When we see one of our own taking part in a reality TV show, you can bet that the Irish people will be right there behind them, and for Sean Heffernan, who took part on 90 Day Fiancé: The Other Way, that was exactly the case.
The 38-year-old, who is originally from Drogheda in Louth, featured in the famous TLC show with his wife, Joanne Digesu, who is from New York.
While Sean had nothing but support from those at home, the feeling can't be said about the show and how those featured are treated.
For those who are not familiar with the reality show, it centres around couples who have fallen in love with each other in different countries, with one of them being from the United States.
Wanting to make a go of their relationship, the only thing that is stopping them is getting that vital piece of paper... a visa; something that is extremely difficult to obtain, particularly in the USA.
EVOKE caught up with Sean and found out what it is really like to be on one of the hottest shows around, and the truth about how it is produced.
Sean met Joanne online when she was doing a Tarot reading for him. Sean says, 'they hit it off from the beginning,' but laughs when he tells us that she didn't appear in his cards. After a year and a half of dating and flying back and forth, the couple decided to get hitched in secret.
When it came to the show, Sean said that taking part started as a joke.
'We were watching TV one night and an advertisement for 90 Day Fiancé came on and I was like, 'Oh, we should do that, just joking.' We knew we were getting married, [Joanne's] like, "yeah, yeah, we'll do it".'
Putting it to the back of his mind, Sean couldn't believe it when three months later, the show came knocking.
Featuring alongside other couples in similar situations, the show follows the couple as they try to figure out how they are going to make their relationship a success, highlighting all the highs and the lows.
However, for Sean, what you see on screen is not exactly the truth. 'The first day of filming they tried to start pulling sh*t with me and I respectfully put them in their place... trying to get you to say things and then saying to you "what do you think when Jo said this", and I'm like, "Jo didn't say that".'
Thinking back to the beginning, he said: 'You sign a contract with them and they think they own you for the rest of your life, and they're just like backhanded tactics and snakes in the grass. They act like they care about you, but in reality, they'd actually rather break up your relationship for TV, because it gets them more views.'
'You know yourself, being Irish we don't take sh*t, we don't necessarily like being told what to do or being fake for a paycheck.'
While many people may think that those who feature on the show are just taking part for the money or the fame, for Sean and Joanne, this was not the case.
'You can have a successful TV show without trying to break people up, and I just don't respect them, to be honest... I just don't respect the network or their morals or values or anything like that,' he said.
Sean added: 'Just seeing the way they treat people, not everyone, there are cast members out there that are making a good living off it.'
Living in New York with his wife Joanne and her family, along with his daughter Bella Rose, Sean said he has nothing but support from those at home.
And when it comes to America and the reaction he gets, he says, it is crazy as 'you have people, just randomly walking down the street and they're like pulling over and asking for pictures.'
So, for Sean, was it worth it? 'I'm happy I did it for the experience [although] I wouldn't do it again, but I wouldn't change [what we have done],' he said.
The couple is still together, living happily in the Big Apple, but Sean believes that while there are no regrets about doing the show, 'I just don't respect the network or their morals or values or anything like that.'
EVOKE has contacted TLC for contacted for comment.
