doing it to get their attention but it's just like you see a picture yeah but when you're with someone

and you're being serious with someone then it's like no messages as well like if you get a message random thing coming through and be like, this person sent me this, to remove them, whatever, I've done. My profile is obviously public. I've got a private one as well. But my private one I only have literally people I want to school with, payful with, and that's it.

Up until the show, no one could ever comment on my photos anyway. That comments were always off. I only had to open them up for the show. And I'm like, I've been getting so much hate. People are saying some horrible things. I'm thinking, well, you're telling me I can't reply to this. but the message is there for everyone to see or if they slid me a message on

on sort of Insta like oh I'm glad your son's disabled because he doesn't get to see how much of a see where you are and I'm like and I can't reply to these messages I'm like what do you mean like I said look you can say whatever you like about me if I come across a certain way on the show

to say look I don't like you I think what you said here is wrong please don't comment on that because that will sort of get my back up and I was like oh my God like press are like don't comment don't comment i'm like i can see what they look like and who they are they're saying so oh you got attacked before wouldn't it be a shame if something happened to you and your kids or see you outside your workplace i'm thinking so now i can't

go into the office as much because someone knows what i look like but i don't know what they look like oh god that's so scary actually how do you actually deal with that yeah it's been hard because i'm like work i said look until it dies down don't come in but as soon as the show finished i was like in literally three days after and they were like, what are you doing in? I'm always finished now. And they're like, yeah, but you're still getting heat. I'm like, I can't see at home working for so long

because I need social interaction. Otherwise, I'm just literally sitting there. Yes, I've done my therapy and yes, I'm on phone to my brothers and whatnot. But there's only so much conversation you can take with them. But when you go into work, they're talking about work stuff. Yeah, so it's an escape. Yeah, and some people want to talk about a show, they realized, look, they've got to be professional.

So it's like, okay, maybe we're not asking about that. Very mind we've just been speaking out for like an hour. Sorry. Even for you, I'm speaking to you, this is the first podcast thing I've done. I got told not to do any during the show for whatever reason. I'm like, why everyone else is? Why can't I do any? Yeah.

And they're like, no, let it play out, then do it after. I'm thinking, but people, I've watched like DeVeed and Lee's interview the other day. and as much I got on well with David he's then saying oh don't get me stolen on Stephen because of how he's been acting I'm like so you've deliberately gone out your way to help Nellie put up a post which is then going to like ridicule me I was posting per episode because they tell you to post per episode so when the hinge thing I'm about I was like of course I'm going to deny it on there because I'm just denied it on the show and that's proof that I showed on camera by the way to Nellie and her friend it was like look my personal number couldn't get on there and I've since changed my personal number

because I've realised I put my number on on social when I was getting spam calls so I was like, look I showed you this on camera I couldn't get on Hinge like so that profile couldn't be me but obviously I also had a work phone which obviously had a different number so I was able to download it on that and be on it

so when did you go on it? I hadn't been on there that day going out to Manchester so I was like if I've liked her profile I would have liked it before the show started but if you've paused you your profile on hinge anyone you've liked still comes up it's then come up on hers but obviously cause her friend now knows what i look like and i'm like oh shit it's come up and she was like well

this is you i went well it's not me because i went my personal phone i can't get on it but i knew my work phone i was thinking shit like that's back that's back down in london i didn't have that on me so i'm like oh so when i went back down and got back that same night found the work phone deleted it removed it so when i went to the reunion it was like oh like you delete it as soon as you got questioned about it I was like well yeah not no shit because I didn't realize I was on it yes although like my personal

I was dating before and ended I downloaded things again started liking people's profiles then got the call about maths they tell you not to be on it and they do a deep dive on it to make sure you're not on it so they would see that I wasn't on it beforehand but of course if I've liked profiles

it still comes up it still comes up what I was questioning there was thinking well you're saying I've just set up that profile but when you set up a profile on hinge it says new here and I was like but that's not there and I did think at first this is why I queried I went you've been on my social media all week like a friend Lucy and I thought they had taken a picture and just slapped it over a verified account of Stephen

because I only showed me one picture they didn't show me my prompts which I knew what my prompts were and I'm sitting there thinking oh you're an idiot like you have a phone yeah and people thought he had it on a burn on during the show I was like I didn't But yeah, you're all right, it didn't say new, and they do normally say new, don't they? For literally two weeks it says new here. So you're clearing your name.

