The Golden Bachelor premieres today. Can I get a hell yeah?

The rebooted series, hosted by beloved journalist and TV presenter Samantha Armtage, is set to get hearts soaring, as we’re introduced to 61-year-old silver fox Barry ‘Bear’ Myrden and the 20 women vying for his zaddy affections.

Ahead of the big premiere today, we had a juicy chat with Armytage, and we squeezed as much goss out of her as humanly possible.

It turns out that the former Farmer Wants a Wife host had never watched The Golden Bachelor before being approached for the gig.

“When Nine approached me, they said, ‘Have you seen The Golden Bachelor in America?’ and I hadn’t, so I went looking for it,” she said.

“I think America gave this old brand a bit of a shine, and it was a huge success in the States. So, it was sort of a no-brainer for me to agree to host it. I hope that it is as big a success here.”

“No,” she flatly replied.

“This is a new version of that old brand… it’s something that Australian audiences haven’t seen before. It’s really exciting.”

Alrighty then! Moving right along, the million-dollar question is: what can we expect from the big Bachie finale when Bear selects his winner? Sam assures us we won’t be disappointed, but we will be surprised.

“Bear’s finale is spectacular. What I can tell you is that even I was surprised and I was there on set the whole time, so I knew all the intricacies. If I was surprised, viewers of Australia are going to be really surprised,” she teased.

“It is a finale for the ages. I think you’re gonna want to tune in because it’s spectacular.”

As for whether Bear does find long-lasting love, we will have to wait and see.

“I can’t tell you if Bear finds love. You’re gonna have to watch, but… he has great success.” Vague! Keep your secrets, Sammy!

Image: Nine.

Armytage is excited to bring the largely untapped market of over-50s people into the dating space on TV.

“Women and men in their 50s and 60s have not traditionally been seen or heard from on television,” she said.

“This is what I’m most excited about: shining a spotlight on a group of people in an age group that hasn’t traditionally gotten a lot of attention.”

“These are boomers, they are cashed up, they are in their power, they have got the time and the energy… I really enjoyed hanging out with them.”

Sam especially found herself connecting with some of the women’s stories. Armytage recently confirmed she had separated from her husband, Richard Lavendar, in 2024 after four years of marriage.

“These women have all lived these extraordinary lives where they have had things happen to them… enormous grief, enormous joy, they’ve been through the highs and the lows of human emotion,” she said.

“I personally have been through this stuff, too. I get that. It makes for better-rounded humans, and I think it certainly makes for a richer show.”

Armytage found that the women offered her a lot of support.

“It was actually really interesting that they were very nurturing and caring towards me. It was this really lovely dynamic on set where they were looking out for me… that came at a really nice time in my life.”

Image: Nine.

A few of the contestants will especially resonate with viewers.

“Janette was wonderful. She’s so beautiful, she’s so accomplished. I think that people are really gonna love Janette,” she said.

“Shamse is hilarious. I mean, these women are so funny. I was in stitches a lot of the time. Shamse is spectacular. And Laura is amazing, she’s Abbie Chatfield’s mum. She’s a real firecracker — you can see where Abbie comes from.”

Since filming, some tight friendships have been formed between the ladies.

“There are great friendships between the women. I was chatting to Abbie Chatfield the other day and Laura, her mum, had been catching up with other women in the show.”

But don’t worry, Armytage hinted that there could be some drama between the women, too.

“It’s human nature, some days we have good days and other days can be divisive. I mean, it is reality television. You can’t have 20 women in a room and not have a little bit of division from time to time… they’re all very different, and that’s what I love about it.”

As for the man at the centre of all this chaos, Armytage praised Bear for being the perfect pick.

“From the start, we knew he’s a really good man. He lost his wife in the most tragic circumstances,” she said, with Bear losing his first wife to brain cancer.

“It is the most heartbreaking story you will hear. He has spent the last 14 or 15 years raising these three boys. I’ve met two of his three sons, and they’re very decent young men… he has given his whole life to raising his boys.”

Sam disclosed that Bear’s previous attempts at dating didn’t always go down well with his sons.

Image: Nine.

“He had been dating a little bit, but some of the women, he would introduce to his sons, and they’d be like, ‘Dad, no’,” she joked.

Viewers can expect Bear’s sons to play a part in the show. “I can’t give too much away, but you do meet the sons,” she teased.

The host believes that the dynamics between Bear and the contestants will surprise viewers.

“These women are very much in their power, these are not women who are not pushovers — that’s where it probably differs from other reality dating shows — so you will see Bear quite regularly on the back foot,” Sam admitted.

“He’s perhaps a little bit intimidated or overwhelmed. And I think that’s good. I think that’s quite a nice reflection of real life.”

As it goes with making any reality show, there are some not-so-glamorous parts of filming.

“Production obviously takes a lot longer to film [than viewers would expect], there are many takes — it’s a lot slower process,” she said.

“It’s very much filmed at night because the cocktail parties and the rose ceremonies are at night. We had some very late nights on set, it’s not for the faint of heart… one morning I took my microphone off and I think it was like 5am.”

Most of the international versions of The Bachelor are hosted by men, with only a small handful of women fronting the series around the world.

Being at the helm of such a historic show is something that Armytage will cherish.

“I didn’t know how many women had hosted it, so thank you for letting me know,” she told us.

“Isn’t that fantastic? I am so grateful to Channel Nine for putting me in this show, because it worked really well. I think a female host is a really nice touch — it’s really fresh, and very much of the modern era, like this show.”

Ultimately, The Golden Bachelor host wants the audience to embrace Bear, these spectacular women, and their chance at living out a heartwarming love story.

“I want viewers to realise that people over 50 are still vital, productive, beautiful, talented, powerful members of society who are not ready to be put out to pasture,” she said.

“Life is not just for the young — everybody gets a go here. We should celebrate people as they get older. That’s what we at Channel Nine are doing through this show, and I couldn’t be more proud of that.”