The Bachelor 2020: Nicole reveals she ‘cried in the toilet’ on the first night
She won the ‘triple threat’ rose in Wednesday’s premiere episode of The Bachelor, but professional dancer Nicole said she spent part of the night in tears.
While this year’s Bachelor premiere had no shortage of twists and turns, there was one behind-the-scenes drama we all missed.
Professional dancer Nicole, 26 – who scored Wednesday night’s ‘triple threat’ rose earning her three guaranteed dates with Survivor star Locky Gilbert – spent part of the night crying in the toilets.
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In an interview with WHO magazine published on Thursday, Nicole, who had dazzled in costume on the red carpet, said she was convinced she would be sent home by 30-year-old Locky.
“When he gave me the triple threat rose on the first night, I was honestly in disbelief,” she said.
She explained that her doubts surrounding her connection with the Bachelor had her sobbing privately earlier in the night.
“Ten minutes before, I was literally crying in the bathroom thinking that he was going to send me home. Instead, he awarded me the three date rose,” Nicole said.
Locky seemed instantly smitten by Nicole on the red carpet, dazzling with a mini dance lesson during which she leapt into his arms.
During the cocktail party, the two flirted up a storm while perfectly performing the famous lift from Dirty Dancing, with Locky later telling Nicole she made an “amazing” first impression.
“You taught me how to dance,” he said. “I didn’t think I was gonna do that.”
Locky went on to say that he was blown away by her upbeat personality and positive energy.
“Every time I was walking around, you were always the life of the party, and that’s amazing to me,” he said.
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In a twist nobody saw coming during Wednesday’s Bachelor premiere, 23-year-old Queenslander Zoe-Clare claimed she was targeted by a fellow contestant for having red hair.
Furious after being interrupted by Areeba during a one-on-one chat with Locky, Zoe-Clare broke down in tears to the camera, claiming she was being bullied for her complexion.
She said she “felt invisible”.
After speaking to fellow contestants and producers, who had asked how she came to such a conclusion, Zoe-Clare said: “I don’t want to go through this experience being different because of the colour of my goddamn hair, and that sucks. It’s the colour of my complexion.”
Areeba had not been captured on camera making any comments about Zoe’s hair throughout the episode.
“Would Areeba do it to any of the blonde girls, any of the brunette girls? No,” she later said, adding: “You know what, I’m proud of being a ranga, I will be a ranga until the day I die.
“We are more striking than any other human that walks this earth. You don’t have our blue eyes or our green eyes that can literally stop traffic. You sure as sh*t don’t have our hair. The way that people treat men and women with red hair needs to end right now.”
She went on to approach Areeba with a fiery confrontation.
“I just wanna say what you did was really not appropriate and really not okay,” she said, bending down to eye level and waving her hand in Areeba’s face.
Over on Twitter, fans were baffled by the outburst.
When it comes to fighting discrimination, Rosa Parks walked so Zoe-Clare could run #TheBachelorAU pic.twitter.com/NU7Hq6Codp
— Jerome Doraisamy (@JeromeDoraisamy) August 12, 2020
I was called a Red Headed Rat Rooter for half of high school and I still didnât get the memo that rangas are the most victimised people in Australian society, apparently. #TheBachelorAU
— Jenna Guillaumeâ· (@JennaGuillaume) August 12, 2020
Iâm a brown Muslim and I canât even imagine the type of discrimination Zoe-Clare has gone through. #redlivesmatter #rlm #TheBachelorAU pic.twitter.com/viRI4lEUjW
— Imdad (@offical_imdad) August 12, 2020
Seriously can't believe she's upset about being marginalised for being a ranga when she's sitting next to a penguin, notoriously marginalised for being flightless birds #TheBachelorAU
— Kianna 'Ban UEFA from football' Roar (@KiannaRoar) August 12, 2020
The Bachelor continues tonight at 7.30pm on Channel 10.