From one reality TV obsession to the next… Farmer Wants A Wife may no longer be on air, but that doesn’t mean the gossip has stopped.
Unlike Married At First Sight, Farmer Wants a Wife is a typically wholesome show with not quite as many twists and turns (or cheating scandals), but there was still plenty of drama this season to whet our appetites.
We’ve rounded up all the gossip from the 2024 season so far. Can I get a yee-haw?
Sarah shared her side of the split with Joe through… song.
Earlier this month, Sarah Carey confirmed she had split with Joe Bobbin and promptly stopped posting.
For her long-awaited return to Instagram, she shared a song that seemed like it was directed at her ex.
“You know I loved your mum, but her son is such a d**k, and I should’ve run but I thought that I could fix you,” she sang. “It’s all your fault but you still like to play the victim.”
Sarah went on to sing “you proved me wrong, and everybody else right,” and “I’ll blame myself, because I heard the rumours too, but I believed you.”
The FWAW contestant captioned the video: “When life gives you lemons make lemonade, or a song,” she said.
“I thought writing my own lyrics/version to ‘Stick Season’ (by Noah Kazan & Sara Phillips) could be like a therapy session, it was.”
We’ve reached out to Sarah for comment on her song and she assured us the lyrics weren’t directed at anyone specifically. “There is no perfect way to heal or deal with something. As a songwriter, I express myself through my writing and hope it will resonate with someone, and I’m fortunate that this has,” she told Mamamia.
“I think who the song is about is irrelevant, I have no harsh feelings towards anyone and wish nothing but the best for all.”
For his part, Joe told Yahoo Lifestyle that he “wished her all the very best for her music career.”
Sarah confirms that she and Joe are no longer together.
A few months ago, Sarah was publicly standing up for her relationship with Joe in the face of rumours that they hadn’t stayed together after the show.
Now, she’s shared an update that confirms those speculations. On her Instagram Stories, the reality star revealed that she and Joe split “a few weeks ago.”
“I was really hoping to not have to do this as I’m a very private person, but it’s incredibly hard to heal while constantly receiving questions and comments about the status of my relationship,” she wrote.
“Joe and I separated a few weeks ago. This has been one of the hardest times of my life so I want to sincerely thank those who have sent kind messages checking in on me and for welcoming me into this community. It’s been difficult without my friends and family around me but the kindness that has been shown is something I’ll never forget.”
“I understand there may be a lot of questions regarding why, but at this time I’m not ready to talk about that as I’m still processing the information myself. I really appreciate you respecting my privacy,” she concluded.
Farmer Joe was caught up in a swirl of salacious rumours this year, largely due to his indecisiveness in choosing a partner. In the end, he chose Sarah over Keely.
“I love the person you are. I love how strong and determined you are,” he told her during the last episode. “It hasn’t always been easy with us. We’ve had some tough times. I’ve sometimes felt that you’ve pulled away. But I also know that you can be a shy person and take your time to get to know people.
“I also like that you challenge me. I don’t have all the answers for us, but I do see myself falling for you in the future. I want to tackle the future with you by my side, and us as a team.
“I’m looking for someone who doesn’t need me, but who wants me,” he said, before asking Sarah to join him at his farm.
However, the heartfelt moment was met with scepticism from viewers, with rumours swirling that the couple hadn’t survived outside of the show.
After receiving “awful” comments, Sarah shared a screenshot of a headline, reading: “‘Sarah and I are still together’: Farmer Joe says trolls need to back off.”
“What was supposed to be a happy episode for us, turned out to be very different,” Sarah wrote on Instagram at the time. “It’s heartbreaking when your true story isn’t shown, to the point that it leads the audience to be absolutely dumbfounded by the Farmer’s choice.
“I have read some really awful things that people have said not only about myself, but about Joe… You should be ashamed of yourself.
“You do not see everything, please remember that.”
Unfortunately, the gossip appears to have taken a toll on the couple. Hopefully, they can both find a way to heal and move forward.
