SCOTT CAM: Previously on The Block, with three weeks till the end
and money drying up,
the scale of landscaping suddenly hit...
How do we pay for our landscaping
if that budget doesn't get released till the last week
and most of us are now in the red?
..and there was a wave of anger.
How are we gonna finish?
I paid $33,000 for last week, just my trades.
So I came up with a solution.
Tomorrow morning, out of your landscape budget,
I will put into your landscapers' accounts $20,000.
Oh, my god. That's huge! That's great.
ANKUR: Thanks, Scotty. That's what I was hoping for.
There we go.
Tonight, a design challenge inspired by a top-secret location...
The level of secrecy is ridiculous. FBI, mate.
..with the biggest take-home challenge prize ever.
An $80,000 Ford Everest.
The pressure is too much for some.
Well, do you want to start again?
But it's back on site where the pressure is about to blow.
JO: Ankur and Sharon, they are thousands in debt.
Since the audit, new information has come to hand.
You have got, like, encyclopaedia of unpaid bills.
You're an accountant. Like, how come you keep spending?
I haven't done this since the Oslo. I'm cutting you guys off.
You're gone.
(THUNDER CRACKS) (DOG WHINES)
It's a cold and gloomy morning on the block.
The site is slowly coming to life... MAN: Stop!
..and our Blockheads are midway through completing
their guest bedroom for Sunday's reveal.
On track for delivery. Everything's going well.
House One are doing a nursery and have already got their plaster up.
Looking good.
Also looking good are Dylan and Jenny,
who put in a massive effort in their kids' room.
We thought it was gonna be an easy week this week
but this week has kind of blown out
because we've just done it ourselves. Yeah.
House Three's Laminex is going up in their gender-neutral kids' room...
For our room this week, we are doing Laminex up to 1,200,
which is consistent with the other rooms,
but we'll do it all the way around
and it'll be kind of like an enveloped room
that's really nice, cosy.
..and House Five are turning their guest bedroom
into a second living space.
Yeah, we're definitely on track.
Once it's all sanded and ready to go, we'll be painting tonight.
And for Rachel and Ryan's kids' room today...
Plasterers are coming back at 6:00 to sand. Kinsman are coming at 7:00.
Carpet Court's coming to put the carpet down
and Grafico's coming to put the walls up.
We have lots happening today.
Today is a bang, bang, bang, bang, all-systems-go day.
Oh, they never learn!
(KNOCK AT DOOR)
We got a little knock on the door.
Opened the door to find a little box.
Hey. What have we got here?
Rach? Yeah?
Come here, darl.
We've got a little present.
Yeah. Except it's a challenge.
SHARON: Present. Oh... Challenge.
There was a little box that said number three
that I had to smash open, which was a good start to the day.
JENNY: And there was a car inside with a note saying...
"Rise and shine, Blockheads.
"It's time to get your ideas on the inspiration board."
"Come get creative at Ford."
Vroom.
My god, what if we're designing a car?
We're gonna design a race car. (GASPS)
DYLAN: Oooh.
These things never matter because it's never what it seems. (LAUGHS)
We're probably shovelling dirt or something. I'm not sure.
Alright. Go get ready.
TOM: Vroom. (LAUGHS)
Omar. Honestly...
Challenge day. We love being out of the block.
Let's go. Let's do it.
Say let's, baby. Whoo!
(LAUGHS)
# Toot-toot, chugga-chugga Big red car
# We'll travel near and we'll travel far
# Toot-toot, chugga-chugga Big red car
# We're gonna ride the whole day long... #
JENNY: How exciting.
(BEEPING)
TOM: How good does this thing look!
RYAN: We've made it to Ford headquarters.
Hi.
Hi. Good morning.
Wow. The level of secrecy is ridiculous.
OZ: FBI... FBI mode.
So this means that you cannot say anything to anyone
about what you see out the back.
They got some really top-secret stuff there
that no-one else can leak out.
There's a lot at stake inside there. Yeah.
They're coming up with the newest and brightest ideas.
SARAH-JANE: I thought I was entering the Pentagon.
We had to hand in our phones. It was very, you know, top-secret.
Can I please have your phones now? Thank you very much.
Do you know the best part that I absolutely loved?
We all had to hand our phones in
and this very strong-willed lady behind the desk was telling us,
"Now, absolutely no cameras are to be allowed inside."
We were all, like, "OK."
There's, like, seven cameras all lined up filming us.
We're, like, "OK."
# Let's get down Let's get down to business... #
SCOTT: G'day. MAN: G'day, guys. How are you?
Hello, hello, hello, hello. RYAN: G'day.
G'day, everybody. How are you, Scotty? JENNY: Hello.
Welcome to what is a very exciting Block first.
We have obviously been given access to the Ford Design Centre.
It's incredible. That's right, Shell.
