The Renovators

It is obvious now that Seven’s new renovation series House Rules  will overlap with Nine’s The Block – which we now know will premiere next Sunday May 12, 6.30pm while House Rules is now being promoted as starting next week.

But can the newcomer hold up against The Block? Or will the audience be divided between the two. Continue reading »

South Australian Michael Lynch, winner of Network Ten’s 2011 reality series, The Renovators has been accused of cheating after it was claimed he scored free plumbing work after promising ‘on-air plugs’ of the plumber’s business.

After selling his team’s fibro cottage for $440,000 in the show’s finale, the 27-year old tradie from Laura won the show, took out the inaugral title and clocked up $100,000 in prize money.

According to News Limited, months after the season, which is rumoured to not be renewed, wrapped up, it has been claimed that Lynch broke the rules by using free labour from a man named Michael Sidaros. Michael offered, in return, free on-air plugs for Sidaros’ business.

But after the on-air plugs ‘failed to materialise’, it is claimed that Sidaros is now claiming ‘up to $15,000′ in compensation from the show, however has declined to comment further due to legal reasons.

When approached by News Limited, both Lynch and Shine bosses Mark & Carl Fennessey declined to comment on the matter.

It’s a controversy that will further haunt Shine, months after their multi-million dollar production flopped in terms of viewership.

While the show was promised a 2012 ‘relaunch’, it’s becoming more and more likely that this will not eventuate. Not this year, anyway. But with no official confirmation out of TEN as of yet, fans can continue to speculate.

Source: AdelaideNow

 

Story and picture: news.com.au

Last night; reality television bowed its head for 2011 with a lovely finale for Beauty & The Geek Australia. In a blog post; I went through the key aspects that went into making the final week of reality for this year a success while also hinting at future prospects for this blog. In the final recapping blog I will be posting for this year, I will detail the year that has been; the highs and the lows. Pretend it is one of those lengthy recaps shows attach to the top of their finales. Then I will preview what is in store for the coming months and into 2012.

The year began on 30 January 2011 with the launch of The Biggest Loser Australia’s sixth season- the first in the ‘families’ format. The season began with four trainers; Shannon Ponton, Michelle Bridges, Steve Willis (formerly ‘The Commando’, now a fully fledged trainer) and new ninja warrior Tiffiny Hall, all heading to the homes of their respective families to eat what they eat, do what they do and most importantly, live how they live.

It was an eye opening experience, and the perfect way to introduce the four families- the Westren family containing Leigh Westren, fiancée Lara Whelan, mother Sharlene and father Craig. We also had the Moon family, containing sisters Sarah, Jodie, Rebecca and Kellie. The Duncan family contained Emma, Jarrod, Sarah-Jayne and Meg and the Challenor family contained Damien, Nathaniel, Joe and Greg.

One by one, these families competed for immunity and power. Joe became a villain after making his nephew Nathaniel enter an elimination when it should have been him and also giving away immunity to someone other than his brother, Damien.

Despite being eliminated, a twist in the show saw Lara, Nathaniel, Rebecca and Emma return to the show. Two of these four were supposed to be eliminated, but after gaining weight at a weigh in, previously safe contestant Joe joined the line up and was eliminated with Lara, meaning three people were allowed back into the competition.

After 13 long weeks, Kellie, Sarah, Leigh and returnee Emma returned for the finale and despite great odds, Emma Duncan was crowned Australia’s second female Biggest Loser, with Leigh coming in second and Kellie and Sarah coming in third and fourth respectively.

In the same era, My Kitchen Rules returned after a highly successful first season. Its second season seemed to tap into the success MasterChef saw in 2010, and won pretty much every night it was on.

Amongst all the teams, we had High Achievers Kelly and Ash Cooke, Newlyweds Anne-Marie Battista and Nick Sharp, urban hippies Mal Gill and Bec Saul and of course, sisters Sammy & Bella Jakubiak.

It was a toughly contested battle, and MKR became something of a phenomenon. In the end, it was sisters Sammy & Bella who took the crown and have been close to Seven’s heart ever since, even making a few appearances on Dancing with the Stars.

Speaking of which, Dancing With The Stars made its 2011 debut with a big cast. Well, it wasn’t so big, but those people in Seven’s controversy department were prepped and at the ready. A change to the judging panel saw Josh Horner take the place of Mark Wilson, someone who seemed all too keen to create a stir.

The dancing line up consisted of newsreader Samantha Armytage, Home & Away’s Dan Ewing, bungled model Lara Bingle and most infamously, socialite Brynne Edelsten.

Brynne was at the centre of two very public controversies that helped lift ratings for the show. The first saw new judge Josh Horner describe her as a ‘bedazzled sack of potatoes’, causing her to cry after only her first dance. The second saw co-host Sonia Kruger comment on her and her husband, Geoffrey Edelsten’s age gap, referring to the latter as the former’s dad.

Despite all this, the country was ‘bedazzled’ by Brynne’s story, and also that of Samantha Armytage who was also given a beating by the judges. Both stayed in the contest for quite a while longer than many would have thought, with Samantha only just missing out on a place in the final.

Another contestant, Haley Bracken, who’s husband Nathan competed on the show only to be eliminated first, delighted the judges and scored herself a few ten’s, regularly winning challenges.

She made it all the way to the finale with singer Damien Leith and chef Manu Feildel.

While her dancing skills were enough to ward off Damien into third place, she was not able to beat Manu, who won the public vote and therefore the very controversial contest for 2011.

Back to TEN, and their reality ratings juggernaut, MasterChef Australia, returned for its third season. Branded as the biggest yet, a massive mystery box in Sydney Harbour was enough to herald in that promise to viewers watching at home.

