EXCLUSIVE: Shelley Craft shares her thoughts on this year’s cast.

The Block producers have made some major changes this season. Photos: Channel 9

Between Paige and Jesse’s shock exit, Brad and Mimi’s ‘flirting’ scandal, and Adrian Portelli’s bold auction move, it’s fair to say that last year’s season of The Block was chaotic. Following complaints from viewers that the reality show focuses more on drama than renovations, it appears producers have made some positive changes this year.

The new season kicked off on Sunday night with five brand-new teams going head-to-head to build houses from scratch that are identical in layout and size. While the late nights, strict deadlines, and pressure cooker environment typically create division amongst the teams, a production insider tells Yahoo Lifestyle that this year’s contestants became one of the closest casts in the show’s history.

“The season wrapped filming in June, and everyone’s shocked that the teams are still friends,” they reveal. “Usually by now, someone’s been kicked out of the group chat or there are people who aren’t talking, but there’s no bad blood whatsoever. It’s baffling to former contestants because this isn’t normally what happens.

“Any drama that plays out on the show has well and truly been resolved by now. The cast love spending time together, and they recently went out for dinner as a group when they reunited in Daylesford for The Block’s media day. It’s amazing to see.”

Scott Cam has described this year’s season as ‘the happiest Block on earth’. Photo: Channel 9

‘The happiest Block on earth’

Meanwhile, Scott Cam has described this year’s season as “the happiest Block on earth”, and declared at the show’s launch event that this year’s “fantastic” contestants are the best he’s ever seen on the Channel 9 series.

“They’ve been, in my view, the best teams that we’ve ever had on The Block,” he said. “That’s not to say that they’re not a punish at times. It’s not to say that they argue and fight with each other and other teams. It’s not to say that they don’t cause drama and they’re annoying. That’s as good as it gets! It could be a lot worse, let me tell you.”

Shelley Craft also tells Yahoo Lifestyle that although she won’t put one group of contestants above another, she loved getting to know this year’s teams.

“Collectively, as 10 humans, it was a lovely place to come to work every day because of them,” she remarks. “I love all of them, and I thought that they really did bring something special this year. But I think I feel that about every cast and every year. These ones, it’s fresh in mind, and they were delightful.”

 

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Shelley Craft reacts to casting change

This season marks the first time The Block doesn’t feature any contestants from New South Wales, which is particularly interesting as a Sydney-based team has won the last four seasons.

Shelley tells Yahoo Lifestyle that the casting shake-up ultimately doesn’t have any impact on the season, and she’s hopeful that viewers will root for their favourite team regardless of their home state.

“I love the fact that this year, it wasn’t about where you were from, it was about your story, your backstory, and what you were going to bring to the party. So we’ve got the five best teams that auditioned this year on The Block, and I think that’s what counts, not what state you’re from at all,” she shares.

“I mean, people are going to root for their favourites anyway. They might think, ‘I’m a Queenslander, I’m all in for the Queenslanders’. But you’ll find the people that you love and the people that you resonate with, and hopefully, as Aussies, we go, ‘Even if they’re from WA, I’m on their side’.”