This has been a secret facility here since the 1970s
and cars like the next-generation Ford Everest and Ranger
have been designed right here in the northern suburbs of Melbourne
for right round the world.
This is home to some of Ford's incredible designers.
And to give you a few more clues, let's meet the design team.
Blockheads, please make welcome design director Max Wolff
and colour and material design manager Emily Lai.
(APPLAUSE)
Max and Emily, can you tell us a bit about the design process?
So we'll start sketching using pen and paper, tablets, computers.
We come up with lots of ideas
and as we start to sort of work through the process,
we refine them down, we do the little scale models.
And then after we've got those,
we start to look more at a full-sized model
so we can really see what the property will look like at the end.
And then, of course, Emily and her related teams
work on the final appearance in terms of the paint colours.
And today you're going to be working to create your perfect model.
TOM: Cool. SARAH-JANE: Awesome.
SHELLEY: So your challenge today is to create a sculpture
that must be displayed in your homes.
The most important part about this sculpture
is it has to feature some automotive design aspects.
You'll have four hours for your inspiration, your design
and to create your clay masterpiece.
SHARON: I feel like because it's a sculpture,
it could be quite subjective.
That's good. Everyone can win it.
That means everybody's in with a chance.
SCOTT: To give them some inspiration for their models,
I've organised an exclusive behind-the-scenes tour
of the Ford Design Centre
and they better pay attention,
as they'll need all the help they can get to win this challenge.
This is obviously a full-sized clay model of the new Ranger.
TOM: So, Max, does this start as somewhat a lump of clay
and it's hand-shaped and machine-shaped?
There's an armature underneath which is made out of aluminium,
then that's covered in a sort of a wooden box, polystyrene foam
and then we'll pack clay on top of that
and then the machine will mill the clay back down.
Wow.
We usually start with a mill
but then, like, you know, you saw Tim before, you know,
hand-working the clay
and that's where that mixing of technology
but also just craftsmanship... TOM AND JENNY: Yeah.
..and sculptural skill. JENNY: Yeah.
Some of the cars you'd see that were made of clay and painted,
you would not think they were made of clay.
Like, you'd think they were an actual car.
MAX: Just as impressive, if not more impressive
than the exteriors that look like real vehicles...
Yeah.
..is the interior that looks like a real vehicle.
What do you mean this is not... What's this, then?
This is clay. Is it?
Yes. Yes, it is.
We look around and there's these amazing workstations,
all different people doing different things,
so people who are sketching, people who are...
ANKUR: It's all cutting-edge stuff. Cutting-edge technology.
So good.
People doing stuff on their computers, 3-D...
Virtual reality. Virtual... We went to Germany.
We put, like, some glasses on... Yeah.
..and then we were sitting in Germany.
Wow, we're in Germany. Yeah. That's unr...
We are. I've been here. I've been here.
OMAR: Yeah, I'm gonna get in. Cheers, mate.
SARAH-JANE: Oh, my gosh.
It's got it underneath and everything.
MAX: Sarah-Jane, that's probably the first time
I've ever seen anyone do that.
I'm a first for a lot of people.
TOM: And we're driving it. Yeah.
RACHEL: Oh, whose hands are they? Yours?
These should be your hands. No, they're your hands.
But if you take the controller, they'll be your hands.
(LAUGHS) There you go.
And... Oh, my god. That's freaky.
And with the Blockheads getting some inspiration
from some of the very best designers,
it's time to reveal what's up for grabs.
Shell, it's a big challenge. SHELLEY: It is.
But it comes with a big prize. OK.
And what is that prize, Mr Cam? You want to do that now?
Yeah, we'll do it now.
Well, they need to know what they're playing for.
OK. Sure. Well, it's this.
# Oh, yeah... #
Yeah, the car. Right there. CONTESTANTS: What?
No way.
You win this challenge today, you win that car.
JENNY: You're not serious! (LAUGHS)
I think we were all in shock.
Like, I feel like that's the most shock we've ever been.
You are winning $80,000 worth of car.
That is the fully-loaded Ford Everest,
with all the bells and whistles.
Holy moly. Oh!
This is huge.
Like, you get 100 grand for winning The Block.
We can get 80 grand today for winning this challenge.
SARAH-JANE: I'm, like, in shock. That's, like, life-changing.
$80,000 car is life-changing. Yeah, it is.
You win today's challenge, you get the keys, you sign the rego papers...
JENNY: Oh, my god.
You get the car to take home and keep forever!
Oh, my god! That's crazy! (LAUGHTER)
Like, there's too much pressure. I feel like... Can we just...
There is a lot of pressure. Can we lessen the prize?
Yeah. (LAUGHS)
OZ: We've got a problem. We gotta split it.
How are we gonna split it? It's clay, so it'll be easy.
(BOTH LAUGH)
No, it's actually a real car.
I know. I can't believe it.
This is the first time you haven't run anywhere.
You're just standing there...
