This was published 8 years ago
Bachelorette Australia: Daily Mail takes down spoiler after Ten court injunction
By Ebony Bowden
- Why Sasha was always Sam's man
- Bachelorette Australia returns in 2016
- The real price of reality TV spoilers
- How the Daily Mail got those photos - exclusive
Channel Ten has won a late night court injunction against the Daily Mail after the tabloid posted paparazzi pictures which spoiled the ending of The Bachelorette finale.
The Daily Mail was ordered to take the story down which had been placed on the website's home page hours before Sam Frost chose Sasha Mielczarek as the winning contestant.
The photos showed Frost and Mielczarek cuddling in a hotel room in Sydney's CBD on Thursday afternoon.
Ten went to the Supreme Court of NSW on Thursday night where a judge ordered the story be taken offline until further notice.
A spokesperson for Ten told Fairfax Media the network would be pursuing the matter in court next week.
"Network Ten is looking at its options in seeking relief, including costs and a permanent injunction. As the matter is back before the court on Monday, we will not be making any further comment."
In an article published on Friday morning, The Daily Mail said they would challenge the injunction, describing the court ruling as unfair.
"We were served with an injunction by Network Ten, but we have not had sight of the reasons for the judge's decision," a spokesperson said.
"We swiftly abided by the terms of the injunction, however, but shall be challenging the terms of that injunction immediately as we do not consider that such a decision is either fair or right."
In an interview with KIIS FM's Kyle and Jackie O on Friday morning, Frost and Mielczarek said they were "absolutely gutted" the outcome had been ruined for fans.
"We've worked so hard.. Someone has tipped someone off and it was just awful," Frost said.
Added Mielczarek: "I called Sam up and she was just hysterical, the poor thing. The crew and everyone worked so hard and to be spoiled two hours before..."
The Daily Mail's Australian website is a partner of Ten's rival network, Nine.
The website could also find itself in breach of the Press Council's code of principles, which it is a signatory of, if the photos are deemed to have intruded on the new couple's "reasonable expectations of privacy".
Fans of The Bachelorette were outraged by The Daily Mail's decision to publish the pictures, ruining one of the most heavily guarded secrets in Australia's entertainment industry.
The spoiler story was flooded with angry comments from fans who slammed the celebrity website for revealing the winner just hours before the show was due to air.