Was Paul Antoine drinking beer during Tuesday night’s episode?

MAFS fans have questioned whether Paul was drinking a beer at the couples retreat after being banned from alcohol. Photo: Channel Nine

Married At First Sight fans were left baffled watching Tuesday night’s episode when they saw Paul Antoine drinking what appeared to be a bottle of beer at the couples retreat. The controversial groom had been banned from alcohol after he “lost control” and punched a hole in a door during an off-camera fight with his partner Carina Mirabile.

Relationship expert Mel Schilling told him at the commitment ceremony there was “work to be done” regarding his emotional regulation, and he would be provided with services and strategies to ensure he never did that again. Following this, Carina told The MAFS Funny Podcast exactly what measures Paul had to agree to in order to remain in the experiment.

“They gave us both the help that we were requiring,” she detailed. “He was banned from alcohol for the rest of the series. They gave him therapy sessions every Saturday morning. There were a lot of things that had to come into place for it to be a safe environment.”

Many viewers took to social media on Tuesday night to question whether Paul had ‘broken the rules’ and was back to drinking alcohol after he was spotted holding a green bottle.

“Genuine question, I thought I heard them say that Paul was banned from alcohol for the rest of the season after the door incident. But in all these group chats he looks like he’s got a drink in hand,” one person commented.

“I didn’t think Paul was allowed to be served any alcohol! Saw him with a beer,” another remarked, followed by a third who said, “Noticed that too”.

“Yeah that looks like a beer,” someone else shared, with another writing, “I thought the same”.

Paul was banned from drinking alcohol after he admitted to punching a hole in a door. Photo: Channel Nine

Was Paul drinking alcohol on the couples retreat?

After doing some digging, Yahoo Lifestyle can confirm that Paul was drinking non-alcoholic beer on the couples retreat. It’s understood that the cast was offered a range of non-alcoholic beverages throughout the season, including at every dinner party.

2023 participant Tahnee Cook tells Yahoo Lifestyle that she requested to drink non-alcoholic wine during filming, and there was also the option to drink non-alcoholic beer.

“At the cocktail party they would remove the branding from the bottles and then there would be a sticker that said ‘zero alcohol’ on one bottle,” she details. “There weren’t any other soft drinks or juice options, but I also didn’t want to feel left out and weird without a wine glass. I still wanted to be a part of the vibes!”

Eden Harper, who appeared on last year’s season, also tells Yahoo Lifestyle that alcohol consumption was strictly monitored by the show’s producers during filming.

“At the cocktail party, it’s a bit more of a free-for-all with the drinks. So if you’re one of the first in the room, you can usually get a few drinks,” she shares. “But then in the actual dinner party, it’s maybe like three or four jugs of wine across the whole table. It’s red or white, and if you don’t drink right away, there are no other options.”