(LAUGHTER) ..and staring.
I don't even know what to do. I'm, like, shocked.
You should start moving now somewhere.
(LAUGHTER) Go.
Where do we go?
Coming up... We're thinking abstract art.
..the $80,000 Ford challenge kicks off.
Tom and Sarah's, didn't know what the hell was happening there.
And for some, it's all too much.
Well, do you want to start again?
Let's scrap this and start again.
One team will take home
the biggest-ever challenge prize in Block history.
WOMAN: The winner of the Everest Ford...
God, I want that car.
But then...
I'm concerned how they're gonna finish the build.
You're spending money as if you think
Channel Nine's gonna give you some more money.
It's not the same space. Ours is smaller.
Sharon, I'm cutting you guys off. ANKUR: OK.
You're gone.
(THUNDER CRACKS) (DOG WHINES)
# I'm ready! #
Welcome back to The Block.
It's guest bedroom week
but today I've steered our Blockheads away from site
for a massive creative challenge at Ford.
We have to make a sculpture out of clay
that's gonna be presented at our house.
The contestants must take inspiration for their design from Ford cars
and up for grabs is...
An $80,000 2023 Ford Everest, brand-new.
It's not for your house. You keep it.
It's for you. (IMITATES EXPLOSION)
You try and get that off your mind because that's just out of control.
Yeah. I know. It's crazy, eh?
This is gonna be the most hectic four hours.
Oh, god. Ever. We're gonna be frazzled.
Just as well Ford modeller Jack is here to guide them.
Pleasure. Good luck. Yeah, thank you.
Thank you. OK.
So, essentially the idea here is
you can look at any part of the car, obviously. Yeah.
It can be a wheel arch, it could be the part of the tail-light...
Lamp.
Do you know Tom's actually more creative than I am?
Yeah. Mmm.
You are. Don't play it down.
RACHEL: That part curves. RYAN: Yep.
And that comes down. You know what I mean?
Yeah. It's like a structure like that.
Just that bit is enough for a shape.
That's plenty.
SHARON: Should put a whole... ANKUR: Like when you make a vase.
Can you do that? We could make a vase.
The game plan is to have the best idea to win this challenge.
And we can do this.
The one thing that every car did have
was this indent in the side of the car which is the body movement...
Body feature. Body feature.
Contouring. Contouring.
So your shape will come in here.
So my idea was to create a sculpture but that was also a vase
using the curvature and stuff of the cars
to make something really beautiful.
OK. So if I really want to achieve the vase bit at the top...
You could use this.
You can put a fair bit of clay on the outside of it
and that is your basic support.
We can both try to do it together if you want. Yeah.
So we've just got to rub it in first.
# Sometimes all I think about is you... #
But the headlight's plenty... Yeah.
If you can perfect the headlight... Yeah, mate.
Just gotta do the sides.
We took the idea of the headlight
and then that's what our base was gonna be
and then we were just gonna do something very abstract
that we could put on the office desk.
How good is this, Oms! Yeah, that's cracker.
RACHEL: This is what we're going for.
This section here.
We took two sides of the beautiful Ford Ranger
and we thought we were gonna spin it
and make it almost like a V...U shape...
Make some abstract art.
Don't forget, you've gotta squish it into your holes...
Yeah. ..so it holds.
I said to Ryan, "I'm taking creative control on this challenge."
Yep. I'm happy for that.
Oh, love this. I love this feeling!
I actually really think that I might go home and start doing pottery.
I really think we've got this in the bag.
I can see some of the objects that are coming up on either side.
Some, you know, the mind can wander.
(SMOKY JAZZ MUSIC) (LAUGHS)
Tom and Sarah's, didn't know what the hell was happening there.
JENNY: Oh, my gosh.
I think they were making, like, handles of a car.
Some sort of adult toy or something.
(TOM AND SARAH-JANE LAUGH)
Mmm. Hopefully we're not doing a bedroom
the week that we've gotta put those objects in...
(LAUGHS) ..you know.
SARAH-JANE: Alright. Stop. That's... Don't!
(LAUGHS) Why are you breaking it off?
That's actually it.
We just went, "Let's do a cool sculpture
"using the door handles of the Wildtrak Ranger as inspo."
So, see that?
They're actually dead flat. Yeah.
We've got it right over. OK. Yep.
Does that make sense? Yeah. Yeah.
See it looks like just like a jug handle?
Yeah. Like, more like that.
Yep.
This is gonna be fantastic.
OK. Why are we using this as the base?
Because we're doing it like that. Yeah?
So you're gonna build over that.
Yeah, but does it not need to be bigger, like this...
so then you can build up?
I don't think we're artistic kind of people at all.
Carving clay and making a sculpture is way out of our...
Yeah, we can build a house, but get us to build a sculpture...
Well, we just like the shape of in here,
so maybe you could just do a sculpture
of the shape of the console.
