The Rundown: Channel 10 eyes Dani Laidley for jungle escape and The Block copycat controversy

Shaynna Blaze and Block favourites Tom and Sarah-Jane are at loggerheads over the interior design “inspiration” for one of their rooms.

A new controversy has engulfed The Block with Shaynna Blaze calling out Melburnians Tom Calleja and Sarah-Jane Wilson for copying the work of professional interior designer for the kids bedroom in their Gisborne South home.

The designs are incredibly similar and sparked heated debate online about just how much inspiration Wilson had taken for the room and whether she was cheating.

Blaze was far from happy at the replica room, taking to Instagram to call out Wilson and acknowledge the original work.

“We all take inspiration when we’re designing, but you have to change the source of that inspiration a minimum 30% to be able to say it’s your design,” Blaze wrote on Instagram.

“Since judging Sarah-Jane’s nursery, we have learned that the design was taken from amazing Victorian designer Kate Walker.

The nursery design by interior designer Kate Walker.

The Block ‘copycat’ room by Tom and Sarah-Jane.

“The unfortunate reality is that it’s not possible for us to monitor every design that’s created and posted online. We could tell at the time of judging that the design execution of this room was next level. Now we understand why!

“I’ve had a conversation with Kate about the situation today, and she has been very understanding.”

Wilson jumped on social media to quell the uproar admitting she did copy Walker’s design but argued she had flagged her intention to replicate it days earlier on Instagram.

“People seem to be upset that I copied @katewalker_design but I’m not really sure why,” she posted.

“I posted over 5 days ago that I used her design as inspiration and that I wanted to replicate it. I am not a designer trying to rip off another designer’s work. I am a social worker who is building a house on a TV show and wanted that amazing room in the home.

“I could have easily designed my own room/concept like I did the rest of the home, but I didn’t want to. I wanted that exact look and that’s OK. As I’m not a designer I was unaware of a 30% rule.

“I’m not ashamed or embarrassed of what I did. I have credited Kate and I never once on the show claimed it was my design. Many people throughout the week saw the photo of Kate’s design I was working off and no one ever said anything to me.”

Dani Laidley reality TV hot property

Former North Melbourne premiership player and coach Danielle Laidley is in the sights of reality TV casting bosses.

Laidley, whose recently released memoir, Don’t Look Away, has been a publishing hit could have the pick of reality shows such is the interest in her incredible story.

She is understood to have been sounded out by Channel 10’s I’m A Celebrity … Get Me Out Of Here.

The show is actively casting for stars to be part of the new season, which will film in South Africa around Easter.

It is too early in the process for any deals to have been completed, but there is no doubt there have been plenty of calls and emails to high profile celebrities to gauge interest in being part of the show. The show, hosted by Julia Morris and Chris Brown, has proved to be a career boost for many of the campmates, as its format allows viewers to get to know personalities and vulnerabilities of the participants.

Over the years 10 has provided leeway to certain contestants. Cricketing great Shane Warne famously did a deal that saw him allowed to smoke and have his hair redone by Advanced Hair every three weeks.

Other campmates such as Anthony Callea and Brendan Fevola were also allowed to smoke while on the show, but never on camera

Love boat hits an iceberg

The “Bogan Titanic” has been bumped. Channel 10 has wasted no time in moving The Real Love Boat to a later timeslot given the soggy ratings for its first two episodes.

The show drew just 215,000 overnight metro viewers for its premiere last Wednesday and sank to a dismal 174,000 overnight metro viewers last Thursday.

The Real Love Boat has been booted to a later timeslot after sinking ratings.

It will now be seen at 8.30pm Wednesday and Thursday.

Ten is trying to remain upbeat about the love seeking series.

“We believe in new formats at Paramount and the new timeslot will give the show an even better shot. We look forward to more fun, drama and romance on the high seas,” the network said in a statement.

It turns out Ed Kavalee’s comment on Have You Been Paying Attention that the show would soon be moved to a later timeslot wasn’t a joke, but rather an ominous prediction.

On the hunt in Melbourne

Ten’s Upfront presentation in Sydney kicked off with a very clever and funny parody of the hit reality series Hunted with the network’s personalities playing fugitives on the run.

Getting a big laugh was a clip of a couple of 10 stars running past Channel 7 in Melbourne’s Docklands and dropping the cheeky aside, “Isn’t this where all old MasterChef judges try to hide?”

Later in the event, which is hosted each year to let advertisers, sponsors and media know that the network has up its sleeve for the coming year, one of the presenters joked the wilderness reality show The Bridge “will take a look at celebrity nose jobs”.

Hunted will hit the streets of Melbourne again for season 2.

On Hunted, the hit show is staying in Melbourne for its second season with the ‘Hunters’ promising to have a team of “intellectual assassins” ready to track down the show’s ‘fugitives.’

Hunted was a big winner for 10 in 2022.

The show is expected to start filming season two in January/February next year and while the Fugitives will be smarter at playing the game in the new season, the Hunters are sharper and hungrier than ever.

“We have got a few tricks up our sleeve we haven’t even started yet,” said the show’s “chief”, Dr David Craig.

“If you watch season two you will see some things you will never have seen before. I have a room of intellectual assassins and I have some good people in the field who can track anyone down so look out.”

Quip of the week

Nice quip from Sam Pang on Monday night’s episode of Have You Been Paying Attention. The question: ‘King Charles’s nickname for Meghan Markle has been revealed, what did he call her?’, was put to the panel by Tom Gleisner.

Pang’s answer: “Yoko”.

I’ll leave it at that.