The Bachelorette’s Ryan Clears the Air About the Drama Embroiling Him and Jamie-Lee Dayz

On Thursday night (November 4), The Bachelorette faced the biggest scandal of the season. One of the contestants, Kurt, told Brooke that Ryan was attracted to Jamie-Lee Dayz, a clear front runner on the show. While it all sounds very confusing, it seemed to raise a few eyebrows and unfortunately for Ryan, he was booted from the competition.

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POPSUGAR Australia spoke to the man himself to find out his side of the story, and to clear up any misconceptions viewers might have about the entire situation.

POPSUGAR Australia: Tell us, what made you apply for The Bachelorette?

Ryan Carmichael: Well funny enough, my best mate applied for me without me knowing, then I got the call from Channel 10. I was at work and I was a bit busy so I said: “I gotta call you back”. Then I was just thinking about it, and thought, “Well, this is a big chance at love so why not take it?”

PS: Did it come as a shock when you found out your friend applied on your behalf?

RC: A little bit, but he’s a cheeky character so I definitely knew it was him straight away.

PS: I have to ask, do you have feelings for Jamie-Lee?

RC: No, I do not have feelings for Jamie-Lee. I never have.

PS: How did it feel watching the episode back last night, and seeing yourself in the middle of a scandal?

RC: It was a bit frustrating how that all came about. We were quite close, but that’s all it was, it was a platonic friendship. I think Kurt misread the situation. 

PS: Was it hard for you to know that there were rumours circulating about you in the mansion?

RC: There’s always going to be rumours in the mansion, you don’t know what to expect in there. It did take me by surprise, it’s disappointing that it came to light but there aren’t any facts behind it.

PS: Do you have any regrets about your time on the show? Would you do anything differently?

RC: No I feel like I was myself, with what you can see. I was a bit ruthless, I put myself out there, I butted into a lot of chats at cocktail parties, I really put myself out there. Brooke told me she loved how competitive I was. It was just unfortunate that we couldn’t have a single date and see where that connection could go.

PS: Who do you think will be the last person standing?

RC: From what I have seen, Brooke was very drawn — they were like magnets — Brooke and Darvid. They were very comfortable around each other, I saw it quite early. I believe he may be the one.

PS: Finally, what’s up next for you?

RC: Just back to normal life. Working, spending time with friends and family. Doing what I love for now and we’ll see what happens.