The new season had a Cerebral Palsy sufferer, a surfer pin up dude, a few at home mother cooks and a fighter pilot.

Ratings for the season opened fairly high and fairly consistent, but the series was never going to reach the success of 2010. By the end of the season, it was also clear that its days of creating a 3 million plus viewership finale were over.

But there was plenty to celebrate in between. To make up for a lack of inspiration found in most of the dishes presented this year, the contestants headed to the likes of Margaret River, Busselton Jetty, a mine, Malaysia, New York and Melbourne for challenges and episodes.

The production team were in overdrive, and the production of the series was insanely great.

Storytelling also played a big part as many events grabbed news headlines. Firstly was that little fling between Ellie and Hayden which resulted in nothing. The second, and probably the biggest controversy to ever hit the MasterChef kitchen came from contestant Mat Beyer, or more frankly, his smart phone.

During one challenge, it was suspected by the judges that Mat had brought in a smart phone that could have been used to find information on recipes. Their suspicions were somewhat confirmed and he was kicked out of the competition.

Other stories also attracted attention. The shock elimination of CP sufferer John Hughes in the top 50 round, the deletion of fighter pilot Paul Lombardi before the top 24 round even started and the shock walking of contestant Adam Bowen all left viewers with something to watch.

Moving into finals week, and Ellie, Dani, Alana, Michael and Kate were left to fight for the title, although Ellie was eliminated just before all this.

It all came down to Michael and Kate in the finale where mother Kate beat out SA Michael, 87 points to 84. It wasn’t a very memorable finale, and Kate hasn’t been heard of since, but it was still another successful slate for TEN.

Reality television was Seven’s forte in 2011 with Australia’s Got Talent also on the rise. All three judges; Kyle Sandilands, Dannii Minogue and Brian McFadden returned and found the likes of The Old Fella, Ben Price, Jack Vidgen and Cosentino and launched them into the spotlight.

Also launched into the spotlight was comedian Jordan Harris where, after a successful first round of auditions which was based on jokes ‘borrowed’ from other joke makers, he managed to alienate his audience in the semi finals with a less than impressive and rather cringeworthy performance of his own.

They also ‘re-found’ Timomatic who, after modest success on the second season of So You Think You Can Dance Australia in 2009, returned to this competition to place third.

In the end, performer Cosentino placed second to singing schoolboy Jack Vidgen, who was famous in his own right for those veneers.

Seven also launched The Amazing Race Australia, which brought out probably the most diverse range of characters seen on reality television this year. We had Muslims Mo & Mos, Big W employees Anne Marie and Tracy; reunited sisters Alana and Mel and dopey farmers Tom & Matt.

The first season saw these guys race to places like Indonesia, South Africa, Czech Republic, Poland, Singapore and Hong Kong, and face challenges ranging from playing a famous Chinese casino game, to stacking crates of beer to skydiving!

In the end, it was surfer duo Nathan & Tyler, the former of which dated Erin McNaught, won the show over Perth models Renae & Sam. Surprisingly, it all came down to a race around Perth.

But I’m sure you’re all sick of hearing about Seven and TEN for now; so lets visit some of Nine’s reality offerings.

Well, most famously, we had The Block. Now in it’s forth season, the producers mixed things up a bit and introduced a new stripped 7PM format. The show also moved out of apartment renovating with this year’s contestants asked to renovate four houses on a block!

Lastly, there were eight teams, not four. Four of those teams however were eliminated in the first week, but they all made appearances in challenges throughout the series.

The four main couples were Josh & Jenna, a bickering boyfriend/girlfriend duo who were in charge of the only double fronted house on the street; Polly & Waz, a very quirky, young and savvy couple who had nil background in renovating; Katrina & Amie, two sisters with emotions made of concrete and a very stylish yet obscure design technique, and seasoned renovators Tania & Rod.

They were all a bunch of laughs with only a few moments of sadness. There was a time when Tania & Rod were called off the block to attend a family funeral, and there was also a time when Katrina’s Crohn’s disease overtook her emotions a bit. But in the end, these couples, with the help of host Scott Cam, new host Shelley Craft, sometimes embattled onsite manager Keith and a whole set of reward winning challenges, were able to manage four great houses for auction.

The only disappointing thing about this season, was most probably the only thing that the producers didn’t want to end in disappointment- the finale.

After last year’s ‘shock’ announcement that Chez & Brenton’s apartment was to be passed in, it was a surprise to everyone watching when three of the four houses were passed in. It was even more of a shock that the winning house, selling for $15,000 profit, belonged to novice’s Polly & Waz. And it was an EVEN BIGGER shock to Jenna, whose night was turned upside down by a proposal by Josh. She said yes!

Nine also had Top Design, a brand new show by Jamie Durie, once Nine’s love child and host of The Block. The series failed to fire and was at one point shown first run on GEM ahead of a Nine screening.

Robert Davidov won the show, beating out Lisa and Steve at the finale, which was quite a high key affair for such a low key performer. I guess for me personally, the thing I will remember about this show was minutes after blogging the finale of the show on a Friday, news that Big Brother Australia was to return on Nine surfaced.

Nine also had two seasons of The Farmer Wants A Wife, however I only watched the second, which was the series’ seventh overall.

In this season, containing farmers Wil, Trent, Frank, John, Kev and Tim, a seventh mystery girl was added to the picked girls the farmers chose as potential wives. This seventh girl was chosen by the families. The farmers had to decide whether or not to take her back to the farm with him and two others.

Some jumped at the opportunity, some did not.

The show saw numerous exits; most notably, Farmer John’s favourite Belinda. The finale also saw a shocking outcome for Kev, who after two eliminations, his chosen girl got cold feet and left, leaving him with no one to pursue. Potential season eight candidate, anyone?

