Channel Seven’s popular reality series Bride and Prejudice has been struck by a series of tragedies since going off the air in 2019.
Suicide, fatal car accidents, and a drug overdose have taken the lives of no less than four participants from the show, which pulled in almost 1million viewers an episode at its peak.
Bride and Prejudice followed star-crossed couples as they attempted to get married while battling disapproving family members.
The most recent tragedy from the series took place on April 29 when season three star Dannii Erskine was killed in a fatal car accident at the age of 28.
She was driving back from the shops on Friday when an allegedly drunk driver hit her car, her sister Dee told So Dramatic.
Channel Seven’s now-defunct reality series Bride and Prejudice has seen four cast members lose their lives since 2019. Milly Johnson and Micah Downey are pictured
The most recent tragedy from the series took place on April 29 when season three star Dannii Erskine (pictured) was killed in a fatal car accident at the age of 28
‘As she went through a green light, a driver was intoxicated and T-boned her,’ Dee said, adding that Dannii’s ‘skull was crushed upon impact with the airbag’.
Dannii was declared legally dead – or brain dead – in hospital at 12:01am on Saturday morning, and her life support was turned off almost six hours later, at 5:45am.
She was just getting her life back on track after a bad break-up when she died, her heartbroken sister revealed.
‘She passed away the morning of April 29 at 12:01am. She will be loved [and] very much missed… It was a horrible tragedy,’ Dee revealed.
‘She was 28, full of life and trying her best to move on and meet someone. Now she won’t get that chance.’
Dannii appeared on season three of Bride and Prejudice with her then-fiancé Denton.
Dannii was declared legally dead – or brain dead – in hospital at 12:01am on Saturday morning, and her life support was turned off almost six hours later, at 5:45am
Dannii appeared on season three of Bride and Prejudice with her then-fiancé Denton. The former couple are pictured together
The first cast member from the show to tragically die was Micah Downey, who lost his battle to drugs in late 2019 at just 26.
The young man’s drug counsellor, Jodi Barber, revealed the supposed cause of death, which was from a ‘mixture of illegal and prescription drugs’, in a Facebook post on December 31.
‘Micah’s parents don’t want this to happen to another young life,’ Ms Barber said. ‘They understand it was preventable!’
Micah is thought to have been prescribed ‘two different benzodiazepines’ to treat a heroin addiction, which Ms Barber did not believe was the right course of action.
‘There has to be a better way to cope with anxiety and depression for those addicted to heroin,’ she said. ‘Micah will never be forgotten and deeply missed. Prayers for his family.’
Micah’s ex-fiancée, Milly Johnson, who also starred on Bride and Prejudice, was pregnant with his child at the time of his death.
The first cast member from the show to tragically die was Micah Downey, who lost his battle to drugs in late 2019 at just 26. Pictured with ex-partner Milly
Micah’s ex-fiancée, Milly Johnson, who also starred on Bride and Prejudice, was pregnant with his child at the time of his death
‘It is so sad and unbelievably surreal that I am making this post. On the 28 December 2019 Micah Patrick Downey passed away,’ she wrote on Instagram at the time.
‘I am struggling to put into words how sad and heartbreaking this is, I just hope he is at peace wherever he is and that he will always be watching over his babies.
‘A bad, bad dream. I can’t believe you’re not here. Rest In Peace Micah.’
Milly and Micah already shared a two-year-old son named Julian at the time of Micah’s death.
The couple had cut ties after filming Bride and Prejudice and Micah had moved back to California, where his family lives.
Channel Seven released a statement on Tuesday, saying: ‘The team at Bride and Prejudice is devastated by the news of the loss of Micah Downey.
‘Our thoughts and deepest sympathies are with his family and friends at this incredibly difficult time.’
Milly shared a heartbreaking post after Micah’s death, saying that he ‘wanted to change’ before his drug overdose
Micah left behind two children with Milly when he passed
After their split, Milly told her Instagram followers the pair ‘rarely spoke’ despite having a child together and another on the way.
