Gogglebox star set to return after family's shock departure: 'Excited'

EXCLUSIVE: Sarah Marie Fahd opens up about coming back for season 21.

Gogglebox's Sarah Marie and Matty / the Silbery family.
Sarah Marie Fahd (left) is returning to Gogglebox Australia following the Silbery family’s departure. Photos: Channel 10

Gogglebox Australia will look a little different when it returns for its twenty-first season this week with the Silbery family no longer a part of the cast. Isabelle announced in November that she and her mum Kerry wouldn’t be returning after nine years on the couch as Foxtel decided not to renew the series and they had “not been included” in the show’s new form on Channel 10.

While fans will undoubtedly miss seeing the multi-generational family on their screens, a familiar face is set to return for the new season. Sarah Marie Fahd, who joined the show in 2017 with her husband Matty and their best friend Jad Nehmetallah, will once again be sharing her TV commentary after being on maternity leave for the past two years.

“I’m so excited to be back,” she tells Yahoo Lifestyle. “Being able to join my boys again makes me feel so happy because the last few seasons I've been on the sidelines and Matt would be like, ‘Remember, you're not on the show right now!’. There are so many things I wish I could have said!”

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Sarah explains that she took a break from the show because her second child Lyon required a lot more attention than her firstborn Malik, who was able to sit on the couch with them during filming and be a part of the show.

“There’s no way I would have been able to even sit and watch TV with Lyon. There were days where he would cry unless I carried him and I would just have him strapped to my chest, so I was like, it's not gonna work with this one,” she says with a laugh. “But he's at a different age now and he's such a character.

“Also just mentally, I'm in a much better place. I think mental health is really, really difficult when you've got little ones and hormones and stuff to juggle, so that was also a really big factor and I just mentally couldn't do all of that. Whereas right now, I’m myself again. I feel like it just ticked over to 2025 and something in me was like, I’m good now. I’m finally in a better place.”

Gogglebox's Sarah Marie and Matty with their two sons.
Sarah took a break from Gogglebox after the birth of her second son Lyon. Photos: Instagram/sarahmariefahd

The upcoming season of Gogglebox will see both Malik and Lyon sitting on the couch alongside their parents, which Sarah admits was necessary for her return but required careful consideration.

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She says a major factor behind her decision is that unlike shows like Married At First Sight where participants receive quite aggressive criticism on social media, Gogglebox is “completely different”.

Gogglebox is just such a lovely show about mixing different nationalities and different personalities, and the people who watch the show are a wide range of people who can relate to you and relate to other families,” she details.

“I’ve never met anyone who's not been very respectful, even on the street. It’s just a lovely show to be on, so I was able to trust [producers] with having Malik on the show. Otherwise, I wouldn't have him on there for sure.”

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Alongside Sarah Marie, Matty and Jad, the upcoming season of Gogglebox Australia will feature Symon and Adam, Anastasia and Faye, the Dalton Family, Keith and Lee, Tim and Leanne, Milo and Nic, the Delpechitra family, Kevin, Bob, Mia & Jared, and Mia, Bree & Lainey.

Gogglebox Australia returns Thursday, February 20 at 7:30pm on Channel 10 and 10 Play.

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