British matchmaker Paul Brunson, from Married at First Sight, has revealed he was groped on a train in front of his wife and children.
The 50-year-old American star says a group of five women recognised him from his TV appearances and that one of the women in the group touched him inappropriately when he got off the boat.
Paul, who also stars on E4’s Celebs Go Dating, admits he was more worried about his wife having to witness the situation and hoped she would avoid confronting the woman.
Much to his relief, Paul says his wife Jill managed to keep her composure, but the relationship guru felt being touched without consent was “unacceptable.”
Speaking exclusively to MailOnline, Paul said: ‘We were getting off the train, my kids got off first and then my wife and I were behind.
British matchmaker Paul Brunson, from Married at First Sight, has revealed he was groped on a train in front of his wife and children.
The American star says a group of five women recognised him from his television appearances and that one of the women in the group touched him inappropriately when he got off the boat.
‘There were five women getting on the train and they saw me and when I was getting off, they grabbed my butt.
‘My wife was very elegant, she looked at them and smiled. Sometimes people try to test the line and the best thing to do is to walk away. In that situation, I was more worried about my wife. It was unacceptable.’
Paul is no stranger to unwanted attention.
Since becoming one of the most recognisable faces on UK dating shows, he has been inundated with “naughty DMs” as well as “graphic pictures” and “requests” from fans who have been won over by his good looks and calming presence.
And his popularity is something his childhood sweetheart, to whom he has been married for 23 years, has gradually grown accustomed to.
He explained: ‘I’ve gotten a lot of naughty DMs. I’ve gotten some scantily clad DMs, some explicit photos, some requests.
‘My wife Jill saw an article that said ‘fans lust after delicious relationship guru’ and she was like ‘ooh I’m going to be with the delicious dating guru tonight’, she has a lot of fun with that but it’s one of those cases where I blush.
‘I appreciate the affection and I also know that not everyone agrees with the topics I talk about, but I still appreciate the affection I receive when I’m away from home.’
Paul, who also stars on E4’s Celebs Go Dating, admits he was more worried about his wife (pictured) having to witness the scene.
Paul has been married to his wife Jill for 23 years and together they share sons Liam, ten, and Kingston, 13.
Paul has been a regular on UK television for six years having joined Celebs Go Dating in 2018.
He has guided the love lives of stars including former Coronation Street star Helen Flanagan, Strictly’s Pete Wicks and I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! winner Sam Thompson during his time on the show.
But it was a global superstar who gave Paul his big television break: American talk show queen Oprah Winfrey.
The iconic presenter discovered it after one of her staff members, who worked at her magazine, became one of her clients and recently became a full-time relationship coach after quitting her banking job and launching her own YouTube channel.
He was inspired to change careers after council members working at a summer camp where he volunteered compared him to Will Smith’s character in the film Hitch, a dating coach.
Paul explained: “They said it as a joke, but that’s what inspired me. I went to the Matchers Institute conference in New York and sat in the back of a room with 250 of the best matchmakers in the world. I looked across the room and thought there was no one here who was like me and I could bring something different to this space. That’s when I started looking into matchmaking.”
On Oprah’s influence, Paul added: ‘We would post a video on YouTube every week and this is not a joke, this is the truth, we would get 11 or 12 views and my mum would watch it at least nine times so there were three people watching it.
“But it turns out Oprah Winfrey was one of the people who was watching. The story behind that, and it’s a story I rarely tell, is that a lot of people say, ‘How did Oprah find you if no one was watching your show? ‘”
In addition to his TV work, Paul is Tinder’s global relationship insights expert and also recently launched a new podcast called Need To Talk.
Paul stars alongside Charlene Douglas in Married at First Sight UK, where they guide couples who have married after first meeting at the altar through their relationships.
‘She found me because months earlier, when we were getting ready to launch our agency, we had clients who were working pro bono. One of our clients that I was working with for free turned out to be a writer for O Magazine, and she didn’t tell me she worked there, but she told Oprah about me.
“I got a message from the Oprah Winfrey network and they immediately invited me to co-host a television show, which was a social experiment with Oprah and that’s what got me into television. Thanks to Oprah’s support, the matchmaking agency grew.
‘Fast forward to 2018, I received a message from the producers at Celebs Go Dating and it changed our lives forever.’
Paul and his family, including sons Liam, ten, and Kingston, 13, are now firmly established in the UK – he has even become a part-owner of non-professional football club Sutton United.
In addition to his TV work, Paul is Tinder’s global relationship insights expert and also recently launched a new podcast called Need To Talk.
But the Washington-born star is currently accompanying the newlyweds on the current series of Married At First Sight UK, which began this week.
The latest installment has already sparked controversy after new boyfriend Alex Henry was accused of domestic violence.
Paul insists that every contestant is vetted thoroughly and if they display worrying behaviour, he and fellow experts Charlene Douglas and Mel Schilling act quickly on it.
He said: ‘There is a full casting team on the show, doing background checks, psychological checks, interviews etc and we get to know the cast members.
The Washington-born star is guiding the newlyweds on the current series of Married At First Sight UK, which began this week.
Paul insists that every contestant chosen for the show is thoroughly vetted and if they display worrying behaviour, he and fellow experts Charlene Douglas and Mel Schilling take action.
The matchmaker has worked with transgender star Ella Morgan on MAFS and Celebs Go Dating.
‘I have to trust that Channel 4 and the production company have done the best they could in that process.
‘The process is getting better every year. It’s a thorough process that involves a police background check, a psychological evaluation, a multitude of interviews, all of that is done and then once everything is approved, and what is being approved is all the available information, that’s when they present us with the taxpayers.
“Whenever we hear about bad behavior, it’s disheartening. But ultimately, I think most people are good, but we all have behavior that needs to be addressed.
“The beauty of this program is that people can watch it and see that they have the same behavior as their partner and they can get the tools to address it.”
A key storyline so far in the series concerns girlfriend Emma Barnes, who was left devastated by her new husband Kasper Todd’s comments about her weight.
Paul is quick to point out that he and his relationship experts will criticize the boyfriend for his attitude toward the female body shape.
She added: “Believe me, I care about this particular issue. At Married at First Sight UK, with this particular issue, we are there to help with accountability and with this I held the party accountable.”