‘Genuine’ farms pulled apart by producers to ‘zhuzh’ them up.
Most of us know that there is nothing real about reality TV, but this takes the cake.
Apparently, Farmer Todd had his entire house “pulled apart” by producers to make it glossy enough for television.
Speaking to the Daily Mail, Todd’s friend said that his family wasn’t too happy about the changes, with producers swapped out the original furniture for items they had rented.
They also wanted to repaint the walls, but unfortunately for them, Todd said no.
“The shoot is long and the invasion of your life is almost intolerable,” said the friend.
“Todd had producers in their family home pulling apart his décor and that was just on day one, I don’t think his mum was too happy at that stage. The production team decided the farm was not the look they wanted and gutted the entire house.”
The friend continued, “Farmer Todd stood in and said, ‘That is enough!'”
Yikes.
Farmers forced to ghost their dumpees.
As with any dating show, heartbreak is inevitable. But this next piece of gossip is harsh, to say the least.
According to an insider, producers “heavily discourage” farmers from speaking to the ladies they dumped on the show.
“When you saw Farmer Dustin say goodbye to Anna that was the last she ever heard from him, which would surprise audiences,” the source told Yahoo! Lifestyle.
“The cold shoulder from each farmer is brutal and many of the girls are left wondering where it all went wrong, especially the girls who make it to the final two!”
The female contestants undergo sessions with an “on-hand psychologist” and receive follow-up calls from mental health experts. However, those who don’t find a partner by the end often feel disillusioned by the experience.
A close friend of Anna’s pointed out how brutal the rule was, saying: “I think [Anna] would like an explanation of when [Farmer Dustin’s] feelings changed to Sophie. You give up your life for nearly three months and the heightened reality of filming a TV show does make things feel more real, when they might not have been.”
She added: “Other girls have explained that it would have been nice to encourage the men to give more of an explanation, as most of them leave questioning the whole process. It is unfair.”
Cast have complained about mistreatment.
According to So Dramatic!, this year’s contestants raised concerns with the show’s production company about bullying and emotional abuse during filming. Their complaints were allegedly ignored.
“Several ladies sent production written complaints about how they were mistreated during filming. They didn’t respond to anyone,” a source told the outlet.
“Complaints ranged from concerns about emotional abuse and manipulation from producers, and production ignoring mental health concerns of contestants, to instances of bullying that occurred during filming from production and among the cast,” they elaborated.
The insider alleged that the were subjected to “unreasonable hours” of filming. Another cast member revealed being pressured to continue filming despite experiencing a mental breakdown, with producers reminding them of their “contract and filming obligations.”
As a result, the cast spoke out on social media, a move producers were unhappy with.
“Production emailed the cast and threatened them for speaking out, saying they were breaching their contracts,” the insider said.
So far, Channel 7 have not responded to So Dramatic!’s request for comment.
Karli was happy to stir some drama.
According to a TV insider, many reality show contestants secretly hope to be cast as the season’s “villain.”
It’s almost predictable: a show ends, and a contestant takes to social media to complain about a bad edit. However, when speaking to Yahoo Lifestyle, it turns out many of them actually want this role.
“Potential reality TV stars apply and in their audition interviews, they will directly tell you ‘I want to be the villain’,” the source told Yahoo Lifestyle.
“They often declare they will do what you want to make good TV and are more than happy to be the bad guy.”
The insider went on to claim that, “Karli on Farmer Wants a Wife was happy to follow instructions and do what the producers needed for good TV. Some get this unhealthy relationship like Stockholm Syndrome where they want to impress their captor.
“She (Karli) was more than happy to grab Farmer Bert’s hand in front of the other girls to upset them and that directive came from a producer.”
Farmer Bert is secretly dating someone… from the show.
Rumours are circulating that Farmer Bert Harris is set to leave Farmer Wants A Wife, but now, there are further reports claiming he’s dating one contestant who’s no longer on the show.
According to Yahoo Lifestyle, Bert will be “the next farmer to leave” and “not because he finds a match like Farmer Dean did with Teegan.”