The season end showcasing the wedding of former contestants Nathan and Amanda.

To end the year, Nine debuted the oftentimes controversial Celebrity Apprentice to a stripped 7PM format. The series contained celebrities including Jesinta Campbell, Deni Hines, Jason Coleman, Julia Morris, Pauline Hanson and Shane Crawford.

Deni became an instant villain; constantly attacking Polly for her lack of celebrity, and generally acting like a spoilt brat and damaged diva. She was soon eliminated.

Pauline Hanson would most likely be considered as the most unlikely hero of the series after showing real integrity and a real maturity towards challenges. She was constantly saved from elimination due to her work ethic and public support backing her, especially after washing some guy’s car in underwear, was shiny.

Another surprise characterisation came from Jason Coleman, who while showed great leadership and well-spokenedness, constantly lost challenges and began to be deemed a villain in the eyes of the contestants who saw his constant need to be in control and his somewhat demeaning mannerisms to be quite rude and somewhat crippling to the receiving contestant’s place in the competition

In the final week, eliminated contestants Polly, Didier, Deni and Max returned to help out finalists Jason, Julia, Shane and Jesinta in what was an explosive and controversial week. Mad Max Markson, who was known for his immaturity, outspokenness and time wasting abilities, somewhat ironically eliminated after competing in a challenge sober of these qualities, returned to give Julia and Jason one more test of patience and control.

But it was Deni Hines who stole the show, seemingly playing up for the cameras and using the villain persona she received in her first stint on the show, and arguing with people, mostly Jesinta, at any opportunity she got.

She later admitted that she did it for fun, and even commended enemy Jesinta on her smarts. It wasn’t enough to let Jesinta and Shane win, and in the end, it all came down to Julia and Jason. Julia Morris won the show, but decided to split the money with Jason Coleman and his charity; a rare show of such true honour and dignity. Julia will be one contestant who’s ‘brand’ isn’t damaged by this show.

TEN also experimented with The Renovators; but it turned into an overall flop, despite showing signs of life throughout its run, and even giving TEN a second place position on finale night. The renovation show saw host Brendan Moar and judges Peter Ho, Barry Du Bois and Robyn Holt guide 20 renovators through challenges, which included a 24-hour makeover of a house on wheels, carted into the show’s massive warehouse studio, and a week trip up to Brisbane to help flood victims, and eliminations which I personally noted for their initial lack of imagination.

Despite the low rating performance of the show, it was generally well received by the public, with many of you suggesting contestants for the Top 20 Reality Contestants of 2011 competition. While it was able to shake comparisons to The Block; its similarity to MasterChef remained and became the show’s only lowlight. Despite all this, I would say that where the Renovators was different was in its increased personal approach to its contestants and its laid back approach to the whole structure of the show.

There were plenty of team changes, but ultimately, Natalie from the sixties suburban (formerly, the shop), August from the shop, Peter from the half done house, Michael from the fibro cottage, Mel from the weatherboard and Luke from the terrace became the show’s finalists for auction night.

While not many houses sold for profit, they did all sell, and it was SA’s Michael Lynch’s fibro cottage that sold for the most and gave the tradie from Laura a win!

Junior MasterChef Australia was generally a miss for TEN, after initially debuting a brand new Top 50 format. Matt Preston took leave for the series, but Matt Moran took his place and Anna Gare returned as a solely Junior MasterChef judge.

The show continued the celebrated production of the main show, and the trips to Disneyland and the inspiring dish after inspiring dish of tasty food was a massive bonus; possibly making it a better season than the first, but the viewers didn’t come, and this is one show that will most probably be forgotten.

For those of you who don’t forget it, Greta Yaxley won the show, with 92 points over Jack’s 84 (if I recall).

Back to Seven and it was another year for The X Factor and it was going to be big. Natalie Imbruglia and Kyle Sandilands didn’t return, but they were replaced by the gorgeous and talented Natalie Bassingthwaighte and singing superstar Mel B. The rest returned.

This year, it was the likes of Emmanuel Kelly; a talented Iraqi orphan and Luke O’Dell, an untalented Adam Lambert wannabe who stole the show; but none of which made it to the finals.

Out of the twelve who did, Mel B’s lot soon disappeared. Tyla Bertolli and Jacqui Newland were both eliminated early on and despite a promising first half for Christina Parie, she wasn’t able to make it into the top 5.

Conversely, Guy Sebastian kept all of his three acts until the final five, with Declan Sykes leaving in fifth place. His other two acts, Johnny Ruffo and Reece Mastin, both became finalists along with Natalie Bassingthwaighte’s Andrew Wishart.

After winning last year with Altiyan Childs, Ronan Keating did not renew his success this year, with his final act Three Wishez only making it to the final four.

In the end, SA’s Reece Mastin beat out Andrew Wishart and Johnny Ruffo (runner up and third place respectively) to become the winner of the show’s third season.

Seven also had The One; a show that briefly saw the light of day in 2008 and pits psychics against each other to find out who is the most gifted.
Judges were Richard Saunders, a sceptic, and Stacey Demarco, a psychic, whose bickering became a somewhat entertainment staple for the show.

Challenges these contestants faced included anything from in studio readings, finding of objects as small as gold to as big as helicopters using only their abilities; and ended in a now controversial challenge which saw them try to locate the body of missing, presumed dead woman, Kerry Whelan.

Greg Riley, empath Heidi Hanley and detective Debbie Malone were awarded finalist positions, and you at home got to determine the winner. Like the psychics themselves, you all chose Greg to be The One- Australia’s Most Gifted Psychic.

