Sean Hollands became the much loved horse-riding hero of the last season of Married at First Sight Australia, but even he didn't realise how passionate New Zealanders were about the show.
He told Newshub the level of fame he's had in New Zealand has been a shock.
"It's been a massive hit over here [and] I've been recognised everywhere I go," he said.
Hollands was a participant in the televised social experiment, in which strangers meet for the first time at the altar after being paired together by psychologists.
He's no longer with his wife Susan, after the pair failed to make the distance between their homes and lives work.
The 35-year-old farmer and miner was in New Zealand last week - not for the show, but instead the rather unexpected passion of softball.
"It's one of my little secrets," he laughed.
His team, the Ipswich warriors, competed in the World Masters Games in Auckland on Friday. It was the television star's first trip overseas, and he's been stunned by the reaction.
"I just got absolutely mobbed at the races. There have been a lot of girls coming up to me - but they haven't thrown themselves at me or anything."
While Hollands has been trying to keep a low profile, his friends have been lapping up the attention, and he says they're "really enjoying the fame a lot more than myself".
Married at First Sight NZ will launch late this year, with MediaWorks set to produce a local version of the hit television show.
Hollands has some advice for those couples looking for love.
"If you're going to go on Married at First Sight, the best advice I could give is go on it for the right reason," he said.
"Don't go on it to be a celeb or have a bit of fame. Just be true and genuine to yourself.
"I say live life with no regrets. We all make mistakes and we just move on from there. I would just go in there and live life with no regrets."
He thinks that everyone was on his season of the show "for the right reasons", but acknowledges some of the behaviour was "disgusting".
During the infamous "boy's night", a number of derogatory comments were made about show participant Cheryl.
"The reason I stuck up for Cheryl... I was bullied at school and Cheryl was bullied as well, [so] she went out and got herself a boob job - I just thought it was pretty disgusting people were bullying her," Hollands said.
He says that while his relationship didn't work out on the show, he wouldn't change the experience for the world.
"I was a pretty shy person, but with people approaching me now, I have lot more self confidence in myself."
Newshub.