We got our inspiration from the console shape and the window shape,
so the curves of it we thought looked pretty cool.
You're just drawing a wave.
Yeah, well, it sort of almost is, isn't it? Yeah.
SCOTT: Unleashing their inner Goldie,
our Queensland couple are creating a wavelike model,
taking inspiration from some of the curvy features from the Ford Ranger.
Thinking what you can do and then putting it in action with clay
is so different to what you imagine it will be.
Is it thick enough, do you think?
Yeah, you only create a little arch...
No.
I don't know if we're great with our hands and clay.
It doesn't really...
It's hard to mould.
It's hard to get the form that you want, isn't it?
Almost looks like a car. It kind of does look like a car.
SHELLEY: What have we got here, then?
So we got inspiration from the side of the console in the car.
It's starting to turn out to look like a car.
It kind of looks like a car. Looks like a car. It does.
You know what, you should run with the car bit.
Looks like a dodgem car. Or a clog.
It's not supposed to look like a car.
It's meant to look like the pattern of the inside of the console.
It's the side of the console. Well, it's open for interpretation.
It's art. Yeah.
Uh, yeah. Let's go with that, Shell.
You've got a long way to go, haven't you?
(LAUGHS)
Scotty. Hello, Scotty.
So you don't like all the tools. You're using your fingers there?
Oh, we're gonna do the base of it first and then start using the...
The base of what? (LAUGHS) The base of it. What is it?
Absolutely nothing. (ALL LAUGH)
You've been through a few... We've been through a few...
..evolutions. ..ideas.
Yeah.
That is what the outside of the headlight looks like.
Oh, yeah, yeah. Good work. It's just a nod.
Absolutely. This is gonna be our base.
And then we'll just shape it up.
Like, it's gonna be a solid, solid sculpture, so...
You know, when you see the ones over there, you go, "I could do this.
"No worries." Then you get to this stage, you go, "Uh-oh."
Yeah. "This is art."
You've seen the clay over there in the oven.
It comes out in cylinders.
Why wouldn't you just put six of those in a row and it's an engine?
Six cylinder. I like that one, Shelley.
Boom, boom, boom, boom.
All I need to say is we went to detail, so this is a 3-D pop.
And looking at it this way, it has the meaning.
Looking at it this way, it has the meaning.
Looking at the top... Yeah, it's good.
Looking at the top, it looks like the headlight. Yeah.
SHARON: We need one more. ANKUR: Really?
Yeah, just one more.
We are very excited this is not a building challenge...
You are very excited.
And I'm very excited that this is a creative challenge... Yeah.
..where we can our use creative brains and do fun stuff. Yeah.
So I have to then sit back and find a role for myself
because creativity's not my vibe.
We're good at this.
You're good at this, darl. We are.
My role was to smooth clay for four hours,
which was very calming, to be honest.
Keep going, 'cause it's starting to look good, hey? Yeah.
Now, as with all the other models... Mm-hm.
..I was saying to them, you basically go down and you go across
so we can get a bit of all these facets.
Our local art critic, Sarah-Jane,
has been busy analysing some of the competition.
OK. Abstract, mate. Abstract.
Gorgeous. Gorgeous.
I've never seen a better ants' nest in my life. (LAUGHS)
Alright. We're getting there.
Rachel and Ryan are doing door handles, the same as ours.
No, they're not. Yeah, they are.
RACHEL: This is ours, babe, I reckon.
I can feel it, this is ours.
I was all systems go. We really wanted to win that car.
We really wanted that car.
We're going really, really, really well.
We've got the structure.
We started to build the curve.
Once we start smoothing this out,
then we're gonna start putting this beautiful detail in.
We're going real well.
Our Blockheads' final step is to select a colour palette
which will be added to the sculptures after the challenge by the Ford team.
Think about the colours, think about the environment it's gonna be in,
the room it's gonna be in.
We're kind of matching what is in our working-from-home space.
We've got all-black Kinsman cabinetry.
That's gonna be the solid base of our actual thing.
And then we've got a lot of old rustic look.
So we went for a nicer brown on the top.
What you might want to do with the paint, you know.
So we can have the high-gloss finishes.
Obviously, this is metallic... Just examples. Yep.
Colours changing and shifting. Yeah.
I like that. Solid colours.
Low gloss as well. Like a matte black finish.
And different handles too. Think about that in our house.
Oh, yeah.
Because this is gonna be presented with our home.
Yeah. Like, that is gorgeous.
And on that note, let's check in on Dylan and Jenny's masterpiece.
Is it what you thought... you were thinking?
I'm not sure.
We're not really good at, like, arty things,
so when they said we were gonna do something out of clay, I was, like,
"Oh, god. I'm not really that artistic."
I wish it was my sister instead. But... (LAUGHS)
If it was a five-grand prize, it would be such an easy day but...
Oh... ..it's an 80-grand car.