The last show of course, was Beauty & The Geek Australia which returned with Bernard Curry as host for its third season. The twist this year was a simple one; a male beauty paired with a female geek in the form of Troy and Helen.

Other than this, the show didn’t deviate away from its usual format of humorous storytelling, classy cutaway quotes, wonderful production and just plain stupidity. There was a time when the human twists, Helen & Troy, were eliminated quite early, but they were able to return via a twist. One episode later and they were eliminated again.

The season saw geek Lachlan and beauty Jordan, who both went on to be apart of the final two teams with their respective partners, hook up, break up and make up throughout the course of the season. The main problem came when Lachlan got his partner Sarah’s name tattooed on his arse. Pardon my French.

During makeovers, which were a dazzling array of spectacles, Dolly announced her decision to quit on medical grounds, leaving previously eliminated contestant Jacelle to fill her void with Gilbert.

In the finale, Mackenzie and Jimmy were eliminated after an exam challenge; Gilbert and Jacelle were eliminated after a formal challenge and Julian and Jordan were eliminated after a quiz, leaving Lachlan and Sarah as this year’s winners.

Lovebirds Mackenzie and Troy also announced their engagement throughout the final.

 

And that my friends, was the year in reality. Quite a hefty one wasn’t it. But enough about 2011; that was so last year (well, technically it was this year, but you get my drift)- let’s talk 2012.

The only show from the above list confirmed not to be returning is Top Design, but grave fears are being held for The Renovators, which despite being announced by TEN as a returning show, has since fallen victim to second thoughts. The only other show that will probably not return is Junior MasterChef Australia- but it would be for the best. Oh, and The One.

The Biggest Loser Australia will return and revert back to a ‘singles’ format. Dancing with the Stars will return with a new host after Sonia Kruger’s defection to Nine; possibly Nat Bass. My Kitchen Rules returns with a Kiwi pair. MasterChef returns with Matt Preston.

The Farmer Wants A Wife, Celebrity Apprentice Australia, The Block, The Amazing Race Australia, Australia’s Got Talent, The X Factor and Beauty & The Geek Australia will all return, or are all set to return based on viewer satisfaction and ratings.

To join them are a sleuth of new Nine shows. We have The Voice, which features blind auditions and battle rounds. Judges will be Joel Madden, Delta Goodrem, Seal and Keith Urban.

Big Brother returns to our screens on Nine with new host Sonia Kruger and a new ‘Secrets’ format where every housemate has a secret. Location, spin off shows and narrator are yet to be confirmed.

Excess Baggage will be a new celebrity weight loss show where eight overweight celebs pair up with ordinary contestants to lose the flab. Celebrities include Darryn Lyons who has previously competed on Celebrity Big Brother UK, causing a stir after revealing his ‘six pack on top of a beer gut’ formed stomach which evolved due to ‘contouring’. Having watched this season myself, I will warn you now; just in case he takes his top off, don’t eat dinner through this program! Kate Cebrano hosts.

 

And that is just a taste of what 2012 holds in terms of reality television! It’s the substance which makes up these shows in between which will really determine the flavour. And we won’t know what any of this ‘substance’ is until these seasons debut.

 

Over the next few months, Throng will still be delivering important reality news. Of course we have the Top 20 Reality Television Contestants of 2011 competition which will run from the 16^th of December right through until New Years Eve.

I will then be taking a break for the first half of January before returning with some opinion pieces to get you in the spirit of the 2012 reality ratings season. This will also be my last post before December 16 less any important announcements. I’m sure the other lovely writers here on Throng will be keeping you up to date anyway. There’s always an excuse to log onto Throng.

 

Then, in 2012 I can officially announce, Throng will be returning its episode-by-episode detailed recaps of EVERY episode of EVERY season of reality in 2012 (minus any last minute disruptions or planned events), so keep an eye out!

 

That’s all from me; a few last minute thank you’s before I sign off- firstly to AndrewB and Regan for letting me post my thoughts on reality onto this site in the first place. You have given me so much support and I have loved every minute of it.

 

Johnson, as many of you would know, has helped in nearly every single episode of MasterChef, Junior MasterChef and The X Factor; and has even helped out in other random episodes. I truly thank you for that, Johnson, as you have enriched my knowledge and therefore my love of this genre and this job.

 

And Ryno; who offered his complete support and helping hand throughout September, and while it didn’t all go to plan, I think your offer to help was the most exciting thing about this year.

 

And to the rest of the readers, who have commented kindly or constructively, or have just read my work, I am motivated by your continued support and I am proud to be able to do this for such a loving and intellectual community.

 

I’ll see you all soon; for now, it’s time to take a break.

 

Courtney xx

 

NOTE: To anyone wanting to know about Junior MasterChef’s Sunday episode; unfortunately I was busy and therefore, it will be posted Monday afternoon; thanks! And sorry for the inconvenience.

A very unusual circumstance as the reality television week comes to a close a little earlier than usual. But, despite the smaller length of the week, it was still packed with all things reality, so let’s recap the busy week that was!

It all began with The Renovators and in the penultimate episode, the six remaining finalists (Peter, Mel, August, Michael, Luke and Natalia) showed off their houses to various judges. With everything complete, it was a sombre goodbye episode to all the hard work they put into their homes and safe to say, there was nothing negative about this judgement day!

On Wednesday, it was auction night, and what would become a bright note ending for the sometimes viewership poor renovation show, all houses managed to sell at auction; however some were not able to give their renovators a profit.

In the end, Peter’s half done house, August’s shop and Natalia’s sixties suburban all failed to deliver a profit which puts a dampener on the usual happy-go-lucky mood of the show and its contestants. It kind of proves that no matter how nice you try to make a show, reality will always find a way to kill it!

