Gosh you’re really trolling on a lot of stuff at the moment aren’t you? 
Why shouldn’t they say after the Olympics, it’s partly why the Olympic rights were bought? Springboard your programming off it lol
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Well… We only get this opportunity once every 4 years (3 in this case)! But I do so, mostly anyway, tongue-in-cheek 
In all seriousness, Nine are doing a fine job, it’s only the very start and a lot has happened, great to have the Olympic Games back on, everyone gets around it. Go Aussies.
Get ready to celebrate two decades of design, drama, and dazzling renovations when The Block returns for an incredible 20th season, premiering after the Olympics on Channel 9 and 9Now.
Australia’s favourite home renovation show is heading to the stunning coastal location of Phillip Island, a cruisy two-hour drive from Melbourne and home to the world famous Australian MotoGP and Penguin Parade.
In the new season of The Block, five couples from around Australia make the move to Phillip Island to build a new home that could change their lives forever come auction day.
The Blockheads will renovate five luxury family holiday homes – once again designed by longtime Block architect Julian Brenchley – from an abandoned resort just a few minutes’ drive from the town of Cowes
Host Scott Cam is back for an incredible 18th season and will be joined by trusty co-host Shelley Craft for her 17th season on the show.
This year brings some big changes on the show. Keith Schleiger steps down from his longtime role as Foreman as he was unable to move to Phillip Island fulltime, so his assistant, Dan Reilly, will take on the role as sole Foreman.
Veteran judge Neale Whitaker has also handed the baton on, to real estate director Marty Fox. Marty will join Shaynna Blaze and Darren Palmer to judge the spectacular rooms with the brief of creating a perfect holiday home.
However, Block fans will be glad to hear that both Keith and Neale will be making special guest appearances this season.
The Block couples who will start the renovations on Phillip Island are:
- Carpenter Jesse (29) and claims specialist Paige (27) – engaged couple from WA
- Electrician Kristian (31) and restaurant manager Mimi (28) – newlyweds from SA
- Plumber Ricky (34) and IT worker Haydn (37) – best mates from VIC
- Events account director and furniture designer Courtney (32) and landscape business development manager Grant (29) – married couple from NSW
- Hairdresser and business owner Kylie (37) and electrician and plumber Brad (32) – married parents from QLD
Season 20 of The Block will also be celebrated with a number of fan favourites returning to the show to lend a helping hand for this monster build. Plus, as this season builds to the auction, a select group of Allstars will be helping this year’s Blockheads to create something never seen on the Block before.
The returning Allstar Blockheads include:
Steph and Gian (2023), Eliza and Liberty (2023), Jimmy and Tam (2020), Alisa and Lysandra (2013, 2014), Ronnie and Georgia (2020, 2021), Michael and Carlene (2014), Kyal and Kara (2014), Tom and Sarah-Jane (2022), Omar and Oz (2022), Dale and Sophie (2012), and Andy and Deb (2019).
The picturesque backdrop of Phillip Island is the perfect location to celebrate the 20th season of the ratings juggernaut created by Julian Cress and David Barbour. They have plans to celebrate everything Phillip Island has to offer and show it off to Australia and the world.
As well as the incredible holiday houses being built, this season is no exception to Block drama.
The first series of The Block premiered in 2003 from the Sydney suburb of Bondi and was an immediate ratings smash. Twenty seasons later, it is entrenched as a cultural phenomenon, as well as one of the most successful shows in Australian television history.
The first series of The Block premiered in 2003 from the Sydney suburb of Bondi and was an immediate ratings smash. Twenty seasons later, it is entrenched as a cultural phenomenon, as well as one of the most successful shows in Australian television history.
The Block has seen:
- Over 900 episodes created
- More than $34,000,000 in prizemoney won
- 176 Blockheads on the show
- 98 homes renovated
- 200 bathrooms built
- 98 kitchens built
- Broadcasts in 170 territories around the world
PHILLIP ISLAND PROFILE
The median price for a four-bedroom home in Cowes on Phillip Island is $805,000, according to Domain.
The permanent population of Phillip Island is 13,799 according to the last census of the Australian Bureau of Statistics. That grows to the tens of thousands during peak holiday time.
The most famous former Phillip Island locals are Chris and Liam Hemsworth, and the most famous tourist attraction on the island – the Phillip Island Nature Park – is globally known for the hundreds of penguins that visit every night just after sunset.
Phillip Island is also home to the famous Australian MotoGP which takes place over three days. Plus, the Island is known as a surfing hotspot, attracting surfers from all over Australia and the world.