What do you reckon I do with this front, babe?
I reckon... I reckon...
Do I just create, like, a bit more of a thing there
and then we start dressing it up?
Yeah.
It was just looking like a blob of clay.
We were fighting over this.
We were just fighting over it, weren't we? Yeah. The whole time.
Huh?
OK.
Do you know what I mean? Are we doing the right thing?
I'm not sure. OK.
We're not even doing what we designed.
I know. So, what does that look like?
(SIGHS) Dyl...
(BLEEP)
Well, do you want to start again?
How long have we got?
What else could we do, though?
(THUNDER CRACKS) (DOG WHINES)
SCOTT: Welcome back to The Block.
We're near the end of our Ford design challenge
and some of our contestants are in their element.
I did say some.
If you focus on that side...
But how can I focus on this side when your hand's there?
Ow, it's hot. Can we start again?
We were trying to sculpt something that we'd drawn out
but what we thought it would look like
and what it actually looked like in clay
was so different, so let's scrap this and start again.
So that's exactly what we did.
Compared to their first design,
Dylan and Jenny's sculpture will have a leaner footprint,
still taking inspiration from the Ford Ranger's console.
And then, once we've done it, then we can perfect it and do, like...
Yeah. ..the lines of the car
and then the pleats of the seat and stuff.
But we're just making that shape... Yeah.
..aren't we? Yeah. Yeah.
(WHISTLES)
Ladies and gentlemen, I have the judges standing by
and they're ready to go,
including a judge you haven't met, Danni Winter,
marketing director of Ford.
No pressure. Just an $80,000 car on the line.
I wish it wasn't a car on the line. It's so frustrating.
Unlike Dylan and Jenny, Omar and Oz are tracking along nicely,
even while making changes to their original design.
Initially, it was a headlight.
Turned into the heart of a headlight...
was literally a piston.
It's always important show the judges that, you know,
whatever you're driving,
you've gotta understand what's under the hood.
(SCOTT WHISTLES)
SHELLEY: You've got ten minutes to go.
Make sure you've also got your colours in and registered.
Ten minutes!
Yeah, I'm happy to do blues.
RYAN: It doesn't need to be any sharper.
I'm gonna make more shape out of all of this.
Put the tools away. You're banned from the tools.
See how it goes from there and curves up to the top?
And join it up.
Yeah, like that. That looks cool.
SHELLEY: One minute. This is it. One minute to go.
Let's go. Let's go. Say let's.
It's just about making it a straight line.
I think we just keep on smoothing.
TOM: Calm down.
# Come on, come on Come on, come on... #
Ten seconds to go before someone wins a life-changing prize from Ford.
Eight, seven, six, five,
four, three, two, one.
SHELLEY: Tools down!
OZ: Time is up.
Well done. Well done, everyone.
(LAUGHTER)
It all came together, I reckon, in that last hour
but Rach was shaping it really good
and then, like, when you start cutting it all in,
it just started showing all the nice details.
We're super happy with it.
SHELLEY: Can you believe it?
Someone's won a car and they don't even know it.
(LAUGHS) Yes.
SHARON: That was our vision and we've created our vision...
Yeah. ..so we're really happy with it.
SARAH-JANE: Early on, some people thought
that we were maybe taking the piss out of it a little bit
'cause it looked like something that may urinate...
The male anatomy. The male anatomy.
But we knew where we were going with it.
Yeah. And we think it looks awesome.
Well, after this colourful description of their work,
it's time for the judges to check out the Blockheads' latest creations.
Here we go.
Sculpture number one, Max, Emily and Danni.
MAX: Mmm.
Shelley and I will leave it in your hands.
The idea of taking some of the sort of lines of the vehicle
and putting them on a vase... Yes.
..is quite nice.
I could see this being in a house, I suppose.
Mm-hm. EMILY: Style and functionality.
Colour's quite organic as well... Indeed.
..which is good. It's got everything.
Fantastic. Well done. Onto the next one.
Alright. SHELLEY: Number two.
Very strong link to the car, so I love the sharp lines.
Well, I think it's quite on trend with what they're doing.
SCOTT: The olive-green. Yes indeed. Yeah.
And the pitch. And the matte black.
I really like the concept of it.
I like the concept of the elements and the negative space.
I do think they could've been
a little bit crisper with their execution.
SHELL: OK. Let's go to number three. Let's go.
OK. The boys.
Right.
It's actually... It's fairly well executed.
The surfaces are fairly smooth,
the little details in there are really nice,
so I think the boys have done a great job from that perspective.
So that matches their cabinetry at the house.
Mmm.
And then that's the leather of the couches
and a little bit of shine and shimmer.
I like the finishes.
I like the texture that they've selected.
It's got a combination of matte, gloss and also some texturing.
Mm-hm.
So it'll be interesting to see when it all comes together.
OK. Mmm.
