NEED TO KNOW
- MAFS expert Mel Schilling has died at the age of 54.
- She was first diagnosed with colon cancer in December 2023.
- She went into remission in January 2025, but her cancer then returned.
- In March 2026, Mel confirmed her cancer had spread to her brain and was terminal.
Alessandra Rampolla has emotionally shared that her heart is “shattered” after Mel Schilling’s death.
Mel’s husband, Gareth Brisbane, announced the TV star’s passing in a heartbreaking Instagram post on Tuesday, March 24.
And Married At First Sight expert Alessandra took to Instagram on Wednesday, March 25, to share a heartfelt tribute to her beloved co-star.
She revealed she had seen Mel just last week and reflected on their years of friendship in the emotional message.
“Mi querida Mel, I am struggling to find the words, because none of them feel big enough for what I feel right now,” she penned.
“My heart is shattered. I feel so incredibly grateful for the time we shared last week… to look you in the eyes, to hold your hand, and to say the things that truly mattered.”
“That is a gift I will carry with me for the rest of my life. You were so much more than a colleague.”
“You were a constant, a guiding force, and to me, someone I admired and learned from — like a big sister, a woman of immense heart, wisdom, and generosity.”
“You welcomed me from the very beginning and made me feel at home in a space that could have felt overwhelming, always kind and generous with your light. That is who you were.”
“What we shared—on and off screen—was real, and I will treasure it always.”
“Thank you for your friendship, your laughter, your strength, and your unwavering belief in love. You will be deeply, deeply missed… but never forgotten, Chica.”
“Holding Gareth, Maddie, and your beautiful family forever in my heart.”
“Con todo mi amor, Alessandra.”
Their co-star, John Aiken, also shared his heartbreak as he looked back on their 10-year journey on MAFS together.
“I am heartbroken, devastated, and finding it hard to breathe,” he wrote.
“It was a privilege and an honor to sit beside her on the MAFS couch and watch her shine. She was warm, supportive, and honest, and she deeply cared about all our participants.”
“I had a front row seat to her remarkable skills, and she truly believed in the experiment. At her core, she loved love.”
John said she “never complained” throughout her cancer battle and praised her for being an “amazing mother and wife”.
“She was one of the good ones. I am unravelling just thinking about it. I wanted to sit on our couch together forever,” he continued.
“She knew my rhythms, and I knew hers. But it’s simply not to be.”
“Dearest Mel – I want to thank you for everything you have given me over the past decade. I am distraught. Sadly and devastatingly, I have to accept that you are now gone.”
“The MAFS universe weeps, as does all your dearest family and friends. Particularly, all my love and prayers go to Gareth and Maddie – we have all been blessed to have known her.”
“I love you, and I miss you, gorgeous.”
Mel is survived by her husband, Gareth, and their daughter, Maddie, 10.
Read Gareth’s tribute to Mel here.
