Two new dating shows to fill the Married At First Sight gap are coming soon - E4's The Honesty Box and Netflix's Cheat

Over in Australia, the latest season of beloved show MAFS Aus concluded with a dramatic reunion episode on Sunday, (April 6). In the UK, viewers are about a month behind so British fans have got about another four weeks to go until the season ends.

Either way, all good things must come to an end. MAFS is on most nights a week, so once it’s over it leaves a big gap to fill in the lives of fans. There is another series of MAFS UK is coming later this year, but that won’t air until at least September, so something is needed to bridge that gap too.

The good news is there’s not two brand new reality dating shows launching later this month - and they both include faces which will be very familar to MAFS viewers. They are E4’s The Honesty Box, which will be co-hosted by a MAFS fan favourite past participant, and Netflix’s Cheat: Unfinished Business, which will be co-hosted by a MAFS relationship expert.

The Honesty Box is a nine-part reality dating experiment which will test if honesty is the best policy when it comes to finding true and everlasting love. Hosted by Vicky Pattison and MAFS Australia 2024 bride Lucinda Light, the series will bring a group of singles together in Truetopia, a sunny and romantic paradise where the principles of truth and honesty must be abided by and there is just one rule: do not lie.

Each single is hoping to find true love but, to encourage full transparency in their new relationships, there is a potential prize fund of £100,000 up for grabs. The participants can only be eligible to win it, however, if they choose to be open and completely honest about their true feelings as the go on dates.

The daters will face The Honesty Box, which is a cutting edge lie detection system, and asked probing questions about their dating past and present. If The Honesty Box detects a lie, it could impact their newly formed relationship and the prize fund.

Light said when the show was first announced in August 2024: “Having undergone my own radical journey to find love, I deeply empathise with our brave cast of singles. I'm passionate about the importance of truth and authenticity in building strong relationships.”

Pattison said at the same time: "It really will put the 'true' in 'true love'. I can't wait for the daters to settle in to Truetopia and to share every twist and turn with them along the way. I hope beautiful, honest love stories will blossom."

Cheat: Unfinished Business will follow eight former couples whose relationships have been ruined by infidelity. They’ll reunite at a Spanish retreat where hosts Amanda Holden and Paul Carrick Brunson, who also guides MAFS UK couples of their journey during the experiment, will help guide each pair through the cheating issues that tore them apart.

The purpose of the programme is to see if the relationship can be revived. That would require the person who has cheated to admit to their mistakes and show remorse for their actions, and also the person who has cheated to forgive and move past the heart.

When the show was first announced in May 2024 Holden, who has previously admitted to being “naughty” for being unfaithful herself, said presenting a show about relationships will be a career highlight. She said: "Sometimes dreams really do come true. All my career I always wanted to host a show about love and relationships — and this is it!

"A series about second chances and unfinished business. I can't wait to meet and help these couples work out whether they can forgive and forget. I'm absolutely thrilled to be part of it."

Brunson wrote on Instagram: “Infidelity is complex and painful, but I don’t think it always has to end a relationship. If both partners are willing to put in the work to rebuild trust, the process can often make a relationship stronger.

“I strongly believe that audiences will resonate deeply with our couples. This show is going to feel very different to other dating formats and I can’t wait to see how it’s received.”

• The Honesty Box premieres on E4 later this month, and Cheat: Unfinished Business also airs on Netflix by the end of April. Exact release dates for both of the shows have not yet been revealed, but we’ll update this page with them once we have them.