Mel, Luke and Michael all made profits, however it was SA Michael’s fibro cottage that made the most; earning him the title of Australia’s best (and possibly only) renovator (and by only, I mean crowned by this show).

It was a finale night that had a few fizzles, a few highlights and an all round good atmosphere, but it wasn’t the only show that provided that this week.

Junior MasterChef also saw a nice change of heart when the juniors were allowed to cook in a proper restaurant for the first time! Despite all this, it was a chocolate themed taste test and invention test on Monday that stole the show with happy faces all round up until the point of deciding who was to face elimination.

On The X Factor, the contestants didn’t have to wait long to find out who was going to be eliminated. After a somewhat improved performance show, Johnny Ruffo and Audio Vixen fell victim to the public vote on Tuesday and despite Mel promising not to go into deadlock, one crucial mistake made sure the viewers were in control that night. In the end, Audio Vixen were told to leave, and Ronan lost his first group of the year.

Beauty & The Geek Australia went back to school with a truly hilarious yet cringeworthy science fair, before the geeks mastered the art of cheerleading. After Jordan and Julian won the science fair challenge and Lachlan and Sarah triumphed in the cheerleading competition (leaving a distraught Maddy in their path), they chose Theo & Jacelle and Bendeguz & Dolly to face elimination. There, Jacelle’s idea that Galileo invented the hammer sealed the fates of her and Theo; sending them packing.

The One also managed to surprise me, and possibly even Valerie who was ultimately voted this season’s worst psychic, being sent home first.

 

With The Renovators out of the way, it gives us more time to look at the other reality television shows going on at this time.

The One’s psychics will this week have to investigate the murder of a woman which will ultimately lead to another being sent home. The same goes for Beauty & The Geek Australia contestants and The X Factor contestants, who will see yet another round of challenges/singing (this week, chart topping songs is the theme), before another hopeful goes home.

Junior MasterChef will bid farewell to its first four contestants since determining the top 20. In the running to leave are Jade, Zac, Hannah, Aya, Tom, Alysha, Caroline and Marcus.

Again, it is another short week of reality this week as the year well and truly winds down. We’re getting to the stage now where in most reality shows, favourites will be sent home, so get the tissues ready, put pen to complaint paper, and try to make the most of what could be a show-stopping week!

 

Ok, so, using the notes provided to me by my friend and some notes I took on my phone while waiting in the waiting room (yay, they had it on), I’ll blog as detailed as possible. If I can hit 2,000 words (a respectable word count for my blogs), I won’t bother expanding. So let’s go.

First and foremost, the episode begins with a huge recap of the year that has been, plus a small preview into tonight’s events; probably weren’t many exciting events to pull from considering it is just auctions.

We begin the night in actuality with Brendan coming up on a makeshift stage situated outside the weatherboard house. There are a lot of people there; it could be a good night. He’s all snazzed up in a very lush suit and there with him is Mel and some of the contestants (presumably weatherboard contestants, yes).

He then introduces Chris Gray, who will be Brendan’s aide for the night and after a short interview, we cross to the judges who are at the shop waiting what will be the second auction site for the night. After a quick good luck, we are back in Marrickville where Chris expects that three of the six properties will be likely to sell. Well, that’s more than The Block got this year; a-kaboom!

Brendan then goes to Mel, the finalist representing the weatherboard house tonight. She is with her family and right now; she is just feeling excited and proud to be representing such a fine house, and of course the fine team behind the making of that house, here at auction tonight. Her family is there with her and they look genuinely proud of her.

What does she want out of The Renovators? Well, out of the auction at least she wants top dollars; and with a 1 in six chance with a tough Sydney market, she may be a bit out of luck. Still, we’re early into this and anything could happen.

We now take a look at a very fitting, but as my friend said, very long look at the weatherboard house and its transformation over the ten week course of this show. According to my friend, this also acted as a look back at the ‘journey’ these contestants have taken. Apparently, despite the long length, it was a perfect fit and definitely necessary. I’ll take her word on that.

After all that, we are inside the weatherboard house where Mel is joined by her ex-contestants and family for yet another interview before biddings begin. She is just a little homesick, but this entire competition means so much to her, she is determined to win!

With that, Chris tells her she needs a total of $573,855 to even begin to earn a profit and with that, the first auction of the night begins!

It starts off well and she is able to achieve just under $500,000 before proceedings seem to hit a snag. It is momentary, and the figures continue to rise again. She makes it to $570,000 before the second and more vital snag hits but after the real estate guys walking and spruiking through the crowd tonight work their magic, they are able to sell the house for $575,000, making Mel $1,145 profit. A good start, I guess and hey, at least it sold! Will the others be as lucky?

Well, Mel is proud anyway and as Brendan jokes, she is currently at this time the leader in the competition. Well, if that does it for her…

So overall, as I said, she made $1,145 which is a 0.2% profit. And with that, Mel is done for the night and we head over to the shop, August and the judges. There, Robyn takes the interviewing reigns. August thinks it would be brilliant to win (and hey, I aint arguing!) And with that, we get another one of those fitting, long look at the journey these contestants have had in the shop. It is unbelievable that no one in this team actually got eliminated before the head to heads! Very successful.

Afterwards, the judges interview Fiona and Christie (Natalia obviously now a finalist for the sixties suburban). As original key holder, Fiona is proud that the house went to someone like August with his artistic and architectural prowess. I mean, who could not argue with that; August has been a bomb in this competition; a force to be reckoned with!

His family, who are also there, are proud of their little Augie.

Now it is time for auction and basically, he needs to beat $713,676 PLUS the 0.2% the weatherboard house made to get August in front. Overall, he needs more than $715,000.

There’s a huge $700,000 beginning bid which is so good and spells only good things for August… or does it?