Other tourist attractions include the famous koalas and stunning beaches that make Phillip Island such a wonderful and popular holiday destination in both winter and summer . According to tourism body Destination Phillip Island, there are approximately one million people who take a day trip to the Island from around Victoria every year.
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I cant wait for Adrian Lambo guy to buy them all for his legit raffles
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So looks like they are still running with the couple who left. I guess 4 weeks is pretty intense with filming, no chance one can edit that out. Perhaps a week they might get away with it.
Needless to say, they can build that into the show and ramp the drama up a bit. Looks like the new couple is still under wraps.
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IT’S TIME TO RELOCATE O PHILLIP ISLAND
BLOCK ISLAND PREMIERES MONDAY, AUGUST 12, AT 7.30PM ON CHANNEL 9 AND 9NOW
The Block , Australia’s favourite renovation show, celebrates 20 seasons this year in picturesque Phillip Island and premieres on Monday, August 12, at 7.30pm on Channel 9 and 9Now.
Five fresh duos will walk into an abandoned resort and transform it into five luxury family holiday homes, once again designed by longtime Block architect Julian Brenchley.
For the first time in Block history, one of our teams will grow in size when Haydn - one half of our Melbourne team - welcomes a beautiful baby girl in the first week of filming. Plus, will the pressure of this exacting build become too much for some?
The postcard backdrop of Phillip Island is the perfect location to celebrate this milestone season, and The Block will be showcasing all the Island has to offer, including the famous Penguin Parade, local attractions and the bustling retail sector.
Host Scott Cam is back for a remarkable 18th season and he’ll be joined by co-host Shelley Craft in her 17th season with The Block.
Plus, Dan Reilly now takes on the role as sole foreman, and real estate director Marty Fox joins Shaynna Blaze and Darren Palmer for the all-important weekly room judging. Longtime foreman Keith Schleiger and veteran judge Neale Whitaker are stepping back from their duties this season, but both will be making special guest appearances during the show.
The Block teams relocating to Phillip Island are:
- Carpenter Jesse (29) and claims specialist Paige (27) – engaged couple from WA
- Electrician Kristian (31) and restaurant manager Mimi (28) – newlyweds from SA
- Plumber Ricky (34) and IT worker Haydn (37) – best mates from VIC
- Events account director and furniture designer Courtney (32) and landscape business development manager Grant (29) – married couple from NSW
- Hairdresser and business owner Kylie (37) and electrician and plumber Brad (32) – married parents from QLD
The 20th season of The Block will also be celebrated with a number of fan favourites returning to lend a helping hand for this monster build. And as this season builds to the nailbiting auction-day, a select group of Allstars will be helping these Blockheads to create something never seen on the Block before.
The returning Allstar Blockheads include:
Steph and Gian (2023), Eliza and Liberty (2023), Jimmy and Tam (2020), Alisa and Lysandra (2013, 2014), Ronnie and Georgia (2020, 2021), Michael and Carlene (2014), Kyal and Kara (2014), Tom and Sarah-Jane (2022), Omar and Oz (2022), Dale and Sophie (2012) and Andy and Deb (2019).
The Block premieres after the Olympic Games on Monday, August 12, at 7.30pm on Channel 9 and 9Now.
“We didn’t make it through the whole series with all five teams. We had to replace one of them along the way, which was a very dramatic moment. We’ve had a team leave previously in the show in Gisborne, but that was only after a couple of days.
“This time, we have a team, deciding to depart the show, a fair way in to the renovation, and then have another teamhave to come in and take over that build when quite a few rooms had already been revealed, That’s never happened before.
“It was a very difficult decision for them to come to, but there was a very strong reason why they decided to do it and very dramatic and will be unfolding in the coming weeks.”
I had a chat with Shelley ahead of the premiere:
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Product placement galore in tonight’s premiere?
Straight into it with no house decider challenge is a plus in my books. The first week on past seasons were always my least favourite.
Also surprising to see JB HI FI as a sponsor, they’re not big in the advertising game.
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Also back in 2004 they had a couple leave two weeks into the show when it came out that one of them had previously served a drug-related jail sentence.
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EPISODE 2: TUESDAY, 13 AUGUST
Our contestants spend another night camping on The Block, their new reality as they continue working on their first room - a main bathroom.
Kristian and Mimi in House No.1 are by far the best placed early on, and easily make the famous waterproof Wednesday while the other teams will struggle.
