A disabled pensioner said she was 'gutted' after marrying her Tunisian
toy boy following a whirlwind romance - only for him to leave her when
he arrived in the UK.
Patricia, who lives in the Midlands, was feeling lonely when she signed
up to an internet dating website and was quickly contacted by
26-year-old Mondher, from Tunisia.
'I was looking for love and looking for someone to share my life,' Patricia, 64,
Love at first sight: Patricia and Mondher on their wedding day in 2012
'When he first contacted me he was all lovey-dovey and he started
telling me he loved me when we had been talking for three weeks and
asking me to go there for a holiday.'
Mondher told Patricia that they could be together despite the 33-year age gap at the time, and being from different countries.
'I thought age was just a number and he kept drilling that into my head,' said Patricia, who uses a disability scooter.
'As long as we love each other, that's all that matters. He made me feel good because he was younger than me.'
Despite suffering from crippling osteoarthritis, six months later she jetted off on holiday and it was love at first sight.
The couple toast their marriage in Tunisia with plastic cups
'When I got to the airport in Tunisia, he was waiting for me and I fell in love straight away,' said Patricia, a pensioner.
'I had been there for five days when he said "let's get married, let's just do it!"
'I thought "I love the guy, go for it".
'He was telling me he was going to treat me like a princess, we could buy a car and he would take me out where I wanted to go.'
Patricia married Mondher in 2012 and
said she felt 'like a princess', despite having to pay for everything,
including the sheep that was to be slaughtered for the celebratory meal.
'On the wedding day, when they were reading the vows, I felt so happy,' added Patricia.
'It is a woman's dream to go to another country and marry a much younger man. It was wonderful and I was really, really happy.'
Holiday Love Rats also features Diane who married Mobe after they met on a drumming course in The Gambia
However, her dream of a perfect life quickly turned into a nightmare when she was forced to return to the UK without him.
Eight months later, she secured Mondher a visitor's visa, but a happy reunion was not to be.
'He didn't have much communication with me at all,' said Patricia. 'It was like once he'd moved here, that was it.
'I felt like I was second best and having Mondher in the house was a nightmare.
He didn't have much communication with me at all. It was like once he'd moved here, that was it.
'He would have an argument with me if I spoke to my daughter on the phone. Marriage wasn't good.'
Having already spent thousands on
holidays to Tunisia, flights and food, and with Mondher's visitor's visa
running out, Patricia refused to pay a further £2,000 to secure a new
visa.
However, she was left devastated when her husband then announced he was leaving her to stay with friends in Portsmouth.
'I was absolutely gutted,' she added. 'I felt I had been used and made a fool of myself.'
In a statement to the programme, Mondher
said that his marriage to Patricia collapsed due to circumstances
beyond his control, that he loved Patricia and did not come to England
for the money.
The show also follows the disastrous
relationships of 59-year-old Diane, whose passion for African music took
her to The Gambia where she met drum master Mobe.
Won over by Mobe’s talent and charisma, Diane fell in love and married him.
She paid for the visa to allow him to stay in the UK, as well as supporting him financially.
Diane and Mobe enjoy the sunshine in The Gambia
However, three years into their
marriage, Diane discovered Mobe was in contact with other women and
found a note in his bag detailing how he could divorce her and legally
remain in the UK.
Also featured is 49-year-old Michelle, who met a handsome Egyptian deep sea diver in Dubai and fell in love.
Michelle married Walid and the couple
talked about having children but despite living together in the UK for
just over four years, a month after getting his British Passport, Walid
left.
Now he’s back in touch and says his new
Egyptian wife has died and he’s asked Michelle to look after the
two-year-old daughter he had with his Egyptian wife.
And it’s not just British women who are experiencing this pattern of behaviour.
The programme also focuses on
53-year-old Jayne, an American from Indiana who spent two years and
thousands of dollars on legal fees to secure Nigerian Lateef a Green
Card.
She threw him out just weeks after he’d
gained permission to stay in the US for ten years because she discovered
he was sending romantic emails to other women.