The auctioneer is shit; absolute crap and apparently this won’t be his only auction tonight! In fact, he is so crap (apparently not doing enough to get the audience motivated to bid) it is August’s shop that turns into that single bid property we were told about. It sells for $700,000! That’s above reserve, but not enough to earn August, current leader Mel or the current prize fund, a profit.

Baz makes it a positive and so do the other contestants; but despite the positive nature of this show; this is a brutal night; and most of this comes off as looking a little desperate. Apparently, August did not look happy at all as the first ‘victim’ tonight. Still, if I was in August’s position, I would want people like Baz around me more than say, Scott Cam.

Mel comes in and the two put the result aside to hug each other and hey, these guys are taking it better than the people on The Block; but I guess these guys are in the trade, so there you go.

With that, second auction is up and we are off to the Inner City Terrace with Chris and Brendan where we are treated to vision from the Open Inspection. Most people seem very happy with the property and my, isn’t that courtyard a stunner!

Brendan is then on the balcony, staring into the street below as the camera pans up. He is with finalist Luke as they prepare for auction. After a short, apparently unrevealing interview, we are treated with the ‘story of the Inner City Terrace’ recap.

After all that, Brendan interviews the other contestants (Jason and Kathy (was Sam there?)) and they are proud of what Luke was able to achieve on his own. Luke tells Brendan that he thinks the main things the buyers will be ‘bidding on’ are all the interesting features he has put in the home.

Luke is confident he will break the $899,000 he needs to beat but because of Mel’s 0.2%, he actually has to beat $901,152 but Luke is confident he will get $1.1m for it. Yeah, right pal!

Mel then enters the room and wishes him well for the night.

The auction takes place downstairs as the camera pans out of the upstairs window, down the building and into the lit up room below. Apparently, it was a brilliant cinematic technique.

So, how will it all go for Lukey?

He gets to $860,000 in no time and soon after that, we are at $880,000. It actually makes it to $900,000 without any further bids following immediately. Then, after a cheekily placed ad break, a man bids $905,000, eliminating Mel and putting Luke in the front. Sparing details, in the end Luke manages $925,000, which along with Mel’s money, equals $25,730 in prize money. His overall winning percentage is at 2.86%.

With that, Luke should be happy (despite being way lower than the expected $1.1m) and we move swiftly onto the Half Done House for their auction.

Well, we actually go to a break at this point before a weird montage detailing the stressful situations the contestants were put in is shown. Bit of a time filler, but in context, looking back at some of the spats was quite a funny sight.

Pete is sitting with Pete in that magnificent garden with his family and they tell him ‘Buona Fortuna’ or good luck (I think I spelt it wrong). He says he isn’t as nervous as he thought he would be, so that’s a bonus!

We then look at the Half Done House journey before a chat with the ex contestants ensures. Lisa is happy he stuck to the original plans and Peter just said he loved getting it finished.

After all is said and done, we find out Peter needs more than $825,114 to win, but as we go to auction, we see August’s auctioneer is back and it looks like Peter is a dead man. Well, maybe not that bad…J.

The auction begins badly with no initial takers to begin with but soon, someone bids $700,000 which is very low and there’s a lot to go. He gets to $710,000 and slowly $720,000 but it isn’t until someone goes to $750,000 that Peter is in with a chance. Someone then goes $770,000 and unfortunately, that’s where it stops and the house is sold well below what Peter needed. Still, his house sold and Peter is in a much happier mood than The Block contestants and of course, August.

Baz is still able to spin the crap out of it.

It is now time to go to the Sixties Suburban where Brendan is standing on the back patio with Natalia, her husband and child and they discuss the series. She says she is calm and Brendan apparently compliments her baby’s eyes (Natalia then says they are like Brendan’s, which sounds a bit weird).

We look at the journey before Brendan is joined by all the past contestants (including Suzanne) and boy isn’t there a heap of them! After a short uneventful interview, Luke comes in and says hello, commenting on the busy night (we all know this occurred over several nights, so this is very poorly scripted).

Natalia is told she needs to break a total of $779,964 to win but with 11 regular bidders, she may be in luck!

The auction starts with a small $600,000 bid but after a while it goes up rapidly to $730,000. Usually, there is a snag and a few more bids, but this time, the snag did not end and that’s how the house sold. Again, above reserve, but below profit making margin!

With that, it is now Michael v Luke for the title. For the epic finale, the Party Rock Anthem opening titles tune is playing as the judges rock up in those now infamous black SUV’s to a huge crowd of people containing the contestants, family members and what not. This actually occurred on one of the first nights of auction, so the grand entrance must have been planned. That means; this isn’t predictable, so a good point of this finale, and possibly the most important!

Ali is one of the contestants standing in the crowd and she is just proud of Michael and the now developed fibro cottage.

Chris and Brendan then walk in and Robyn is already interviewing him. The last ten minutes have been the most nerve-racking, says Michael.

It is time for one last look at the journey before ex team members are asked to join Michael! They discuss the finished product, and they are all very proud. Michael’s girlfriend Ashley is there and she says that once he’s done renovating on this show, he can finish the renovations at her house, haha.

Brendan reveals the $26,000 current prize pool to Michael, who is shocked by the figure. He then tells Michael that most people have wanted to pay just over $400,000 for the property. Michael said that had he not heard of the trouble the other guys have been having, he would have been disappointed, but now, he would be happy with $400,000.

Well, being the cheapest house, Michael needs $382,669 to win. Easy feat? Not quite as that bloody auctioneer is back!

To begin with, no one bids at all and the auctioneer makes a pun about the suburb being a quiet one.

