It was all about reality drama last night as Kylie’s abrupt departure from The Block set sent a shock wave through the building site and did the numbers for Nine with a total TV national reach of 2,171,000 and a national average of 1,248,000.
In unprecedented scenes, Kylie abandoned production and seemingly flew home to Cairns after spotting her husband, Brad, flirting with a fellow contestant.
The controversy began when fellow contestant Mimi, who is competing on the show alongside her husband Kristian, visited Brad and Kylie’s house on Saturday evening with a bottle of wine.
Mimi and Brad shared a drink, and, to Brad’s own admission, it crossed a line.
“I said some pretty inappropriate comments. I was flirting with Mimi … Kylie overheard them, and understandably, she’s quite upset,” he explained.
In an emotional phone call, Kylie vented about what had happened to her mother.
“What, he’s bitching about you to other people? Well, that’s happened before, and it’ll continue to happen,” her mum told her.
“Plus flirting, plus talking really inappropriately. How many f**king chances have I given him? Time after time,” said Kylie. “I actually feel disgusted. How little I mean to him is … really sad,” she said.
Brad later found his Kylie’s car abandoned, with only nail scissors in the front seat, indicating that she had caught a flight home.
Sat in the gutter, he found a message recorded by Kylie on her Block-issued phone.
“Alright, so I’m saying goodbye. I can’t be on national television having my marriage breaking down. So I’m going home, and I can’t say I’ll be returning,” she announced. “You can talk to Brad about the details, but unfortunately, I can’t do it anymore. Thank you for the opportunity and I’m sorry I can’t stay until the end, I’m just not strong enough anymore.”
The fallout that is sure to follow will undoubtedly do the numbers for Nine over the next few days and weeks to come.
