A MAFS couple look to be on the rocks yet again after an explosive teaser saw the bride branded “f**king hard work.”
The E4 duo will see their connection tested to the limit as the matchmaking experiment rolls on to Love/Hate Week.
The clash – which saw groom Ashley, 35, walk out of their coffee date – is the latest in a long line of fiery arguments with wife Grace, 31.
It came after eagle-eyed fans suspected the pair’s partnership was already over after they spotted the pair had unfollowed each other on social media.
Grace, 31, and Ashley, 35, have been a notoriously rocky MAFS pairing so far, with the Norwich lass breaking down in tears as soon as she met her husband at the altar because she didn’t find him attractive.
She even threatened to leave the show in the aftermath before likening discussions with her operations director spouse as “like talking to a brick wall”
Viewers have even deemed her as a walking red flag and blasted her “manipulative” attitude.
While the outcome of their partnership remains to be seen, things aren’t looking rosy as they progress to the next stage of the series.
During their task on Love/Hate week, in a teaser for the next MAFS instalment, Grace looks unhappy as she tells her spouse: “You’ll quite happily shift the blame to me.
“I can’t win with you.”
Clearly not up for a row, Ashley jumps straight off his seat and says: “This isn’t me, I just don’t know.”
In a piece to camera he continues: “Grace is f**ing hard work.”
It remains to be seen if they will stick it out through the challenges of the week.
KILLER CLUE
Yet some fans already think they’ve called it quits due to their social media snub.
An insider recently told The Sun: “They were following each other as recently as last week and now they aren’t, so it seems to have happened in the last few days.
“Grace has gone rogue recently and been slamming the show and the edit on socials, and now her and Ashley aren’t following each other, it’s pretty clear they aren’t together any more.”
Mafs couples that have stood the test of time
Loved-up Tayah Victoria and Adam Aveling of series six fame had the first Mafs baby.
The pair couldn’t keep their hands off each other on the programme and quickly found their feet in the outside world, moving into Adam’s Doncaster home.
Just 18 months after meeting, the couple welcomed their daughter Beau.
Season five couple Michelle Walder and Owen Jenkins also managed to make their marriage work away from the cameras and had their first child in December.
Teacher Michelle, 29, has no regrets about taking part in the experiment. She told us: “I just feel very lucky and thankful that it has worked out – and excited for everything to come.”
Michelle and Owen were both sick of dating apps when they applied in 2019.
Owen recalled: “I had been out for some drinks with a friend after work.
“While he was out for a cigarette I was scrolling on Instagram waiting for him to come back in.
“The MAFS advert was the last thing I saw, and I joked, ‘Wouldn’t it be funny if I signed up?’
“A few beers later when I was back at home I sent in the application, and the rest is history.”
Another couple to make Mafs UK history is Zoe Clifton and Jenna Robinson.
Despite a slight rocky start, where they clashed over Jenna’s vegan lifestyle, the show’s first same sex pairing are still going strong.
They even have a successful podcast together called Life With a Pod.
Jenna shed light on being involved in the show earlier this year when she told us: “We’re not legally married, and I never felt like we were. I definitely feel the process makes you take the relationship a lot more seriously and having the help of the experts… if you can survive that process it sets a firm foundation for a long-lasting relationship.”
The source continued: “It’s a shame as it’s a big spoiler for fans as they are still together on screen.”
FAN BACKLASH
Grace recently dropped another hint she had split with Ashley in a cryptic social media comment.
She said she did not “owe sex to a stranger from a reality show.”
She posted it alongside an image showing the couple on the sofa at the Commitment Ceremony, in an episode in which she addressed her previous comments on her fears of sleeping with her spouse.
Yet some fans called out Grace as “manipulative” and urged Ashley to “run away” after the dialogue unfolded.
It came as Grace revealed earlier in the week that Ashley picked up the bill after their date night.
But things quickly changed, as Grace explained: “Somewhere in between Ash picking up the bill and walking home, I develop this anxiety by having to keep Ash sweet.”
Grace said she became increasingly anxious that she would have to be intimate as a result.
Becoming emotional, Grace revealed she and Ashley discussed contraception, but she was left panicking about having to sleep with her husband after their date.
Ashley then recalled a recent intimate moment where she was rubbing her nose on his face.
But he told Grace on the couch: “You can’t do physical touch.”
Grace hit back, saying: “I feel what Ash brings to the group is not a reflection of what’s really happening – it’s an edited version.”
After the misunderstanding, the experts gave Ashley some advice on how he could frame his comments to Grace.
But viewers did not agree and said Ashley was not in the wrong as his intentions were never negative.
One wrote: “Grace manipulating the situation to make Ashley out to be a monster is awful. Get her off my screen.”
A second posted: “So Grace is this major feminist, yet is happy for Ashley to pay for everything. She’s made him look bad when all he is doing is trying to make a marriage work. What the hell did she expect going on this show?”
COUPLE AT WAR
Previously, before their honeymoon, Grace questioned once again if she wanted to continue with the experiment.
Ashley told the camera: “I don’t feel like I really know Grace, it’s been 10 or 12 hours.”
Grace admitted to producers that she “didn’t know if she was coming or going at the wedding” and was still feeling overwhelmed.
“Ashley and I aren’t aligning on certain values in terms of… he perhaps more old fashioned and I’m more liberal.”
Despite this, Grace admitted she was feeling more positive about the situation but that didn’t last long.
They received an envelope, which revealed they were going to Ko Samui in Thailand for their honeymoon.
Ashley then gave her a compliment and said he respected her more for not sleeping with him on the first night.
But a furious Grace asked if it would be an issue if she had wanted to sleep with him on the first night.
He explained: “Old school morals and people that respect themselves, that’s what I asked for and it is quite important to me.”