Soon enough, someone says $280,000 and from there, it skyrockets. It makes it to $375,000 and it doesn’t go anywhere from there. The man is about to hit his book signalling a sale and the end of auction (at this point, it would be a loss to Michael) before we go to break. When we return, we look at the current bidder as the mallet is about to go down, and in quite a dramatic fashion, a distinct hand raise is seen in the background, connected to someone raising the property to $385,000 making…

MICHAEL LYNCH (From SA I might add) THE WINNER OF THE RENOVATORS 2011!!!

 

From there, he is able to milk an astonishing $440,000 for the house, taking the grand prize to just under $100,000 (but Brendan rounds it up to this figures, making $100,000 the total prize fund!).

And with that, the episode, season and possibly series ends. The way Brendan worded the goodbye sounded like it wasn’t coming back as he states ‘thank you for watching The Renovators’. Hmm, not a good sign.

 

I can’t critique the show but apparently, it was worth a Courtney’s Verdict of 9.0/10 due to good cinematography techniques, a tense final and all round good display of sportsmanship, however was let down by some boring auction scenes and a bit of repetition after ads.

 

To the series as a whole, and it has been quite a power building ride. This has been one reality television series which has just gone from strength to strength. Somewhat weak to begin with due to the over saturation of reality television at the time and of course, the over saturation of renovation shows, The Renovators was a show that needed to prove itself.

It was plagued by too much product placement, uninspiring contestants who were soon eliminated, and boring scenes. The lack of renovation was also a problem.

But the niceness of the show was on a scale much different to that seen on MasterChef. It wasn’t just a ‘nice judge’ feel; the show had a ‘judge bonds emotionally with contestant’ feel, and it was able to pull that off without any ‘bias’ problems.

The show dished out well produced episode after well produced episode and it should be proud with how each and every show has been packaged.

What’s stunning is how quickly it has all ended. Somehow, this show took the limelight off of just elimination, and got the show to revolve around a whole lot more; contestants, challenges and events like the heartwarming Brisbane Flood clean up. Then, it was the head to head challenges that plummeted the numbers from 12 to 6 and here we are, at the very end.

 

I don’t know if the show will be back next year, but I do feel that despite its low points, this is one show Australia has failed. It deserves to be on television and then some. This is a smash hit show without the smash, that’s for sure. Wrong timing to start it, possibly. Dull at times, maybe. But all in all, I have enjoyed this show and I wish the cast, crew, contestants and significant others, the very best of luck for the future.

 

Courtney’s The Renovators Season One Overall Verdict: 9.1/10

 

WORD COUNT: 2,585 Words

UPDATE: The reason why I cannot blog tonight is that a friend of mine has been admitted to hospital due to a sports injury. Their mother is unable to pick her up after all is done (which I have been told will be at around 8PM but could be much later). BUT, another friend has promised to take notes of the finale and I may be able to expand on them afterwards! Crisis possibly diverted…?

Hey guys, I’m so sorry about this.

Through no fault of my own, I have had to be called away from my blogging duties tonight due to unforseen circumstances.

Unfortunately, this comes on the night of The Renovators Finale.

It is not a serious issue, rest assured, however it is an urgent one and unfortunately, no back up plan has been put in place.

For anyone who relies on this blog for information or for catch up; I can only say I am sorry. The more unfortunate thing is, I have no time on Thursday’s to complete blogs however, due to the slim amount of blogging time on Thursday night (only Beauty & The Geek Australia) I can endeavor to upload it tomorrow night; but if all else fails, Friday.

The One may have to be delayed by Friday.

Again, I am so sorry and also for the late notice. I have only found out this minute of some plans that, as I say, need urgent attention.

Throng Australia will provide posts detailing results as per what is expected during events like these. I respect that by the time the blogs come up, it is probably not relevant due to the event nature of finale episodes, but nonetheless, I have a moral obligation to upload important episodes like these and rest assured it will be done.

It also comes just so soon after I had to neglect my position for a weeks break over September, however I hope you trust there is no way out of my sudden obligations tonight.

For those who are watching it live, I hope you enjoy it, and for the rest of you I give my sincerest apologies.

 

Regards,

Courtney xx 

The Renovators Finale, 7.30pm, TEN
In the final episode, it’s the auction of our six houses. The profit from all six properties will become the prize for one very lucky renovator. The hammer is raised, bidding is open.

Who Do You Think You Are? Rosie O’Donnell, 10.30pm, Nine
Rosie O’Donnell explores her ancestry by focusing on her late mother’s life. Her familial sleuthing directs her to Jersey City and then Ireland, where she uncovers various hardships faced by her family.

Secret Life of the American Teenager, 7.35pm, FOX8
Amy, still unaware that Adrian is pregnant, is off to New York for the summer, as she and Ben profess their love at the airport.

The Kite Runner, 10.05pm, SBS ONE
Prior to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, an unlikely friendship develops between Amir, the son of a wealthy Afghan businessman, and Hassan, the son of his father’s servant. During a kite-flying tournament, an unspeakable event changes the nature of their relationship forever. Nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Language Film, 2007.

Amazon with Bruce Parry, 7.30pm, SBS
Travelling over 10,000km by foot, light aircraft and boat, Bruce Parry explores the environment, peoples and cultures along the full length of the Amazon – from its source in Peru to its mouth in Brazil.

8.30pm Monday October 10 on Ten

Monday 10 October 8:30pm- AUCTION NIGHT!

13 weeks ago, six teams of renovators combined forces by putting their joint renovating skills into these dilapidated properties but tonight, just one from each team brings those houses to auction. With such a great deal of time and effort invested in these renovations, the stakes are high. There can only be one winner.

In tonight’s final episode, it’s the auction of our six houses.