The publication spoke to a number of sources who claim that Bert “was done being a puppet for the producers on his farm,” who in true reality TV fashion, urged him and the women he chose to create nonexistent drama.
“Farmer Bert was really sweet and it was sad to see him being treated like a prop. These two male producers had come from filming FBoy Island and obviously wanted conflict,” said the source.
“He actually felt uncomfortable with his producers and their suggestions on how to handle the remaining women,” the insider revealed, claiming this was the reason he left. “He no longer felt like he could go on and pretend just for the show.”
However, it’s not all doom and gloom, as it’s believed that he’s secretly dating Lauren McNeil, a former Farmer Wants A Wife contestant who chose to leave the show because she didn’t want to compete for Bert’s attention.
The source continued to say that when he leaves, the network will say it’s because of his “inability to give the show his full attention,” but really, he just wanted out.
“Channel Seven viewers are set to riot as they will see through his decision to leave the show,” they said.
“It was clear he did not want to stay on a show that was about staging manufactured drama. He was continually put in situations he felt were not authentic and butted heads with producers who were not listening to his real opinions.
“The show was filmed late last year and while viewers will have their own ideas on who he might have genuinely liked they will be surprised to know he has been romancing one girl who had already left.”
Bert and Lauren are allegedly set to go public with their relationship in late May after the show finishes airing.
Farmer Joe dumped two girlfriends to appear on the show.
Oh boy, things aren’t looking too good for Farmer Joe.
The Farmer Wants A Wife star has been exposed for not just dumping one, but two women to appear on the dating show.
This is getting MAFS-level messy.
Kat and Maddy, who both claim to have dated the farmer before his TV stint, appeared on the podcast So Dramatic! to share their side of the story.
It all started when the girls spotted Joe on the FWAW Instagram account as one of the official farmers for 2024, and after putting the pieces together, they quickly realised that they had both been dating him at the same time.
Kat began dating Joe towards the end of April last year, before he broke things off around July 18. Meanwhile, Maddy matched with him on Tinder on June 12, 2023.
The two dated for a short period before Joe called it quits on July 24, admitting that he wanted to join the reality show. However, the lineup of 2024 farmers was announced the next day on July 25… so, what’s really happening here?
And if you thought it couldn’t get any worse, you were sorely mistaken, because upon doing some digging, Kat and Maddy discovered that Joe was dating seven other women while he was seeing them.
Kat claimed that Joe kept his options open, so if one girl was busy, he’d meet the next that was on his “list”. Gross.
Farmer Dean and Teegan broke up before the reunion.
Farmer Dean elected to leave the show early after finding his lady in Teegan, but did they actually go the distance? Well, yes and no.
According to the So Dramatic! podcast, the couple are together now but they did briefly split after filming wrapped.
“Once production on Dean’s farm ended, everyone left, and Teegan stayed on the farm for a few more weeks,” an insider told the podcast.
“They did long distance for a bit, and she moved up to Kandanga shortly after that to give things a proper shot.”
But the source added that Teegan ended things with Dean before Christmas which meant that when they attended the reunion in January, they weren’t together anymore.
“They went to the reunion together but weren’t actually together. It was super awkward,” they claimed.
Thankfully, they have since rekindled their relationship.
“Not long after the reunion, they reconnected and started doing long-distance again and are still taking things slow,” another source added.
“Dean and Teegan are still very much together. They’re tackling a long-distance relationship at the moment.”
A Farmer is being accused of being a ‘fake farmer’.
Listen, it’s not totally farfetched for dating shows to experience cheating scandals, but this? This is new.
Farmer Joe has been forced to respond to the wild allegation that he’s a fake farmer and lied about his profession to snag a spot on the show.
The rumour started gaining traction after a viewer left a comment on a post made by the Farmer Wants A Wife Instagram page.
“This Joe Blow isn’t even a farmer… he’s a FIFO worker living on his parents’ farm,” they wrote.
