Viewers horrified by Block breakdown: ‘Most uncomfortable thing I’ve seen on TV’

The reality TV of The Block got a little too real last night, as viewers reacted in horror as one contestant unravelled on camera.

The Block contestant Kylie’s mounting distress over her marriage and her time on the show came to a head in brutal scenes on Sunday’s episode.

Across an increasingly hard-to-watch 90 minutes, Kylie booted her team of trades from her house before the final reveal of the season, thenrailed against host Scott Cam as he relayed the judges’ less than stellar feedback, telling him to “wrap it up” and muttering that she “f**king hates” him.

And in perhaps the most dramatic scenes of the season thus far, Kylie then fled The Block entirely, threatening the show’s crew as she sprinted off into the night barefoot and crying.

It took husband Brad and two members of production to track her down on the side of a dark country road and bring her back on site for her own safety.

She would only return for the night with one caveat: She’s done with The Block and insists she doesn’t even want to return for the auction, set to take place this Saturday ahead of Sunday’s finale.

Kylie curses out Scott Cam...

...and flees into the night barefoot.

They were extraordinary scenes, and many fans of the show voiced their concerns over watching a contestant unravel so publicly.

“I feel bad … she’s clearly having a breakdown on TV,” one viewer tweeted.

“I think I might be the only one who feels sorry for Kylie … being forced to go back on the show when her marriage issues haven’t been resolved,” wrote another, referring to the controversy that seemed to spark this latest crisis, when Kylie caught her husband flirting with fellow contestant Mimi and momentarily left the show.

Over on The Block’s Instagram account, a post about Kylie and Brad’s front yard reveal has amassed almost 700 comments, far more than all the other contestants’ combined (spoiler: Nobody’s talking about their front yard).

Amid the many, many comments calling Kylie out for her behaviour are some from viewers expressing their concerns for someone so visibly suffering.

“I just see so much pain coming from her and she doesn’t know how to manage it,” wrote one viewer.

Another fan of the show called the episode “honestly one of the most uncomfortable things I’ve ever seen on TV.”

Scott Cam didn’t take too kindly at being told to “wrap it up.”

Another said that “for all the comments having a go at Kylie … the behaviour we’re seeing is a classic trauma response.”

Others asked what sort of mental health support Kylie had access to during filming and beyond. Nine had this to say today in a statement provided to news.com.au:

“Nine and Cavalier Television takes its obligations in respect to the health and wellbeing of the participants of this program extremely seriously. Nine has a service for all participants should they like or need individual and confidential psychological support. This service gives participants access to clinicians who have been specifically engaged to support those involved in the program in relation to their experiences. This service is available to all participants during filming, broadcast and once the program has ended for as long as they need it, it does not end.”

Contestants’ mental health came into focus earlier on in the season when Perth couple Jesse and Paige dramatically quit the show five weeks in, amid similar circumstances: Escalating tension that appeared to be pushing their relationship to breaking point.

Producers intervened when yet another late-night argument between the pair turned nasty, and told them things needed to change.

Stepping in to diffuse the situation, a producer could be heard asking Paige if she’d taken advantage of the counselling services available to contestants.

“You don’t have to voice all of your stuff just to Jesse. We need to get some other people in to talk to you, where you guys need to make a big decision,” he told the couple.

After discussion with a health professional, Jesse and Paige made the decision to leave the show, with two new contestants stepping in to finish their build.

A tearful Jesse says goodbye to the other contestants.

Jesse and Paige quit in week five.

“It was a duty of care moment,” Cam later said of the producer stepping in.

“We’ve always said we’re not doing anything important here, we’re just renovating. Health, wellbeing, happiness, always comes first on The Block. We always make sure contestants’ wellbeing is number one.”

Cam said that when it became clear how much Jesse and Paige were struggling, “we got professional help and had extensive chats. They made the decision themselves – we didn’t force them out. They made the decision they wanted to go home. We followed it up with professional care in their home state for as long as they needed it.”

But Cam also gave a blunt answer when asked by news.com.au in early August how he thought contestants had changed in his time hosting The Block.

At that point the season had yet to premiere on television, but rumours were already circulating that viewers would witness multiple walkouts.

“The contestants are less resilient than they were 20 years ago, 15 years ago,” Cam told news.com.au on location at Phillip Island.

“There’s more expectation of it getting easier, but it’s not. It gets harder,” he said.

“And people aren’t ready for how hard it is.”

One revealing on-camera confession during Sunday’s episode perhaps gave some insight into why Kylie might have had such a tough time this season: “Brad and I came on The Block for a holiday. We’re always working, always being parents,” she said.

She also revealed that she and her husband keep their finances separate, and while his business is “very successful”, she lives pay cheque to pay cheque and was eager to make some money out of The Block.

The Block’s EP: Fans love drama

The Block co-creator Julian Cress said in the past that despite viewer complaints, Block drama rates. Picture: Supplied

It’s a complaint viewers have made about the show time and time again over the years: The Block focuses too much on drama and not enough on renovations. We tune in to see home renos, some fans protest, not cheating scandals, marriage breakdowns and ugly fights between contestants.

But The Block executive producer shot that down in a 2021 interview with Block winners Mitch and Mark on their podcast Reality Reno.

“It’s bulls**t. Translated, it’s ‘I don’t want to watch this big fight – I want to watch paint dry’. It’s just not real, and the ratings reflect that,” he said.

He did say, though, that the show tries to “strike a balance” between those two elements.

“But we’ve never just been about paint drying, we’ve always been about human drama. It used to be written in huge letters on our whiteboard in our office when we made the first series: ‘HUMAN DRAMA’.

“It was our reminder we weren’t just making a renovation show.”