As The Bachelorette Australia made its highly anticipated premiere a few weeks ago, the rumour-mill went into overdrive as fans anticipated what might happen this season.
One of the main talking points to emerge was the report that a ‘cheating scandal’ would occur between two contestants. And in tonight’s episode, fans finally got to see just what that meant for our leading lady Brooke Blurton.
The answer is, yes, the drama did involve frontrunner Jamie-Lee Dayz. But from what we have seen and heard in the episode, it was very much a one-sided attraction between Jamie-Lee and another contestant.
The episode began with Jamie-Lee scoring the coveted single date, where she was whisked away from the clutches of the Bachelor Mansion to hit the sky-high heights of the Sydney Tower Deck.
In the mood to provide viewers with even more déjà vu than in previous episodes, Osher put Brooke and Jamie-Lee up to the challenge of setting the world record for the longest on-screen TV kiss.
I think I’ve seen this film before, and I didn’t like the ending. Well, I did like the ending, but I’ll never pass up a moment to quote Taylor Swift.
The current 4:10 world record for the longest on-screen kiss on TV was set by The Bachelor’s Sam Wood and Nina Rolleston in 2015. Brooke and Jamie-Lee broke the record tonight – much to the joy of Sam’s winner and wife Snezana Wood, probably.
In order to get the screen-time mileage AND keep viewers entertained, the editors cut in scenes from the Bachie Mansion of people like Darvid and Taje, who were hoping the ladies were having a ‘chill’ date. It was not chill. They managed to break the record by 50 seconds, wrapping up their smooch at the 5-minute mark.
“I can’t tell whether it’s a bit of romance or we’re both competitive, but hell yeah let’s smash this record,” Jamie-Lee said of their decision to go so far beyond the 4:10 mark. Yes, Jamie-Lee. Do it for the girls and the gays.
Following their date, Brooke gave Jamie-Lee a rose – and another kiss – before sending her back to the mansion. Then came trouble.
For the group date, the contestants spent yet another day in the mansion. But this time they had JENGA. And also some psychological games.
Steve Van Aperen – AKA the human lie detector, who also looks like the red wiggle kind of (?) – interviewed the participants to try and figure out if there were any secrets to be uncovered. He was looking for “truthfulness, honesty and integrity,” but what he found was some juicy gossip thanks to local snitch Kurt Herzog.
To be fair, Kurt was as nice a snitch as a snitch can be (say that five times fast). Kurt made sure to say that this contestant hadn’t been given the time with Brooke and so had “maybe deviated” from wanting to get to know Brooke. The contestant in question was Ryan Carmichael.
“He’s told me he’s here for Brooke, but he’s also been spending a lot of time with Jamie-Lee and so questions have been raised around that relationship,” Kurt said, also adding that from his perspective Jamie-Lee wasn’t aware of the situation and probably thought they were just good friends.
Kurt was also upfront with Jamie-Lee about what he said in the interview – though she was, understandably, upset by what he said. Could there be something behind Jamie-Lee’s panic around whether or not Brooke would believe her? Maybe, but I’m pretty sure most people would freak out in this situation.
Plus, if the massive amounts of viral TikToks are any indication, it seems like pretty much every girl in the world can relate to a guy thinking that their friendliness is romantic when it most definitely is not.
in Steve’s opinion, Ryan displayed signs of “deflection” when asked about Jamie-Lee and was showing “avoidance behavior.” However, Steve did find Jamie-Lee to be genuine and told Brooke that it seemed to be one-sided.
“I knew coming into this experience that there might be a possibility of the guys and girls having an attraction,” Brooke said. “And let’s be honest, Ryan and I were probably never going to ride off into the sunset together. But hearing it involves Jamie-Lee is hard.”
Whether it was cut out – or Brooke simply wanted to listen rather than reveal what she was told – it seems like she only spoke to Jamie-Lee after the interviews and didn’t exactly address the fact that people were saying the ‘crush’ was all from Ryan’s end.
Jamie-Lee was visibly shaken by the claims, crying as she spoke to Brooke.
“If you think that anyone in there, in my eyes, compares to you, then that is so wrong. I am here for you Brooke,” Jamie-Lee said. “I wouldn’t have stopped my life… I’m not some stupid girl that’s going to go for anyone. I am here for you.”
Sending home the man in question, Ryan, and a girl named Jessica who seems lovely but didn’t really get any screen time, Brooke left the rose ceremony feeling deflated. She told the remaining contestants the night had been a total ‘mindf—k’ and that she didn’t want to have to do it again.
HOWEVER. Looks like it’ll certainly be coming up again next week, when a colourful cocktail party turns emotional. After a group date that involves recreating a Mardi Gras Parade, it seems like Jamie-Lee will try to ‘clear’ her name.
As for Ryan, he left the mansion on a mysterious note. Enigma that he is.
“It wasn’t meant to be but I haven’t left empty-handed,” he said, before telling producers he “couldn’t say” whether he would be in touch with Jamie-Lee in the outside world.
Looks like the drama will continue when The Bachelorette returns.
The Bachelorette Australia airs Wednesday and Thursday, 7:30pm, on 10.
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