Single Wives: Divorced ladies looking for love on TV

THEY’VE been down the aisle before, but happily-ever-after eluded these four ladies. Now they are hoping to get their romantic lives back on track in Seven’s new reality series Single Wives.

THEY’VE been down the aisle before, but a happily-ever-after eluded these four ladies.

So Nikki, Sheridan, Sunnie and Emma have taken extreme measures to get their romantic lives back on track, signing up for Seven’s new reality/dating series Single Wives, hosted by Fifi Box.

“Fifi always talks about her horrible dating stories on the radio, so to know that she was the host, it’s so relatable,” says Sunnie, 30.

“She knows how bad it is out there — she’s lived it.”

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Bubbly and bright: Emma, Sunnie, Nikki and Sheridan are on the lookout for love. Picture: Tony Gough

With world-renowned dating expert Matthew Hussey (who “oozes sex appeal”, according to the group) on hand, the ladies are put through their “dating” paces, dragged out of their comfort zones and even share a house together.

Nikki, 32, was happily married and expecting her first child when tragedy struck — her husband was killed in a motorbike accident. Days later, she went into early labour with son Daniel, now nine. She says friends and family encouraged her to take a chance on the show, including her son.

Nervous Nikki is ready to make a fresh start. Picture: Tony Gough

“Danny is really good. He’s one of those kids who is happy if I’m happy. He’s seen me sad a lot,” she says. “Everybody pushed me to do it, all my friends and family. I’m a very quiet person at home. My daily life is very reserved. Very monotonous. I live in the sticks, uni, the school run, home, cook, watch Home And Away. That’s my life.

“I did struggle a lot, doing it. But that’s why the show is relatable. Meeting new people after a breakup. Meeting new people after a death. Meeting new people after divorce. Just making friends and learning to trust people.”

At 41 (“but I don’t look it”), Sheridan is the oldest member of the group. Picture: Tony Gough

Sheridan, 41, has been married twice and shares two teenage kids with her first husband.

Soon after her second wedding she found out that her husband was “emotionally unfaithful”, sending her into a spiral of self-loathing and insecurity. She isn’t sure yet whether she’ll watch the show.

“I’m a little bit nervous, because for me, I wasn’t in the best place when the show came about,” Sheridan says.

“It’s a bit raw and I don’t know if I want to relive that.”

However, she has no regrets about taking part.

“Absolutely not. For me it was a gift, particularly to be in an environment where people understood what you’ve been through. We’ve all been bonding. A lot of my friends and family couldn’t understand going through a separation because they hadn’t been in
that situation.”

The bond between the four bright and bubbly women is clear. Having lived together for weeks, despite the constant presence of a camera crew, they are comfortable in each other’s presence.

Their photo shoot for Hit. TV is a boisterous affair, with Little Mix’s Shout Out to My Ex keeping their spirits up.

Younger singles Sunnie, 30, and 28-year-old Emma were both married at the age of 20 and share a bond over the cultural expectations that led them down the aisle. Sunnie says her divorce caused a stir.

Sunnie is sick of feeling ashamed for being divorced. Picture: Tony Gough

“In the Indian community I’m ‘that divorced woman’,” she says. “What is this, the 1960s? And that was the main reason I did (the show). I don’t think they’ve seen an Indian girl on a dating show before.

“I want to make a difference and I want it to help women. I want women to feel comfortable about being divorced, or single, at 30. It’s normal in Australia. The dating stigma has got to go.”

Emma agrees. Brought up in a strongly Christian environment — dad was a God’s Squad biker — she felt ashamed to have been married and divorced in her 20s. “There’s a lot of judgment and shame in the Christian world if you are divorced. So when I separated from my husband I copped quite a lot of flak and judgment in that community.

Married at 20, single at 28 … Emma says she’s doing her 20s in reverse. Picture: Tony Gough

“When Sunnie and I got married we were 20. So now a lot of our friends are getting married and having babies in their late 20s. I’m like, divorced. So I’ve done it in reverse. To be around girls our age, it was nice to know there are women out there who’ve failed too.”

Single Wives taught the ladies new skills to improve their dating technique, but there were also plenty of awkward situations to make them laugh and, occasionally, cry. After a hectic speed-dating session, they attended a social mixer where 40 men were waiting to talk to them.

“It was exhausting and incredibly overwhelming walking into the room,” Nikki says. “That was horrendous. I did not know what I was getting myself into when I signed up for this show. As we walked into this room, the four of us, we heard men whistling and clapping. It was so strange.”