To clear up the speculation, the 30-year-old spoke to Yahoo! Lifestyle, saying the allegations are untrue.
“I think it’s pretty unfair,” he said.
“I grew up here in Bombala, NSW. I’m a part-owner alongside my mum and dad, which is not uncommon for any sort of younger person.
“I’ve had comments [that say] I don’t have a farm… So, I’m just like, well I don’t know where we filmed it all, all the cattle work and things like that.”
Joe continued to say that the rumours he’s merely a FIFO worker who is utilising his parents’ farm for the show are false.
“I did a lot of FIFO when I was in my early 20s, which led to the money to be able to buy part of the farm from my parents,” he continued.
“I’ve used my skills that I’ve learned along the way to be able to do these things, but my address, and my home is here on the farm.”
A pregnancy scandal is set to hit the series.
According to New Idea, a source connected to Farmer Wants a Wife revealed that after one of the couples became intimate during production, one of the women was left concerned she’d fallen pregnant.
The magazine didn’t name which couple was involved, and didn’t know whether the woman had actually gotten pregnant, as the couple has since gone silent.
“It would be a huge twist if they are though,” the source said. “These sorts of things typically happen after the show ends, but not during production!”
It’s not the first time this has happened in FWAW history. In 2021, Hayley Love fell pregnant with Farmer Will Dwyer’s baby, despite competing for Farmer Matt Trewin in the series.
A detail suggested one Farmer leaves with nobody.
As Farmer Dean has already ejected himself from the show after finding his lady, Teegan, this means only four farmers remain.
Bert, Dustin, Tom and Joe are all set to pick their forever love, but according to Yahoo Lifestyle, some Sportsbet odds may have spilled the fate of one Farmer.
While most of the odds have one woman selected as their favourite, Farmer Bert’s profile looks a little different. The option with the highest probability is Bert leaving solo, with him picking Caitlin in second position, and Karli trailing behind.
This is, of course, pure speculation, but Sportsbet does have a tendency to pick the correct winners, so worth keeping an eye on.
A Farmer has spoken out about getting cut from the show.
The premiere introduced five Farmers, but apparently there were initially eight men being considered, which means three got the flick.
One of these dumped bachelors was South Australian cattle and crop farmer Zac Taylor. He spoke about being ditched from the line-up during a chat with Greater SA last month, reflecting that “some things just aren’t meant to be”.
The 28-year-old is still holding out hope he’ll find his match some other way. “I’m very focused and driven. I’m a bit of a workaholic. And at times I have the mentality of a 12-year-old,” he added.
You sound like a real catch, Zac.
The Dail Mail reported that the two other axed Farmers were Nick, a 22-year-old from South Australia, and a 33-year-old cattle rancher named Todd from Baan Baa in New South Wales.
A text message claimed one contestant was already in a relationship.
On an earlier episode of Farmer Wants a Wife, drama erupted when Farmer Dean received a mysterious message about Teegan, one of his leading ladies.
What did the message say? “It says, ‘I hope you see this in time, but Teegan has a boyfriend, she might be leading you on, she’s in love with someone at home,'” Dean read.
Teegan ran off in tears, prompting her competitor Tiffany to air her suspicions. “I don’t think I would have run off crying,” she said. “I mean, you don’t have a reaction like that unless it could be true?”
But after Dean caught up with Teegan, she assured him it was “not true”. In a confessional, she added, “knowing that someone’s trying to jeopardise my experience… My biggest fear now is that Dean will always doubt me and not trust me, but I’m here and I’m absolutely going to fight for Dean.”
Dean didn’t seem that fazed and continued to console Teegan — which just irritated another contender, Hayley. “It’s just brought them closer together!” she grimaced, before electing to leave Dean’s farm.
Dean eventually chose to exit the show early after deciding Teegan was his pick.
Stay tuned for more Farmer goss as the billy tea continues to spill in the coming weeks…
Feature image: Instagram/@_sarahcarey/Channel 7.
This article was originally published on April 22, 2024 and has since been updated with new information.