Australian Survivor star Ben explains his mysterious off-camera exit from the show

He quit the show off-camera in scenes that left viewers puzzled this week – now, this Survivor contestant explains what really happened.

Australian Survivor contestant Ben Bylett has explained his mysterious exit from the show, after he abruptly disappeared in scenes that left viewers puzzled this week.

Survivor fans were left wondering what had happened at Tuesday night’s tribal council, when host Jonathan LaPaglia announced that nobody would be voted out because Ben, from the opposing tribe, had “decided to leave the game.”

No further information was offered. Viewers did not see the circumstances surrounding his exit and didn’t hear from Ben himself (it’s not known whether we’ll get more context during the next Survivor episode, set to air on Sunday night).

A Reddit thread devoted to Ben’s exit posited that it must have been due to one of three things: injury, a family emergency, or disqualification from the game.

As speculation raged, the man himself posted a video on Instagram yesterday, explaining that a number of different health problems made him decide to drop out.

He revealed that he had torn a calf muscle during an earlier water-based physical challenge: “It wasn’t shown much on TV, but it was a tricky injury and something I had to battle through,” he explained.

His health worsened after a tribe swap saw him have to contend with a new sleeping shelter – nicknamed the “pig pen.”

Ben’s exit didn’t play out on screen …

...and it was left to JLP to explain that he’d dropped out.

He said that he ended up sleeping in a puddle in the corner of the shelter during a few consecutive rainy nights, and got “really sick.”

Further problems struck during another physical challenge that aired in Tuesday’s episode, where Ben says his calf injury flared up again.

He wasn’t the only one to cop an injury in that particular challenge – contestant PD tore a tendon in his bicep, and needing urgent medical attention before eventually getting the all-clear to return to the show (albeit in a sling).

But for Ben, the “re-tweaked” calf muscle precipitated a swift drop in his condition.

“I couldn’t catch my breath for hours afterwards, and I realised something was actually pretty wrong with me. My heart rate started doing strange things and I couldn’t take a full breath,” he revealed.

Ben (centre, standing) with his Survivor tribemates.

He was forced to quit the show and caught the “next plane home,” where he learned he’d contracted “severe pneumonia” from which it took him several months to recover.

The Sunshine Coast stonemason revealed he lost 13kg during his 24 days on Survivor, and later learned something else that might explain his general ill health during his time in Samoa: “To top it off, it looks like I went on the show with bloody Ross River fever as well,” he said, referring to the mosquito-borne illness that can cause fever, joint pain and fatigue.

“Survivor is no joke. It’s a real challenge and challenging conditions.”

The incident makes Ben the second person this season to exit the game due to health issues: Earlier, Brawns tribe member Zen was forced to drop out only a few days in after he fractured a finger in a challenge.

They both join the growing list of Australian Survivor contestants who’ve had to quit the game, usually due to ill health or family emergencies.

Originally published as Australian Survivor star Ben explains his mysterious off-camera exit from the show