Married at First Sight U.K. Host Dies at 54, 2 Weeks After Revealing Terminal Cancer Diagnosis

‘Married at First Sight’ expert Mel Schilling died on Tuesday, March 24

Mel Schilling.Credit : Hoda Davaine/Getty 

NEED TO KNOW

Married at First Sight U.K. and Australia expert Mel Schilling has died after a two-year battle with cancer, her husband announced on Tuesday, March 24
Schilling, 54, revealed her cancer was terminal on Instagram on March 12
The TV host continued filming MAFS through chemotherapy treatments

Married at First Sight U.K. and Australia host Mel Schilling has died. She was 54.

Schiling died on Tuesday, March 24, her husband Gareth Brisbane announced in an Instagram post. Her death comes after she revealed her terminal cancer diagnosis on March 12.

The MAFS host “passed away peacefully today, surrounded by love,” her husband shared.

“In her final moments, when I thought cancer had taken away her ability to speak, she ushered me closer and whispered a message for Maddie and me that will sustain me for the rest of my life,” wrote Brisbane. “It took all of her remaining strength … Even then, her only thought was for Maddie and me.”

Mel Schilling with her husband Gareth Brisbane and daughter Madison.Mel Schilling/Instagram 

“This is a woman who became a new mom and a TV star at 42 — and nailed both,” Schilling’s husband continued. “This is a woman who, through two years of chemotherapy, when she could barely lift her head from the pillow, never complained and never stopped showing courage, grace, compassion and empathy, and never missed a day of filming.”

In an Instagram post shared on March 12, Schilling shared that she had terminal cancer after being diagnosed with colon cancer in December 2023. In February 2024, she had a tumor “the size of a lemon” removed and was given the “all clear,” but “small nodules” were later discovered on her lungs.

Schilling went on to have 16 rounds of chemotherapy over the next two years. In December 2025, she said her oncology team told her that “there is nothing further they can do.”

Channel 4, who airs Married at First Sight in the U.K., announced at the time that Schilling had stepped away from her role on MAFS U.K., adding that the network is “immeasurably saddened” by the news.

Mel Schilling pictured with her husband Gareth Brisbane and their daughter Maddie.Mel Schilling/Instagram 

Brisbane described Schilling as “an incredible mom” to their 10-year-old daughter Madison and a “role model and soulmate” on Instagram.

“I had 15 wonderful years with my soulmate, and it was the privilege of my life to be by her side. For that, I will be forever thankful,” he wrote.

Brisbane finally thanked the fans and their loved ones, including the “MAFS family,” for their ongoing support on this difficult journey.

“Life can be beautiful, and life can be incredibly cruel. But ultimately, life is fleeting, fragile, and tomorrow is promised to no one,” he wrote. “If you can do anything to honor Mel, please live life to the full…”

(L-R) Mel Schilling with her fellow ‘MAFS U.K.’ experts Charlene Douglas and Paul C Brunson.Kate Green/BAFTA/Getty 

Schilling appeared on MAFS Australia from 2019 to 2025 and MAFS U.K. from 2021 to 2025.

Shortly after Schilling’s husband announced her death, her MAFS U.K. costar Charlene Douglas said she was “heartbroken” and “devastated” at the news.

“I had the pleasure of spending time with Mel in her last days and will forever treasure the laughter, the memories and love we had for each other,” wrote Douglas, 44, on Instagram. “Mel’s love for life, jokes and of course dancing will forever stay in my heart. What I wouldn’t give to be dancing to Beyoncé with you right now.”

“Sleep in perfect peace Mel. Love you ♥️,” she added alongside a video of herself, Schilling and their fellow expert Paul C Brunson dancing