The moment you missed: Jacqui Lambie’s controversial TV search for love
Former Tasmanian Senator Jacqui Lambie appeared on Seven’s Sunday Night to set out on a new crusade to find love.
Unafraid to share every moment of her search for love, the program followed the 47-year-old to a questionable party and speed dating session.
The reaction to the former politician’s appearance on our screens last night was mixed, with some agreeing with Derryn Hinch’s verdict that it was “painful to watch”.
“Jacqui Lambie. We worked so well on worthy legislation. Wish you were back. Tonight’s TV was cringeworthy. Vomitville. You’re so much better than that,” Derryn wrote on Twitter.
However, others said it was “important for her to show the public that she’s just the same as everyone else”.
Jacqui confessed that she had been “all over the show” and hadn’t had a serious relationship in 15 years.
“So I don’t have a bloke, first of all, because I guess I’ve been by myself for so long, I’ve just switched off on that side of life, and I’m actually finding that quite difficult. So I think a lot of it’s got to do with how I feel personally inside. It’s just ... I’ve just been putting it to the side and putting it to the side.”
The single mum added, “Scares the hell out of me, I’ll be honest with you, though. Didn’t think I had any fear left in me.”
When asked what she considered to be the perfect man, Jacqui said: “I don’t know. I think that’s somebody that, you know, can pick up tools, use tools, but can put a suit on,” she said.
“I don’t want a homebody. I want them to have their own career, and their own job. Bit of beef is good.”
She joked: “I’ve always said I’ll know it when the right man’s standing in front of me … I don’t know how many more men have to stand in front of me! There is getting a lot less men out there as us women get older.”
Some viewers described the Sunday Night show as “desperate” to fill a whole segment on the mother-of-two’s dating attempts.
“How desperate is Sunday Night program to do a whole TV segment on Jacqui Lambie's dating attempts,” one viewer wrote on Twitter.
Viewers then saw Jacqui attend a speed dating session where a few men won her interest, including an attendee named Craig.
“He’s got quite an amazing story. He’s quite a ... He seems like quite a decent fella.
"He’s been working in those indigenous communities for quite some time, which shows he’s got some heart and compassion.
“It was just natural for me to give him a hug and say goodbye. He certainly didn’t take advantage of that or anything like that, so he’s off to a pretty good start, really.”
Jacqui opened up about her dreams for the future, and she told producers: “I want to get married and make sure I see it all the way through, through the good and the bad … I don’t want to have to go through a divorce. I want someone that won’t just be my partner but my best friend.”
In a piece for The Daily Telegraph, Jacqui also revealed how her past mental health battles impacted her relationships.
“Before I spent my few years in the Senate I struggled for a decade with pain and depression caused by the major back injury I suffered in the Army,” she wrote.
Jacqui also criticised online dating apps, and added: “I reckon there should be a Senate inquiry into those apps; they’re just not all they’re cracked up to be. If you ask your mates, everyone has had a tough time meeting people online or via Bumble and the rest of them.”
Did you watch Jacqui Lambie's search for love? Share your thoughts on the episode in the comments below.