When Married at First Sight‘s Jono Pitman took one look at his experimental wife and commented, “she’s not what I ordered,” he strongly divided public opinion.
Some viewers saw the 28-year-old as a “likeable larrikin” whose outbursts toward his “crazy” experimental partner Clare Verrall were heavily edited, while others were disturbed by his “arrogant, immature” behaviour.
In recent weeks, Clare has decided to sell the wedding dress she wore on the show on eBay, and in the process, made a few not-so-subtle digs at the person she was marrying.
“Worn for one day while marrying a stranger on TV who turned out to be a total wankpuffin,” she said.
“For a bride who knows the name of who she is marrying it is a dream dress. Super flattering, so even if you are not what the groom ‘ordered’ you will still get loads of complements [sic] and made to feel like a total queen.”
But now, a fellow Married at First Sight star is defending Jono, assuring her social media following that he’s “not a bad guy.”
Zoe Hendrix, who appeared on the first season of the reality show, and has remained in a relationship with her experimental partner Alex Garner, shared a photo of Jono alongside a strongly worded message.
“After the most recent slander of him from his “ex wife” (in the interest of selling her wedding dress?) I need to get this off my chest,” she began.
The 26-year-old, who is currently pregnant with her first child, acknowledged Jono wasn’t perfect, but neither was Clare.
“He has been gentleman enough to not air his exes dirty laundry to the public,” she said. “And I’ve met Jono and there are some interesting events that he has chosen to keep private.”
WE REALLY, REALLY WANT TO KNOW DAMNIT.
Zoe continued to argue that the attacks from Clare are “unfair and unwarranted,” and finished the message, “his (sic) moved on and so should she.”
Interestingly, a number of Zoe's fans challenged her argument, sharing their concerns about Jono's behaviour.
"Just going off seeing his behaviour on the show he was a very angry and aggressive person and was screaming red flags to me," wrote one user. "He could be a good person but with some demons to address."
Another commenter accused him of abusing Clare: "He abused her though? You can't ignore something like that."
Her post also raised questions about her friendship with Clare.
"Aren't you friends with Clare?" asked one fan. "If so why would you want to friend someone who called her an attention seeking, insecure, head case. I'm assuming you aren't friends anymore."
There were many, however, who praised Zoe's strong words, applauding her honesty. And, of course, Jono shared his appreciation for the post.
"Thank you so much @zoehendrix you have no idea how much this means," he wrote.
It seems that even off-screen, Jono Pitman continues to attract heated opinion.
Top Comments
If Jono had put his suit up for sale and added in the description 'ended up being a pushy, crazy bi***', I am sure Clare would have found yet another opportunity to be the victim and make headlines.
On Clare's Instagram, to this day, she is mentioning Jono's prior assault charge, and allowing people to assume he is a perpetrator of domestic violence. She is attacking his character in general, and calling him names. Why is that acceptable? Yet she is shocked by Zoe's post because females should stick together??
I am a female. And girls like you give us all a bad name. Please shut up, and get help.
What I find amusing is that Claire claims she's moved on and that she's a better person, yet she tells anyone who'll listen that Jono has a violent history. Because, you know, she's the ONLY person capable of change. Oh and talking about your ex at every opportunity shows you're sooooo over them...
Personally, I can't understand why more people weren't talking about her constant bullying of Jono on the show, I felt bad for the guy!
FYI I'm also a woman.