Single mother Gia Fleur has made an impression since her debut on Married at First Sight Australia.
The disability support worker, 35, has tied the knot with Scott McCristal on the Channel Nine show, as well as getting in her fair share of feuds, most notably with Bec Zaharia.
On her wedding day, she memorably broke down in tears whilst telling Scott that she is a mother, and she made it clear that her eight-year-old daughter was the centre of her world.
Speaking exclusively to New Idea, Gia has opened up about her family life with her daughter before rising to TV fame, and detailed the biggest challenge of motherhood so far.
Gia heartbreakingly revealed that her daughter, who has remained off-screen, became very sick with Kawasaki disease in 2019, admitting it was “very scary”.
Kawasaki disease is a relatively uncommon illness which mostly affects children under five years of age and causes a high fever, red eyes and rashes, among other symptoms.
When asked about her “biggest challenge” in life, Gia shared, “My daughter getting really sick in 2019 with Kawasaki disease.”
“It was very scary, we got through it, and she’s better than ever now, but it was the most challenging/scary time for me.”
Gia also opened up about her 10-year marriage to her daughter’s father, revealing her “biggest regret” in life was staying in the marriage for “too long”.
“I knew it wouldn’t work around three years in, but I stayed for our child,” she said.
“I think a lot of women do that, but for me, I LEFT for our child. So she could see both of her parents happy.”
However, leaving her marriage led to the happiest time in her life – moving to America with her daughter in 2023 “with nothing but our clothes and dreams of travel”.
“We travelled all over and she was able to experience many different cultures, it was amazing,” she gushed.
“We were just more like friends in the end. We lacked that chemistry and want for each other,” she added.
Scroll on to read more about Gia and her journey on MAFS so far.
What has Gia said about her daughter on MAFS?
While sparks flew between her and her match, Scott McCristal, at their beach ceremony, reality came crashing down when her Uncle John told his parents that she is a mother.
Gia had kept the news quiet because she wanted to privately tell Scott herself, worried about how the groom might react to the news, but her uncle accidentally informed his extended family.
Days after the wedding, the fiery bride told Chattr why she didn’t tell her groom sooner.
“I knew he didn’t have kids, I assumed that whoever I would get probably wouldn’t have kids,” she shared.
“And when I saw him, I thought, ‘Oh, he’s good looking, he’s successful like me, having a kid is probably going to be like a red flag for him or something that he doesn’t want to take on’.”
“I felt a bit insecure. I’ve never dated as a single mum. I was with someone for 10 years before that, so I haven’t dated anyone, so I thought, ‘Oh, it’s gonna put him off’, and I just was weary.”
While fans vented online that she should have told him sooner, she defended her decision.
“She’s the love of my life. I’m with her every day. I’m a full-time parent. I have full custody of my daughter, so obviously, she’s the forefront of my whole life,” Gia explained.
“Basically, I just didn’t want to give him everything yet.
“I needed to suss him out. And she’s so important to me. I don’t want them close or to know anything about each other yet, because I’m like, ‘Well, what if this didn’t work out? You know what I mean, I was trying to protect her in a way’.”
During the wedding, the accidental slip sent her into a spiral.
“I told everyone not to say anything. So I’m kind of blindsided by my family at this point,” she vented on the show.
“Everything was great until this point, and I feel like Scott could back because of this now, and it was my secret to tell,” she continued.
“Do you know how heartbreaking that was? I am trying to get the family to accept me,” she told her uncle on the verge of tears.
Despite John assuring her that Scott likes her, she was scared to tell him.
Determined to be honest with her new husband, Gia took him aside and told him she is a proud mother to her daughter.
Thankfully, Scott said it wasn’t a deal breaker and seemed overjoyed by the news.
“There’s nothing wrong with that, you’re good,” he told her.
When asked if he’d be open to being a stepfather, he replied: “She’s a part of you, which is a part of me.”
Is Gia feuding with the Married At First Sight brides?
The 35-year-old from Victoria has already ruffled feathers on the show, and she has become embroiled in a fierce feud with Bec.
Things kicked off at the hens party, when Gia didn’t shy away from making her first impressions of the other brides known.
“I’m not here to live an ordinary life; I want to be remembered. I’m not a basic b****, you know?” she said during her introduction, as she was walking into the hen’s night.
As she met the other brides, the self-described “typical” and “spicy” Italian did not hold back her opinions.
“I’m seeing some sweet girls. Like pretty, but not like baddies,” she said in a confessional. “I don’t see myself getting lost in the crowd.”
Despite being unlucky in love, she told fellow bride Rachel that she’s “never been broken up with”.
“I leave the guy,” she revealed, after Rachel shared that she had a string of unlucky situationships and has been single for 14 years.
When it came to her fellow brides, it appeared that Gia did not think much of them.
“They’re just so basic. Sorry, boring,” she dished in a confessional.
Since then, things have only become more tense between Gia and the other brides, with her and Brook Crompton targeting Alissa Fay in a fiery tirade.
Gia and Bec appeared to briefly become friends, before Brook dropped the bombshell that Bec’s husband Danny Hewitt allegedly said her rival was “his type”.
Bec then entered the next dinner party on a mission to prove Gia was a “liar” and exploded in a fiery rant, which she has since apologised for.
Read all about their feud here.
Are Gia and Bec from MAFS friends?
Since leaving the show, the brides have not shied away from voicing their dislike for one another.
Gia has alleged that her attitude towards Bec at the hens party was in response to Bec allegedly calling her a “trashy s****”.
“That was at the beginning of the evening, before I’d said anything, but that wasn’t shown, so I get why people are thinking I’m horrible, but a lot of things are out of context, and not the whole evening was shown,” she claimed.
However, Bec denied this to the same publication.
“I actually rang production after I [saw Gia’s claims], and I said, guys, I need to know if [there is footage of me saying this], because if [it exists], she deserves an apology from me,” she told Chattr.
She said that the production crew assured her that it was not said, and said such a statement would have made “reality TV gold”.
“I think it would be a bit premature to make that assumption [about] someone before even getting to know them,” she continued.
On MAFS: After the Dinner Party, Bec was shown an unseen clip of her telling Gia that she had in fact called her a much ruder word, with Bec conceding that she owed her rival an apology for that.
Their feud has already divided the cast, with the war between the brides taking centre stage this series.
“This season will polarise everyone,” a source close to production told us.
“Gia and Bec’s dynamic becomes the defining feud.”
“Viewers won’t sit on the fence,” the insider continues. “You’ll either love these women, or you’ll hate them.”
Who is Gia Fleur from Married at First Sight Australia?
Away from her time on the show, Gia is a disability support worker in Melbourne and is also a mother.
She was previously married to the father of her child, and has hardly dated after her divorce.
She’s been dubbed the experiment’s “wildest” bride, guaranteed to raise eyebrows to get everyone talking.
“She’s confident, outrageous and completely unpredictable,” a source revealed to the Daily Mail.
“If anyone’s going to storm out of a Dinner Party or start a full-scale blow-up, it’s Gia — but she also has a loyal, caring side for people she loves,” an insider claimed.
During her twenties, she moved to Los Angeles, competed in beauty pageants, and even starred in Nicki Minaj’s music video Freaks.
She showcases her tattoos and love of fashion on her Instagram profile. You can follow her here.