They’ve done all they can (except Mel), but what do the judges think of the now fully renovated houses in the lead up to auction. Let’s just say, it is a judgement day you WOULDN’T want to lose!

It’s morning at the sixties suburban; and it is Natalia’s final day in the house before moving home. We get stunning camera shots of the house as she claims that it is the best house she has ever lived in.

At the half done house, Peter is making sure the house is prepped for his real estate agent’s visit. He sticks notes on the walls of each room pointing them in the direction of all the good bits. The woman arrives and is confident it will sell at auction.

Michael has also woken up to his last day in the fibro cottage. He is sad at the prospect of leaving, and as we get a fly by of the house, we can see why he thinks it is a resort.

Luke is also happy with the inner city terrace which looks magnificent.

To the weatherboard house, and the real estate agent has arrived. We look at Mel’s work and it seems the furniture is still not in the living area. The real estate agent is still very impressed with the house.

At the warehouse, Brendan is briefing the three judges and they are all excited about the prospect of seeing the finished houses. Brendan reveals that the winner today will win a beach holiday. The judges will approach this as if they are buying the house they are visiting.
To the shop and August is getting the final touches on the design before the judges arrive. He has fallen in love with the shop and cannot believe his work.

Brendan arrives with the judges and they are already surprised by the bell. It rings for a long time but as Baz comes in, he already loves the house! They then inspect the rooms one by one and the comments are mostly positive about the house.

They love the peacefulness of the study while Robyn loves the new art in the master bedroom. The judges have never looked happier when they enter the living area which does look very stunning. Outside and the garden is no exception to the wonderfulness of the house. We find out that August received flowers from walkee Fiona which are now apart of the house.

Next up is the sixties suburban where Natalia is now getting ready for the judges. She’s baked a cake for them so she can create an aroma. Looking at the before and after shots, this house looks magnificent. Natalia will never know what the house would have looked like if one of the original khaki team members won the keys to the house.

The judges walk in and love the fire near the kitchen and Robyn cannot believe the restyling which Natalia has done since Nathan has left. The kitchen and dining area is by far the best of all six houses with its modern yet rustic look. The baked cake is a bonus to all who can smell it.

We then look at the gardens of the house and while it is big and spacious, she hasn’t wasted a square metre of it!

Brendan says he can imagine a ‘life’ in all the bedrooms and can see the house come to life when someone moves in. Baz compliments Natalia for what she has done in a short space of time.

We then head to Peter’s half done house, now known as ‘St. Peters’ as a tribute to the suburb, not the builder.

After the break, the judges arrive and they love the beauty of the rooms and the amount of sunlight the house takes advantage of. Brendan says that every detail is perfect.

They love the master bedroom and Brendan is especially astonished with the well concealed ensuite bathroom and private garden.

We get a swift camera run of the house which looks so spectacular.

The backyard gets my vote as the best of the six houses. Brendan tells him to be proud of his work because it is simply beautiful.

The fibro cottage is next and Michael is getting everything ready for the judges. He can’t believe how swift the competition has been, claiming that the competition has been a massive ‘time warp’.

After the break, the judges arrive and again, overflow the house with compliments. They especially love the bedrooms and the fact that the kids from a school down the road gave him a few gifts for some reason.

They think the house is absolutely fantastic and Baz loves the presentation of the front of the house. Michael shows them the frangipani which will be an absolute treat when it blooms.

When looking at the back yard, Brendan cannot believe this house has the smallest budget but knows that all the challenges they won really got them this far.

To the weatherboard house and Mel has mixed emotions about leaving. She wants to see her kids but will miss the times she had with her team and the house. The judges then arrive and inspect her house for the final time.

They love the closeted ensuite and how intricate it is. The shower hides behind a sink unit located on the same island wall! It is magnificent!

The rest of the comments are pretty much the same because despite the somewhat unfinished rooms in the back extension, it looks lovely. She does tell them about the budgetary constraints when it came to finishing the furnishing, saying more went on in the garden than expected. They head out to see the garden and it looks very lovely. Amazing even.

As the judges leave, Mel tells Brendan that time stops now! Umm, yeah that’s not completely correct, Mel!

The judges arrive at Luke’s house which looks amazing and gets my vote for the best extension. They love the space and storage area and the perk of underfloor heating is a bonus. Moving into the extension and that fantastic courtyard, the judge’s expressions don’t do the space justice. We get night shots of the courtyard and coupled with wonderful music, it is a scene fit for a movie; and there’s not many of them found in reality television.

As Luke describes the area, he leaves very abruptly and breaks down. I don’t know if it is a sign of his appreciation of the house or the fact that he’s missing his kids or that it is all just overwhelming the thought of winning; or a combination of all three.

After Baz comforts him; we find out it was because he cannot believe all the work he has put into the house.

This house definitely has to be the best overall so far. Funnily enough; Luke refers to the word ‘I’ rather than ‘we’ when discussing the work put it. So it is easy to see how grateful August was to his team when describing the house.

With that, the contestants head to the warehouse for the results. Brendan debriefs on the episode, telling that each and every house blew the judges away.

But, there can only be one winner for today.

Well, the winner is…Luke. Of course.

Luke finds out that the holiday is to Bali; perfect. Unless he plans to bring his surfboard along…

Brendan tells them that this is the last time they will be together in the warehouse because the only thing left to do now is auction off the houses.

This episode was brilliant. The camera shots were the best I’ve seen in a reality television show ever and unless this show comes back next year, the best I’ll see for a long time. In fact, production overall was fantastic. The lack of product placement was a welcomed feature and the format of the show blew me away with all the stunning work these guys have done. If anything, it was a tad boring at times, but this episode would get any fan into the spirit of renovating.

 

Courtney’s Verdict: 9.9/10