To some degree, yeah, like, say, like, if I just admit it, it's going to take it away from me, instead of just deny, deny, deny it. Because people will be like, well, hang on, I'm matched up with you in like 2024. Yeah. Like, we spoke on Hinge. Like, oh, I met you on Hinge. So it's like, you can't say you've not been honest since 2023, because that's a lie. I'll own up to this, and I'll be done with it.

Like, I can be done with a show. There'll be no more. oh what if just done like see you later better to be honest even though it was like awkward for you is this better to say it I've done therapy they've told me to say how I'm feeling say what's in my head

and don't hold anything back don't hold anything where you're going to regret a later on life and not talk about it so I went yeah let's just admit to it because it is horrible to do that yes the marriage was done between me and her before it was done on camera so on camera to the audience looks like

I've just cheated on her, like I've downloaded the day and her. Yeah. But me and her had the conversation after Pynosop said it was done. Okay, another thing that you seem to get heat on was, sorry, I'm really throwing you in. You're in the hot seat, is with Julia Ruth and messaging her. Was there any, like, attraction or... So, Julia, I'd said this to, I think it was like welfare and not production. they're like who personality wise would you be more drawn to and I said to be honest I went

with how she carries herself and the personality she has drew the roof you would be more drawn to because when she walked into the room you knew she was there the whole clap in the aura I guess very confident yeah very extrovert and I thought I can touch into that myself being extrovert but with her also at the same time what she was saying to the barney she couldn't have those difficult conversations so I thought this could be perfect really in that sense because we'd both avoid

like that connection for time like we wouldn't trauma them for one another at first. That doesn't sound good at all you shouldn't have two people that are obviously like avoiding that's just a that would just be a relationship where you're just not talking and it'll be service level at the time I felt I needed a bit more of a fun

space and then there were certain people that come in to like obviously April fun obviously I'd done the point sort of her Leisha crazy fun just like proper down to earth people and they were but energy wise and then Julia Roof but what transpired between Nellie and

Julie Roof was damage out had a big falling out and obviously because she picked me and for me at that moment I thought you're blown this up well out of a portion I've said to you in a snogmarry and avoid game I would avoid Julie Roof because of how her and Devani are like at that point the whole sex stuff

would come about where they sleep together or were they not sleeping together up and when it come out saying they actually were everyone, by the honest, seems about we've just been fed absolutely lies. Yeah. Like, we've been made to feel that like the only thing that's missing from them is the sexual attraction. And then I said to Nelly, before the dinner party at the retreat,

chat to Julia Roof, whether it's on camera or off camera, before you go in there. But of course, they set us directly opposite, Julia Roof and Devani that night. But I just didn't understand the whole her and Julie Roof beef that much. I get, look, you've seen. said Stephen's name, people said people's names in these games of, other than your partner, who would you want to be with? If I was dating somebody and then I heard it, like, I, whether it would be right or wrong, I don't think it's right, but like, I would be wary of that girl, especially.

Like, imagine if you were dating someone and they were like, oh, he's so fit. You'd be a bit like, all right. Like, obviously you would have to shag him, you know what I mean? When it comes to Julia, if she's like, well, she's a 10 out of 10, I went, yeah, but then so are you. like I get by that point I'd obviously rejected certain things I'd made her feel like the valued and stuff obviously then I didn't realize obviously I had a show in it

but when I said to her when three people cheat on you it means they're not good enough for you not their way around but it's hard to be confident when you've had something like that happen I mentioned my last girlfriend technically wasn't cheating but it's still horrible to see I mentioned obviously my kid's mum falling out of love that was hard because it was like did she cheat is there someone else because she had obviously got with someone three weeks after we had split up as well

and we still lived together. You've had some terrible breakups before or like situations. There was one time and this really threw me off like he had made her like a card but like he'd cut up certain pieces like he made it into like a little jigsaw for her and she'd left it on the side whilst I was tidying up and I'm like I was sleeping on the sofa, she was in the bedroom and the kids were in their room and it was like, have you left it on the side for me to see on purpose Sorry, if you just accidentally left on the side.

But like, obviously curiosity. Like, I've opened up what he said. It was like this poem. And I'm sitting. I'm like, why am I putting this puzzle together what he's done for her? You did it. Like, yeah, I've done the post. But at the time, my bedroom was the living room.

But it was also like the lounge. So it's like she had the bedroom. We're in lockdown. I'm hearing you on the phone to this person late in night when you're in other room. Kids are asleep. My daughter was like why I used to not together anymore. that's hard. Yeah.