Now, this sculpture also has a name. 'Can You Handle It?'
I certainly think the imagery really links to the car strongly.
What do you think of the colours, Emily?
EMILY: For me, it's probably a little bit subtle,
you know, for what it is.
But I think it's got potential. Mmm. Definitely.
I think this team's done a great job as well.
The base is very clean. Mmm.
Yeah, they've done an OK job there. OK.
OK, last but not least, Dylan and Jenny.
We did have a second start on this one.
Yeah, no... Mmm.
Yeah. Again, very interpretive, I would suggest.
(LAUGHS) Very Picasso. (LAUGHS) Yes. Very Picasso indeed.
So, the colour again, I believe that's an ombre.
It'll go from light down to the dark of the bronze at the bottom.
Same colour family. Same colour family. Yes.
Yep. OK.
And you can lighten that, can you, that colour?
You can go from lighter to darker? You can do anything.
You can do anything. Yes. Yep. Yep.
OK. Now, what we're gonna do is...
'Cause this is a huge decision for one of our contestants,
an $80,000 Ford motor car.
Incredible.
It's the biggest prize for a challenge
that we have ever, ever had the opportunity to award someone.
So... (LAUGHS)
we want nothing to do with it. We want nothing to do with it.
So we'll find out when you tell everybody.
Good luck. Alright.
Thank you.
OZ: Mate, we would love to win a new Ford, to be honest.
That car's been playing on my mind all day.
Oh, god. (LAUGHS)
I want to win this car! Good teamwork.
We want to win this car.
(DRAMATIC MUSIC) SHELLEY: Oh, here they come.
Here they come. Here they come.
Oh. Oh.
I actually feel sick. I feel sick. Yeah, I feel sick too.
Hello. Hello.
Better you than me. Come in. Well done.
Thank you. Thank you very much. Thank you.
Ladies and gentlemen...
Well, congratulations, everybody,
because you are now true Ford design apprentices, all of you.
Your brief today was to copy the Ford design process
with your own automotive-inspired sculpture.
Max, Emily, how did they go?
I thought they all did very well.
Loved the colours.
I think a lot of you have got a lot of colour sense
and the texturing in the colours...
Well done. I thought it was pretty good too.
I thought it was really interesting the way some of the contestants
sort of took more of a literal approach.
It was very interesting to see them learn to use the tools as well
and the clay.
It takes a while to sort of get used to that. Mmm.
But overall, great, great work
and some really, really inspiring pieces there, so well done.
Terrific. Tell them the prize, Shell. Oh, my god.
The stakes are so high.
The winner of this challenge
will be driving away in the Ford Everest Sport
worth $80,000. (LAUGHS)
SHARON: Wow. Crazy.
I don't have a car, so we actually really do need a car,
so it would be amazing.
I'd probably just drive straight home.
(BOTH LAUGH)
SHELLEY: Thank you so much for this opportunity to be in this facility.
But there can be only one winner.
Danni, who's taking out the prize today?
TOM: Oh, strewth. I'm nervous.
It's a great pleasure to announce the winner of the Everest Ford...
God, I want that car.
..is Sharon and Ankur.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
She's crying. SHELLEY: Oh, we've got tears!
Oh, there's tears!
(SHARON CRIES)
Oh, we won a car!
In shock and will be for a while. I'm in shock.
Like, I can't... I usually have lots to say.
I've got nothing to say, like... Yeah.
Sharon, Ankur, would you like to come and collect the keys?
Yeah. SCOTT: Come and get the keys!
(APPLAUSE) Yeah.
Thank you so much. That's amazing.
Scotty... Please, jump in.
Well done. Thank you.
Oh, my god. We won a car!
That's ridiculous. (LAUGHS) We won a car!
Well done. How good is that!
That is unreal.
Oh, this is... Look at it!
It's too nice for me to even touch.
(HORN HONKS) (CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
Hey. (LAUGHTER)
We won! We won a car! We won a car.
That is unreal.
Take it to the block to get trashed now.
Coming up, Ankur and Sharon go from the highest of highs to rock bottom.
At the moment, they are thousands in debt.
You're spending money as if you think
Channel Nine's gonna give you some more money.
I haven't done this since the Oslo.
I'm cutting you guys off. You're gone.
(THUNDER CRACKS) (DOG WHINES)
(ALARM RINGS)
SCOTT: It's guest bedroom week on The Block
and another cold and wet morning on site.
(ALARM RINGS)
And while some Blockheads
are still recovering from yesterday's challenge...
(ALARM RINGS)
..others are waking up to an ocean of water damage.
(DRAMATIC CLASSICAL MUSIC)
At the moment, it looks alright
but if it keeps raining, it could get a lot worse.
Despite being on a high after their big win...
Well, the fact that we won anything is amazing.
Like, we are so grateful...
..House Three have now been brought back down to earth.
DAN: Morning, Shaz. Oh, hey, Dan.
