The Rundown: Swearing makes a comeback; Ant Middleton’s white line fever and a Neighbours plot twist

Someone who landed a stint for a mere handful of weeks on a the faltering soap Neighbours raised eyebrows with this shock move.

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Surely it could not be true … that someone who landed a stint for a mere handful of weeks on a the faltering soap Neighbours would expect the production to throw them a farewell party?

What’s wrong with a bunch of flowers and a thank you on the way out the door?

Sounds like someone might be stuck in the past and isn’t reading the room too well with the large cast and crew already emotional at the prospect of losing their jobs come July.

THE BITCH IS BACK ON AUSSIE TV

The bitch is most definitely back on Australian TV.

And what the f--- is going on with language on local television?

Are there any standards left about offensive words or have we moved completely into a state of anything goes and the bad language police can p--s off?

The peppering of reality shows with spicy language has been going on for years.

SAS: Australia keeps editors busy beeping out Ant Middleton’s full-throttle f-word sprays, while some episodes of Married At First Sight are so full of beeps it sounds at times like a peak-hour traffic jam full of shrill, angry small cars.

Even the sparkly and inoffensive Dancing With The Stars took the trashy route on Sunday.

A high-spirited Sonia Kruger appeared to forget what show she was co-hosting, using the word “bitch” three times in the first 22 minutes of the episode.

“She has got the face of an angel, right, but she will kneecap you in the carpark faster than you can say ‘Tonya Harding’. I’m telling you, she will cut a bitch,” Kruger said when describing Ricki-Lee Coulter.

An uncomfortable David Rodan, giving Kruger a rather marvellous side-eye, tactfully suggested they throw to the judges.

“Let’s get the scores,” he said.

Minutes later Kruger was “bitching” with Deni Hines.

“How is your quest for Dancing making you a skinny bitch going?” she said.

“I did the skinny bitch diet, it was the worst four hours of my life, I hated it.”

The b-word was very popular on Sunday.

On Channel 9, Married At First Sight bride Jessica Seracino was busy calling her TV husband, Daniel Holmes, a “little bitch”.

Over the weekend a Seven News report on protests in Melbourne included an interviewee saying “shit”.

And recently even Channel 10’s sleepy Studio 10 morning show got on-board the blue-language wagon when interviewee Nell Campbell dropped an f-bomb live on air.

“Ladies, I would like to make an announcement to all women in all countries in the world,” she said.

“Stop it. You don’t need to wear follow me home and f--- me shoes, OK!”

An aghast Angela Bishop quickly cut to an ad.

What is going on – or is polite language a thing of the past?

According to Seven, Kruger can mouth off as much as she likes — so long as she is trying to be funny.

“Dancing With The Stars: All Stars is classified PG and the mild, infrequent language used in a comedic context is accommodated within the PG classification,” Seven said in a statement.

REALITY STAR MOANS ABOUT BEING ON TV

Another week and we have yet another reality contestant having a whinge about reality TV.

After having a sulky conversation with his TV bride, Victorian beautician Ella Ding, Mitch Eynaud had a mini meltdown over … being filmed on Monday night’s episode.

Contestants sign up for this reality show to get hitched to a stranger and then be filmed living together and talking about their make-ups and bust-ups and then being schooled by the MAFS experts.

“The experiment, it is so toxic. You can’t even go get a lunch and talk about it off camera,” Eynaud said.

“It is stupid, man.

Reality groom Mitch seemed shocked to realise he was on TV.

“Dude this is f---ed. There are f---ing cameras outside (his apartment), it is stupid man.

“All this, all this, cameras in my face is not what I like, it is rubbish, it is toxic, I got cameras following me walking out of my room.

“It seems ridiculous, why are you guys filming me?”

He didn’t seem keen on the show’s commitment ceremonies either.

“I don’t want to get caught up in all this TV bullshit drama,” he said.

“I don’t want to talk to these other 18 dickheads sitting on the couch about me.

“This experiment is brutal, it is toxic.

“I don’t want to embrace it, I don’t want to have to go through that again. I just want to go home now.”

Next up, expect the usual complaints from other failed contestants that they got a bad edit or the experts don’t know what they are doing.

ANT MIDDLETON’S WHITE LINE FEVER

Ant Middleton’s explosive eruptions where he tears strips off contestants on SAS: Australia can be explained by “white line fever” according to show survivor Barry Hall.

The former AFL star revealed there were two distinct Middletons – the one who appeared on the course and a warmer, friendlier version who existed outside of the show.

“He is very intense, he has very much got the white line fever,” Hall said.

Takes one to know one: Barry Hall says SAS Australia’s Ant Middleton had white line fever.

Hall said a warmer, friendlier version of Middleton exists outside the show.

“If you are on his course, he is on, he is there to help you, he is there to get you through it, but he is there, also, to test you because he needs to trust you as a teammate.

“He takes things very, very seriously and the way he was taught coming through, he holds himself accountable to teach that way otherwise he’s not doing his job.

“As soon as the show finished we went outside and had a beer, (he was) totally, totally, totally different, having a laugh, slapping you on the back. I respect that, in that he can put his game face on and cares enough about the course that he needs to run it how he was taught.”

Hall said the key to the show was not to take the screaming and aggression personally.

“If you do a task and you do it well, they don’t say anything. That means you have done it really well,” he said.

“They are not going to praise you too much because they are trying to break you down and find the real you.

“They are not going to give you a cigarette or a little bit of pizza out the back, that is not how it is run.

“The reward for this one is if they don’t say anything to you.”