‘We are on speaking terms but rarely speak to one another,’ she said during a Q&A session on November 28.
‘I still have my days that I get sad as I think any parent would ideally love to raise their children with the other parent in a healthy relationship.’
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Milly called off her wedding to Micah during an episode of Bride and Prejudice after revealing she was worried his use of alcohol and marijuana would be a bad influence on their son.
She said on the program: ‘He’s not well and he needs a lot of help and I feel for him because I do love him, but he’s just really made progress.
‘And I thought he had. I’m so sad because I don’t want Julian to grow up to be like that. He just doesn’t need a role model like that.’
Tragedy struck again in 2021 when James Ciseau, who appeared on season three in 2019, died after a horror car accident in Queensland.
James and Tori Ciseau, who appeared on season three in 2019, have also lost their lives. Both pictured
The tradie, who appeared on the reality show alongside his wife Tori, lost his life in a tragic head-on crash at Beerwah.
James, who was 36 at the time, was involved in an accident at the intersection of Roys Rd and Dianella Rd on Monday at around 4pm.
A Queensland Police Service spokeswoman told The Courier Mail at the time that the cause of the ‘head on’ crash which shut down the intersection for several hours was under investigation.
‘James was loved by anyone he met, he’d walk into a room and would make it brighter, like a ray of sunshine,’ his sister Lauren Ciseau, 33, told The Courier Mail.
‘He had so much energy and constantly wanted to be around people. His favourite word to describe himself was jovial.’
James left behind his two daughters, Olivia-Rose, who was five, and Bella-Pearl, who had just turned two
Bride and Prejudice followed star-crossed couples as they attempted to get married while battling disapproving family members
James left behind his two daughters, Olivia-Rose, who was five, and Bella-Pearl, who had just turned two.
‘He was the most amazing father to those girls, they would look up to him so much,’ his youngest sister Jacinta told The Courier Mail.
It’s understood that James had been working as a pool builder and lived with his mother, Deborah, and stepfather, Barry, at the time of his death.
In a further heartbreaking turn of events, James’ widow Tori reportedly took her own life in January of this year.
According to So Dramatic, the news was confirmed by members of the Ciseau family.
The couple is survived by their daughters Olivia-Rose, six, and Bella-Pearl, three.
Tori shared a touching post about motherhood before her death, writing: ‘So proud of my babies and how far they have come.
‘There are definitely hard days being a solo mum but all I have to do is look at things like this and remember that no matter what, us three girls have so much to be grateful for. The love and laughter we share together is unbreakable.’
Tori and James were one of the most controversial couples from the third season due to their conflict with Tori’s mother Mary-Ann
Mary-Ann (pictured) disapproved of tradie James and also had a number of issues with her own daughter Tori
In another earlier post, Tori admitted that she was struggling in the aftermath of James’ death and the notoriety that came from being in the public eye.
‘For anyone out there that does want some advice — watch out,’ she wrote. ‘Social media is the Devil.’
‘You’re made to feel like you have to give things of your life when you don’t. I don’t need to give you anything about myself or my kids because I’m done, okay?’ she continued.
‘I do thank you for following me, that’s great, but other than that, this is literally just the end and I can’t deal with it anymore.’
She then said that she wanted to be ‘left alone’ and had no interest in sharing her personal life for her fans and followers.
In a further heartbreaking turn of events, James’ widow Tori reportedly took her own life in January of this year after struggling with mental health issues
‘As I said, I want to live a quiet life and make sure my girls are raised really well and they’re happy and they’re happy. That’s all I can wish for them.
‘I just want to be able to go to the shops and not be recognised anymore. Just let them have a normal life. I just want them to have a normal life and I don’t think that’s really hard to ask.’
Bride and Prejudice premiered in 2017 on Channel Seven and pulled in almost one million viewers on its first episode.
It continued for two more seasons until 2019, when it was quietly cancelled following Micah’s shock death.
The series also aired in the UK, where it gained a loyal following.
Since the series of tragic deaths, Seven has removed Bride and Prejudice from its streaming platforms leaving it unavailable to watch.