So I'm trying to process that, obviously going into future stuff. And then my first girlfriend, Ben, when I was playing football at this point, I was due to see her when I got back down to Kent. And I remember Messner

saying, I'm on Rooney, she didn't reply back. And as I drove down her road, she lived in a bungal the only bungal on the street other than the opposite side. And I see her run across the road

as I'm driving up here to get another guy's car. And the guy's car she got, like into was the guy she had broke up me with and got with then my face injuries happened and I was like not confidence there so I understood the lack of confidence side of things yeah but then I was with someone at work for about two months so I don't really class it as a full relationship but I was still

officially with her and then she's pet with me because she was like look work relationship not quite working and then got back with her exes she then they had a family with which is fine I worked out for her And then obviously, of course, I met the kid's mum, six years together, mortgage, everything. And then, yeah, it was wild. So I've had my fair share of break-ups. But I was like, I've never actually broken up with someone. Ever?

Ever. Do you think in a relationship you'd kind of push somebody else to do it, though? Yeah, which I thought what I was doing on the show. Imagine saying like, oh, you're then a person who's dumping someone. Also, I think it must be really hard to navigate how much you actually say and how much you don't say to. because I don't think you want to be mean and nasty, obviously, but then if you are breaking up with somebody for somebody to actually like get it

and accept that you kind of have to be like a bit strong. Yeah, because this is a marriage as well, right? I know you're not legally married, but you're married for the sake of the show. I've mentioned before two weeks, it was like two months. So we're now seven weeks in, eight weeks in. So that feels like a lifetime. Yeah.

So it's like, again, you don't want to say, look, it's not, oh, it's not you, it's me, kind of thing because that's again very cliche yeah a cop out yeah here's a cop out oh yes look it's i think i should have done and there's nothing you've done we never resolve conflict and that's when it went into the next thing then it went into the next thing then it was like a chip on my shoulder it was like well when it come to the julie roof side of things it was your friend has set up this dating thing which obviously in my head i'm thinking well you've done this on camera when you could have quite easy said to me beforehand i'm going to look like an absolute dick for for this on

TV. Yeah. Even though I can say I can flat right out, prove that it's not me, even though it was. I can prove that it wasn't. So I'm thinking, okay, well, you think you've had the last laugh here. And that's how that's generally helpful all the time, which is horrible. So the Julie Riffing is, as much as she was a great person, we got on well, when I spoke Julie Rift, she had slid into mine and was like, I see that view on my story.

And I've done the eyes back saying, oh, here she is kind of thing. And then it kind of started off just casual of, oh, so you're actually gone then. And I said, well, I've got, I'm going up to Manchester on a Wednesday. But I've got one more CC's doing it. I'm done. I went the rings off. Full on said the message of rings off. She'd done the little skull emoji on that.

And then she was like, oh, ladies and gentlemen, like, he's back kind of thing. Nothing malicious, just like, just how he were. I said, look, drinks are definitely due. I'd obviously said, oh, no, no, I mentioned it in a group center, to Julia Ruth. No, for well, I hadn't. Yeah. But again, like, I'm saying at that big day, I'm done. I don't need to prove anything to you.

but I also get at the same time you've literally just watched Nelly go to town on Julie Roof about you and then the next thing she's going to find out is you've been then flirting with her when you've told her that

you've got no interest in her yeah so it's horrible which obviously I apologise for I'm regretful for our actual best conversation Nellie and I had off camera was when we was in the pods went to go into our last dinner party I think it was in the cabin

just chilling it was like a little like had we had left earlier and had this conversation earlier it probably could have worked on the outside because how we are now so relaxed with one another with no pressure on us we're actually talking when we're literally leaving With relationships now are you more open

because you said that you've done therapy have you done any more self-work that's kind of helped you There's a lot of stuff you process that you just swept under the carpet obviously the relationship stuff excuse me I said it was never trauma before when it actually was like to be able to give yourself to someone I said this on the show and they didn't show on the edit

it was the only person I actually wanted to marry at that time was obviously the kid's mum to be in a position again where you meet someone actually want to marry them was scary and I've just done a show where I've just married someone. So I mean so I threw myself straight into that one thinking oh it'll be fine like when I said it was the worst version of myself on there

that's the point where like reference point to grow what you've done the actions you've taken place how you've grown since then what you've been doing with your life since then everything's just falling into line. So it's like just carry on doing that way and try and do better every day.