How you doing? What's happening?
We've got a little bit of a disaster, mate.
We came back last night to puddles and puddles of just water
all congregated in our breezeway that we just finished last week.
It does look very... Balloony?
It does look balloony.
(WATER TRICKLES)
There's a lot of water.
Yeah. (LAUGHS)
Well, Shaz, I can actually see the roof bowing badly up here,
so there is quite a bit of water.
Yeah.
I wouldn't be surprised if we have to replace all the insulation.
Because the external side of the house is not really caught up with
the internal side of the house,
we had a tarp put over the top of it.
Our overarching builders' responsibility, I suppose,
and they did put the tarp over it
but for some reason it was taken off.
I'm not sure why.
I spoke to Aidan... Yeah.
..the builder and he did tell me yesterday that in the morning,
the guys took the tarp off... Yep.
..'cause they were gonna have to do some more flashings. Yes.
And then, that storm did come through
and they had to go elsewhere...
There was other major problems everywhere...
Yeah. Of course. ..and then were short-staffed...
Yep.
All this water come on and I believe they just...
They missed... Forgot about it.
Yeah. They missed their line... Yeah.
..unfortunately, so now we're left with a big pool in your ceiling.
Yeah. It's not your fault.
Yep. You don't have to fix it.
It's all on us. Yeah.
Let it dry out... Yeah.
..and any painting or if there is any mould... Yeah.
..it's all on the boys, Nine In Six.
They'll fix it. Happy to hear it's not my problem.
(LAUGHS) Yes.
But still, yeah, it's just disappointing but (BLEEP) happens.
But Sharon has more important things on her mind today,
like the state of her budget.
At the moment, like, the budget still doesn't look great
but the way we've had to solve that towards the end of the game
is by removing those ambitious ideas.
We did think about potentially, like,
what would happen if we sold the Everest
and put the money towards the house
'cause we are so passionate and invested in this house,
but I'd never do that to Ford.
And on that note, it's back to business with their kids' room build.
We love the room that we created this week.
We feel like it's a really calming, beautiful space for kids or a guest.
Yeah. It's like a sweet... sort of cute vibes.
Ankur and Sharon have selected a soft colour palette of blues and pinks
which will offset their dark blue Kinsman wardrobe
with walls of white Laminex panelling
and blue and white wildflower wallpaper
and flower wall sconces beside a double bed.
Let me measure the height of that because I want to see...
Just if you keep that there...
Plenty of space.
So you're happy with that height, then?
Yeah.
As long as it's equal on both sides, everything's gonna be cool.
They're very pretty, aren't they?
In House Five, Carpet Court has arrived to install carpet
in Omar and Oz's second living/TV room.
The boys have opted out for doing a kids' room this week,
instead creating a calm second living room.
But Steve has arrived to a rude shock.
The floor we laid last week's almost destroyed.
There's water everywhere over here.
You know, the boys had to empty a bucket this morning
because there's water all over the joint.
That's all destroyed.
You know, that's a disgrace.
And they shouldn't have left what they left.
They left paint tins... What else is in here, Nick?
Well, Kinsman's laying on the ground here.
And he's got cardboard down
'cause he doesn't want to lie in the paint.
Guys, we painted last night and we finished at 4:00am.
Yeah.
We thought we would wake up for pre-start. We did.
But we just didn't have time.
I told Omar to clean it. He didn't clean it.
Dude, you've been an absolute legend.
(LAUGHS) Honestly, thank you so much.
It's alright. Sorry about the mess.
We finished up so late last night.
No, of course he's fed up.
You can understand, this is the biggest The Block has ever been.
Mmm.
And, mate, just the time and coming to install stuff,
you literally need to get out of the way for these guys to come in.
And Steve literally has had so much patience.
Love you. (LAUGHS) Alright.
Don't get any mud on this today.
Oh, man. The mud.
The mud, the mud.
The mud.
The mud is the worst part of this job.
# I've got a dirty, dirty feeling Dirty feelings going on... #
The mud is just everywhere.
It's been everywhere for two weeks and I just...
The mud has me at breaking point. Not the block, the mud.
# I've got a dirty, dirty feeling... #
Jeez... # I almost hit the ceiling... #
# When I woke up and you were gone... #
Also battling the tough muddy conditions
is House Four's landscaper Inge.
This is absolutely by far the toughest conditions
that I've had to work in.
This is hell on earth.
It is wet, cold, muddy. DYLAN: Yeah.
We do really appreciate Inge hopping on board with us. Yeah.
We are in an area that has its own microclimate from Mount Macedon,
so we're getting rain every single day.
There is so much mud.
Like, behind me, the water doesn't just go down 100mm.
It goes down half a metre.
And there's rivers starting at the back of the property.
I've never seen anything like it.
As well as a pool and spa, House Four have planned a large vegie garden,
a beehive area and an outside dining area
to take in the amazing views of Mount Macedon.
