The Bachelor and The Bachelorette are returning in 2021, centring around Jimmy Nicholson and Brooke Blurton as they each search for love in a pool of ridiculously good-looking singles.
While the game remains somewhat the same — hopefuls will be granted roses each week and compete for the love and affection of the main squeeze as they search for love and a lifelong partnership — but in the year ahead, a few things are set to change. One of which is the Bachelor Mansion.
The Bachelor mansion provides the setting for the whole competition. While the Bachelor and Bachelorette venture off-premises for single and group dates, The Bachelor Mansion is where the real magic happens.
The previous Bachelor Mansion was a $2.3million property situated in Oxford Falls in Northern Sydney. It had a Hamptons vibe and made for a great backdrop to Locky Gilbert, Matt Agnew, Angie Kent and Ali Oetjen’s seasons of the dating show. But with a new decade comes a new mansion.
The 2021 seasons of The Bachelor will now be filmed at a Le Chateau in Dural, NSW. The French country-style mansion sits upon a five-acre estate, has five bedrooms and 12 bathrooms, plus an indoor pool, spa, gym and tennis courts. If it looks familiar, it’s because it’s previously appeared on-screen for Beauty and the Geek.
Essentially, there’s plenty of space to be filled with fairy lights, rose petals, and thousands of candles. POPSUGAR Australia recently caught up with The Bachelor‘s Art Department to find out how they transformed the estate, which sold for $6.3 million in 2013, into the romantic fairytale setting it appears on the show. Here’s what they had to say.
POPSUGAR Australia: Hey team! We’re hoping you can answer this one for the audience, but… Who on earth actually lights all of those candles and how long does it take?!
Art Department: It takes a village but we have a dream team of lighting machines! If we calculated lighting times for all the cocktail parties this season, plus the finale, it would be 20 hours of non-stop candle lighting or 60 hours for one person to do.
PS: That’s a lot of candles. Actually, If you had to guess, how many roses, candles and fairy lights are used every season?
AD: Enough roses to fill the mansion fountain. The strings of fairy lights would take you from the mansion to the middle of Sydney City, and enough candles to see the mansion from space!
PS: How does the new Bachelor mansion differ from the old mansion?
AD: The last mansion had a Hamptons vibe and was one storey, it was great for something different. This new mansion has more of what our Bachelor family has come to expect, large grounds, lots of rooms, beautiful outdoor spaces and of course a big fountain.
PS: What did you use as inspiration for bringing the new space to life?
AD: Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo and Juliet and and Sofia Coppola’s Marie Antoinette!
PS: What are your priorities when styling each room of the house?
AD: To give each space its own luxurious feel and make sure that all surfaces can be wiped clean of fake tan.
PS: Which room is your favourite and why?
AD: The rose room is our favourite. This is where love is really put to the test. It’s not always a happy experience for those who don’t receive roses but it never fails to disappoint.
The Bachelor Australia will premiere Wednesday, 21 July at 7.30pm on 10 and 10 Play.