Kylie and Brad are in all sorts of pain as they struggle with their layout after Kylie is adamant she won’t change a thing when it comes to her choices for the bathroom.
Ricky and Haydn spend lots of money early on, picking a $12,000 bath which they hope will give them the winning edge.
The unraveling of Jesse from Perth stars as he struggles with the pressures of The Block.
He is so out of his comfort zone and he isn’t coping at all as things go wrong.
In tears, he heads to his tent and calls his mother in Perth to get some reassurance and feels better after letting it all out.
In House No.4, a more happy drama is taking place. Haydn gets a call from his wife Chelsea who is over eight months pregnant. She has gone into early labor.
The couple have been trying for a decade to have a baby and after many attempts at IVF they fell pregnant naturally last year.
Scott comes to the rescue and charters a helicopter for Haydn and he makes it just in time to the hospital and baby Matilda is born.
Back at The Block, Scott reveals a huge prize for week one. As well as the usual $10,000 contestants will take home a $30,000 Wolf BBQ from E&S plus $100,000 worth of furniture from Cammerich.
With four days to go to the bathroom reveal, our contestants continue on with the build.
They all have consults with Kinsman to pick all their wardrobes for the houses and there is more drama for Jesse and Paige.
Paige is determined to change the plans of The Block’s architect Julian Brenchley, flipping the location of the main bedroom from downstairs to upstairs.
This will hold back her consultation with Kinsman, and things turn pear-shaped as Julian Brenchley makes a surprise appearance in the McCafe as Paige is trying to explain her changes.
She has a meltdown and feels disrespected, from both Julian and Kinsman and storms off. She is fuming.
Her fiance Jesse is left to pick up the pieces and try and pick the wardrobe choices with the Kinsman representative.
They couple also revert back to the original plans that Julian picked for House No.1 as it got all too hard.
Thoughts on this crop of contestants? Paige and Jesse frontrunners for the villains of the season.
I know a couple departs after a couple of room reveals, do we know yet who they are?
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Two episodes in and Paige and Jesse are already having problems. I know reality shows can be highly contrived but to have Paige on the second episode arguing with everyone about her plan to split a large room into two tiny 2.6m bedrooms is ridiculous. Surely no-one is that stupid.
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I think Julian’s staunch argument was a bit contrived to mess with the contestants for TV. Especially when over the last few seasons the judges criticised couples for not changing the floor plans.
If he was truly concerned he should have mentioned the tiny rooms, not just the location of the master.
EPISODE 3: WEDNEDSAY, 14 AUGUST
With just three days until the bathroom reveal, only Kristian and Mimi have their waterproofing signed off and are forging ahead.
The Adelaide couple however are having trouble with their tiler, who is very slow as they aim to finish first this week.
More trouble for Jesse and Paige, their waterproofing needs to be done as it isn’t up to scratch, sending Jesse scrambling to find a local waterproofer.
Shelley Craft arrives at The Block for the first time and meets all the contestants as she and Scott walk around to check on progress.
Ricky in particular is very happy to meet Shelley, as he continues the first week on The Block solo as Haydn is in Melbourne with his wife Chelsea and newborn Matilda.
Ricky also has to style the bathroom himself, and heads to Cowes to pick up some items.
Jesse and Paige have another issue, there was a communication problem between Jesse and their glazier, and their custom shower screen wasn’t ordered.
This sets them back and they have to settle with a shower screen that isn’t tall enough or compliant. They consider not finishing as it’s all becoming a bit too much.
Courtney and Grant in House No.2 are having their first drama. Their builders get a strike from Foreman Dan, after not following rules when it comes to installing their shower screen.
Grant isn’t happy and he calls a meeting to thrash things out with the builders, after a few mistakes in week one on The Block.
There could be drama ahead for Courtney and Grant and their builders and the relationship hasn’t started well.
EPISODE 4: SUNDAY, AUGUST 18
The competition is heating up between our five couples as the first “tool’s down” by Scott Camm is called for bathroom week. Phillip Island is in the midst of an unusual late heatwave, with scorching 37 degree temperatures on the Saturday before room reveal.
Our contestants all have very different styles for their bathrooms, including Kylie in Brad in house No.4 who have gone for a black theme.
Courtney and Grant in house No.2 have had issues with their builder all week and are devastated after a mix up means they can’t get their venetian plastering across the line. Grant isn’t happy, and he makes his feelings known.
Jesse and Paige in House No.1 have had what they describe as an “overwhelming” week, and early on Sunday morning around 3am they realise they won’t finish. They love what they have delivered, but are devastated at not completing a finished bathroom with some of the tiling not completed.
