It began with a montage. Nine hundred episodes of Australia’s most popular reality renovation show, summarised in mere moments. Cut to the beautifully rugged Phillip Island, where the five teams, still brimming with enthusiasm, arrive at a half-deconstructed site, dust and a flurry of excited squeals mingling in the air. The Block Australia is back in 2024 for its 20th season and — dare we say it — it might be the biggest yet.
When we first met the contestants on Sunday night, Jesse and Paige, Courtney and Grant, Ricky and Haydn, Kylie and Brad, and Kristian and Mimi were full of spark, determination, and hope that the first completed room of their new architecturally designed homes, the main bathroom, would come out on top. But there could be only one winner. Here’s how it all went down.
House 1: Jesse and Paige
Tears and self-doubt crept in quickly for WA couple Jesse and Paige. Between the debacle of Paige’s (denied) floor plan swap and Jesse’s dismay at delivering an unfinished room, it was a baptism of fire to say the very least. And despite Paige’s insistence she would not, under any circumstances, start “on a fail”, if The Block teaches you one thing, it’s that not everything goes to plan.
Unfortunately, that much was abundantly clear to Shaynna, Darren, and Marty as they entered the very first Phillip Island Block home for the very first time. Missing grout and a partial attempt at floor-to-ceiling tiles spoke of a plan far too ambitious for a week-long project. “To have a room unfinished, for me, I believe that there are no excuses,” said Marty. Shaynna agreed that there was money, labour and time to be saved by adjusting expectations and tiling part-way up in the future.
Darren picked up on the “tricky” layout, which felt “a little hectic”. And he’s right, the risk of a banged head while attempting to get into that bath is real! All in all, not the best run off the mark for House 1.
Thankfully, it wasn’t all doom and gloom. “I have to say, I’m loving the materials they’ve used here,” said Shaynna, referring to the brushed chrome tapware, big-form floor tile, textured vanity, ample storage, and underfloor heating — ideal for a Phillip Island winter. Unfortunately, the bathroom’s redeeming features were not enough to bring the couple up to scratch, and they were ranked dead last.
Cash spent: $26,968
Score: 18.5/30
House 2: Courtney and Grant
Prepped and primed with confidence, Courtney and Grant hoped their ‘Moditerranean‘ bathroom would capture the judges’ hearts. And, luckily for the pair, when Darren Palmer steps into your space and says, “Now we’re talking”, you’ve probably hit the mark. But it wasn’t that simple.
Quick to note the “spacious” layout, “incredible materiality”, and smart decision to tile part-way (sorry, Jesse and Paige), it felt like all three judges were on the same page about Courtney and Grant’s neutral and textural bathroom. Until Shaynna demanded more drama.
“I want people to really bring it this year…this isn’t about safety…people want to be wow-ed,” Shaynna said. And she did get more drama, but it came from Marty Fox, who emphatically disagreed. “Think about your buyer,” he said, “they have an aesthetic, Melburnians have a tone and this fits the bill.” A debate ensued about whether ‘Instagramability’ trumped a point of difference. “Sophistication can be personality” argued Marty. “But personality can be sophisticated,” Shaynna threw back.
Self-proclaimed “fence-sitter” Darren both agreed and disagreed with Shaynna and Marty. At this point, Courtney, Grant, and even Scotty were understandably baffled, but what the judges could agree on was that the room was beautifully executed and featured a lot to love. “If this is the tone they’ve set for this house, then I’ve got a lot of belief in these guys,” concluded Marty.
Cash spent: $35,016 (way over budget!)
Score: 28/30
House 3: Ricky and Haydn
Although Ricky and Haydn began the week keen to nurture their first Block ‘baby’ to life, the unexpected arrival of Haydn’s real-life human baby saw him whisked away to the mainland early on in the piece. And just like that, waterproof Wednesday became “water-breaking Wednesday” (Ricky’s words, not ours).
The boys describe their style as “modern coastal, with a touch of Scandinavian”, but with Ricky more-or-less left to build, paint, and style on his own, there was a big question mark over whether he had nailed the very first room reveal for The Block 2024.
Big ticks for the layout and kudos to Ricky for finishing with what Marty felt was a “commendable execution” were had. Shaynna loved the bath (so she should, it cost $12,000), tile choice, and vanity, but, with so many vertical lines and a “mismatched” colour palette, questioned whether some of it was “impact for impact’s sake”, or even “childish”. Ouch.
Darren suggested the boys pick up mood boarding as a weekly habit to avoid choosing materials and patterns that were, simply, “too much”. “You want to be able to appeal to the masses,” said Marty, who, ever the agent, wished the boys had opted for white walls. “You’re raising the eyebrows of the buyer, but why bother?”
All that said, the judges felt that it was a “cracking bathroom” if not “the most memorable”. “I’m really happy for Ricky and Haydn,” said Shaynna. “I think it’s a great start.”
Cash spent: $31,848
Score: 24/30
House 4: Kylie and Brad
Black, black, black, black…and more black, was the inspiration for this bathroom — can you tell? “I think this room is unique just because it’s so far away from what everyone else is doing,” said Kylie. But is that a good thing? Unfortunately for Queenslanders Kylie and Brad, feedback was largely; no.
To begin on a positive note, the room certainly satisfied Shaynna’s desire for drama. “I’m loving the subtlety of the Dekton…I love the feeling of it,” she said. “What I do like in here is the dark palette,” agreed Darren. “If they’re intending to do a black shack, awesome.” And that concludes our positive feedback for the evening, folks.
“It’s grabbed me,” Marty began, “but for all the wrong reasons.” The only redeeming feature of the room is the skylight, apparently, “because when I’m looking up at it, I don’t have to see anything else”. You best believe we physically flinched. However, Marty did make some valid points, calling out the large vanity with only one sink, the herringbone that felt “out of place”, and the fact that this could very well be too polarising for potential buyers.
“If these homes are to be selling for more than double the average sale price on the island, then it needs to appeal to the masses…This is heavy, this is dark. If they continue this theme throughout the rooms, this is going to be possibly the biggest disaster we’ve seen in 20 seasons.”
Now who’s being dramatic?
Cash spent: $27,739
Score: 22/30
House 5: Kristian and Mimi
WINNERS!
With a main bathroom measuring 10 square metres (the biggest on The Block this week), Kristian and Mimi‘s room could have gone one of two ways. Would their style strike the perfect balance between Insta and drama? Could they possibly satisfy Shaynna and Marty’s polar needs where other contestants had failed?
Darren called the space “really successful”, praising the couple’s use of materials, while Shaynna loved the balance of tone and texture. “I actually really love the watery tiles reflecting Phillip Island”, she said, also giving a shout-out to the artwork. Difficult-to-please Marty called it a “proper family bathroom”. Tick, tick, tick, House 5!
Although Darren raised the question of whether the layout chosen was truly the best use of space, and Marty wasn’t too sure about the “tiny shower nook”, reactions were overwhelmingly positive. For what it’s worth, we strongly disagree with Marty’s suggestion of a double shower. In the family bathroom of a holiday house? Creepy.
“You bring ten buyers in here, you’re going to have the majority give it a big tick. This is an incredible standard for week one,” said Marty.
Cash spent: $21,732
Score: 28.5/30
