The groom and groom at the heart of Married at First Sight's first gay "wedding" say they have been stung by criticism of their actions from sections of the gay community.
"I'm very disappointed, actually," says hairdresser Craig Roach of articles in the gay press and comments on social media that accuse them of trivialising the campaign for marriage equality. "There's been a lot of negative comments about us setting the movement back. It's a gay wedding on Australian television – they should be rejoicing, not hating on us for doing it."
Roach says the pair has been accused of going on the show only in search of their 15 minutes of fame, but insists his motives were genuine and personal rather than political.
"I didn't do it for marriage equality, I didn't do it to be on TV. I did it to meet the man of my dreams," he says. "Lots of my friends have asked, 'Why did you do this?' I just say why not. I've had no luck through other platforms, all the dating apps. I was approached to be on the show, so here I am."
The man he wed – in a non-legally binding ceremony in New Zealand, where same-sex marriage is legal – said he too was "deadly serious" about going on the show in the hope of finding love.
"I signed up for an experiment to find a guy I could spend the rest of my life with," says English marketing executive Andy John. "I don't think you could get through the process unless that was your intention."
Much of the criticism appears to stem from the fact the show's weddings are not legally binding. In the case of the straight weddings, so be it – the couples can choose to treat their marriage as lightly or seriously as they wish, in the full knowledge that they can always do it for real some other time.
But for a gay couple, a shell wedding merely echoes what's available to them in the real world – some form of commitment ceremony, perhaps, but without any of the legal privileges (such as right to inheritance or next-of-kin status) that automatically flow to heterosexual couples.
Though John says he is "in favour of marriage equality, of course", he adds that the central issue is equality, not marriage.
"We were born equal, we need to be treated as such," he says. "We need marriage equality because it's about equality. Being with the right person is much more important than a piece of paper for me."
He told Nine's Today program this week that he had in fact been offered the option of engaging in a legally binding contract with Roach in New Zealand, but opted not to. "I signed up for an experiment that was about two people being matched together," he said. "I didn't want to get married."
He doesn't support the plebiscite, because like many others he can see the enormous potential for harm in a protracted No campaign.
"The plebiscite is just a platform for hate speak," he says. "A year of people waving billboards with 'Sodom and Gomorrah' – we don't need that. It's time for a free vote in Parliament."
Roach insists that rather than set back the campaign, their wedding might even play a small part in its advancement. "It's going to put it out to the masses, to make a lot of people more aware of gay marriage and how important it is that we have equal rights," he says.
"I see our wedding as a step forward towards bringing it to everyone's attention."