Haydn arrives back from The Block after a few days away with his wife Chelsea who gave birth to their first child Matilda. It’s an emotional return, and Scotty gets him to call the first “tool’s down” for The Block on Phillip Island.
Our judges Shaynna Blaze, Darren Palmer and Marty Fox arrive on Phillip Island for their first judging, and it becomes apparent early on that Shaynna and Marty are set to clash this year.
Jesse and Paige House No.1 spent $26,109
The judges loved the feeling of the room walking into the space but soon noticed it was unfinished. Marty said it’s no excuse for Jesse not to finish, as he is a carpenter. Shaynna loved Paige’s choices including the vanity, tiles and bathroom. If it was finished, it would have been a great room.
Courtney and Grant House No.2 spent $29,706
There was lots of love for Courtney and Grant’s bathroom. The judges acknowledged for the very first week it’s an amazing effort. They loved the choices and the styling. Shaynna wanted more drama but Marty disagreed strongly. They went on to argue. Marty said this bathroom could work in Albert Park or Middle Park, which will appeal to the future buyer of a Phillip Island holiday home. Shaynna disagreed, she wants something different.
Ricky and Haydn House No.3 spent $31,848
A good effort but not perfect was the theme of the day for Ricky and Haydn and the judges. Their biggest issue was there were too many colours and too much going on in the bathroom. The colour palette just didn’t work. But a good start.
Kylie and Brad House No.4 spent $25,175
Kylie and Brad House No.4 spent $25,175The most controversial bathroom and the only all black bathroom on The Block. Shaynna thought it was a bold move, but Marty thought it was awful. Darren was somewhere in the middle. Marty went as far to say it’s a disaster and if they continue down this route they could make one of the worst houses in the history of The Block. Kylie was in tears after the cutting comments from Marty.
Kristian and Mimi House No.5 spent $21,732
There were all smiles as the judges marveled at the biggest bathroom presented on The Block this week. The layout, colour choices and the fitout all brought joy to the judges. Marty thinks this bathroom will add a huge amount of value to House No.5 come auction time.
The results are in, and Kristian and Mimi take out the very first win on The Block on Phillip Island by half a point.
SCORES:
Darren Palmer:
Jesse & Paige 6 ½
Courtney & Grant 9 ½
Ricky & Haydn 9
Kylie & Brad 8
Kristian & Mimi 9 ½
Marty Fox:
Jesse & Paige 6
Courtney & Grant 9 ½
Ricky & Haydn 7 ½
Kylie & Brad 6
Kristian & Mimi 9 ½
Shaynna Blaze:
Jesse & Paige 6
Courtney & Grant 9
Ricky & Haydn 7 ½
Kylie & Brad 8
Kristian & Mimi 9 ½
TOTALS:
Jesse & Paige 18 ½
Courtney & Grant 28
Ricky & Haydn 24
Kylie & Brad 22
Kristian & Mimi 28 ½
EPISODE 5: MONDAY, AUGUST 19
Kristian and Mimi are on cloud nine after taking out the first win on The Block in Phillip Island, with their incredible bathroom.
On the other hand Courtney and Grant wake up flat after losing by half a point and Courtney wants to stay at a hotel as she is over camping.
The Domain Open For Inspections take place and all the contestants are supportive of each other, and the common feeling is Kylie and Brad didn’t deserve the negative feedback of their bathroom, especially from judge Marty Fox.
The contestants find out they are building a guest bedroom this week and get busy planning, as there are no trades on site because of a public holiday in Melbourne. They all go shopping as couples as well as Kinsman kitchen consults, other than Jessie and Paige, with Paige shopping solo.
This really upsets Paige and talking to herself in the Ford car, she explains she has had enough of Jesse not supporting her.
As part of winning the bathroom, Kristian and Mimi head to Melbourne for a special surprise winners dinner. They arrive at Charming Street in Hampton, to be greeted by last year’s winners Steph and Gian. They spend the night with them getting some invaluable advice on how to do well on The Block.
The next day Kristian and Mimi clash at their Kinsman kitchen consult and Mimi ends up crying after he questions her choices.
It’s made no better by when they arrive back on site, and it’s revealed Kristian forged Foreman Dan’s signature on a demolition permit which is wrong on many levels.
He gets told off by Dan and must sit out an hour the next day in the McCafe with no building.
Mimi is annoyed at him as she had no idea what Kristian did and is angry at him for keeping it to himself and breaking the rules.