Why groom dropped sex bombshell

Married At First Sight's much-hyped first virgin contestant finally walked down the aisle last night, after outing his sexual status to the entire nation.

Videographer Matthew, 29, was paired with make-up artist Lauren, 31, for the controversial experiment. Before tying the knot, the very nervous groom opened up about his situation, explaining that years of high school bullying had left him lacking the confidence to be with a woman.

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While most people would cringe at the very idea of spilling such a personal secret to millions of people, Matthew told 9Honey that the more he talked about it, the less afraid he felt.

"When I first started the application process, I couldn't even say the words 'I'm a virgin'," he said.

"It would cause me such anxiety and embarrassment that I just couldn't physically say the words. Now I can say it and it doesn't bother me at all.

"It's one of those things that I have had such anxiety and fear built up around it that I was so embarrassed about it. Then one day I just went, 'You know what? It is what it is. I can't change it, but I can own it. So I've accepted it and I've accepted that this is me and each time I've spoken about it, that fear, that anxiety has sort of just loosened its grip."

However, before the MAFS promos first began airing, none of his friends even knew about his virginity.

"Prior to the show, I'd never told anyone that (I was a virgin). A lot of my friends found out from the show," Matthew admitted during an interview with Nova's Fitzy and Wippa this morning.

He also explained that he'd felt pressure to tell the other grooms the truth at the "bucks night" during the show's premiere.

"Going in there, my biggest fear was going into this big group of alpha males, which is exactly what I had to do," he told the radio hosts.

"Someone asked the question, and I just had to tell them."

Now that the cat's out of the bag, it's certainly looking positive for the newlywed, whose new "bride" Lauren took the sex bombshell in her stride when Matthew opened up in a private moment.

After recovering from her initial surprise, Lauren thanked him for his honesty, and later told producers: "I feel a sense of responsibility to make it special for him."

Married At First Sight continues tonight at 7.30pm on Nine.