At this point in time, I've lost a few weeks
because the weather has just been so bad.
We've had delay after delay. We've had to rebook concrete trucks.
I am facing the reality now that I will have to remove some elements
and I also don't think
my contestants have the budget for them anyway.
But what Jenny can do is keep Inge warm and fuzzy.
Hello. Inge, I've brought you tea. Oh, my gosh! I love you!
Oh, there you go. Is it hot?
Yeah, it's nice and hot. Oh, my god. Thank you so much.
Oh, that's OK. Do you want some milk?
I'd love some milk. Thank you. Alright. How much?
Oh, my gosh. You take care of your trades.
I do, darl. It is so cold.
Oooh. Was that enough? Yep, that's it. Good.
Oh, we love our landscape team so much
and it's so incredible just to see everything come together
and I can't wait to see the end result, hey?
She does. She takes control, Inge, and she gets (BLEEP)...
She does. ..done.
On the other side of the mud, in House Five, Christian Jenkins,
winning landscaper for Mitch and Mark last year,
is digging out a footing for Oz and Omar's retaining wall.
But Dan has spotted something odd with the trench.
Jenko? Yeah?
Concrete. Blinding.
Blinding. A base layer of concrete laid above hard surfaces.
Blinding? Blinding.
Into? How deep? The stiff clay and rock.
Who's inspected it?
(CRICKETS CHIRP)
I've just caught Christian Jenkins pouring a footing.
No-one's really inspected it, so this is a hard one
because we are on the biggest block we've ever done.
This site's so massive.
There's so much going on,
so the only thing we can rely on is process
and making sure everyone follows that process.
What Christian is aiming to build
is a series of grey-stone retaining walls
to create a step-down garden
at the front of the boys' original house.
The perennial garden will feature a generous lawn, lavender, camellias
and crepe myrtle trees, which will surround the old house.
Oh, come on, Dan. Look. Not even flat or clean.
It's blinding.
The footing only needs to be 300 deep.
Mate, you know the rules. What rules?
You come to Keith or I for these things before you pour.
He hasn't done that here.
He's just gone ahead, dug a footing, no-one's checked it
and he's started pouring it.
Is it to the depth? Is it to the width?
Has it been cleaned out? Is it to the founding depth?
I don't know.
We've gotta warrant these things for ten years.
Hopefully it's gonna pass.
Dan is worried Christian hasn't dug down far enough
to solid rock and clay before pouring the concrete.
But now Simmo, from the Nine In Six building team,
wants them to dig down 2m to the bedrock before laying the concrete.
OZ: So you're telling me the rock is at 2m, you've gotta dig for 2m?
Yeah, well, that's right. That's the question.
CHRISTIAN: And we have been digging it 2m everywhere.
Yeah, I know, but for the structure of the house...
Mate, even for retaining walls, we're (BLEEP).
OMAR: Simmo, but how we gonna do that in the time we have?
It's gonna take forever.
Honestly, it's just a 400mm wall, mate.
Hey, goodwill. These digs are always...
It's just the edges, mate.
Honestly, the edges, we'll dig that out and...
DAN: No. We don't inspect off goodwill.
No. That's not how we work.
I won't put the retaining wall in.
We'll just bail it and come up with a different concept
because there's no point digging to 2m to find rock.
Simmo, tell us what we can do to fix it.
You're not gonna be far from rock.
I can get the excavator and have a go now.
Yeah. And then just keep digging.
(ENGINE HUMS)
Yeah, we can hear it there. We can hear it.
That's alright. As long as it's hitting the rock.
It hits rock and then just give it a good...
I couldn't believe that hitting rock could be music to my ears.
I know.
It was like... # Ding-a-ling-a-ling-ling... #
(MEN LAUGH)
Why didn't you do it the first time? Oh, man, seriously...
Have a look.
(MEN LAUGH)
That'd be, like, 1.5.
It's perfect. Retaining wall, though.
Retaining wall. 400.
Well, it's still a retaining wall. Yeah, yeah.
We don't want it going up and down in the seasons.
No. Cracks and... Yeah, yeah. No, that's right.
Yeah. It's perfect now.
Yeah.
We're gonna call it the Great Wall of Gisborne.
(MEN LAUGH)
(BIRDSONG) (DOG BARKS)
Welcome back to The Block.
It's Friday afternoon
and I'm on my way to site for this week's walk-arounds.
# Bring me a dream # Bom-bom-bom-bom
# Make him the cutest that I've ever seen
# Bom-bom-bom-bom # Give him two lips... #
(TYRES SCREECH)
Hang on a minute. (KNOCKING)
Hello. Hi. How you going?
Hello. My name's Scott. Nice to meet you.
What's your name? Vanessa.
I don't want to seem presumptuous but I was driving past
and there were some round hay bales that looked a lot like me.
Because it is you. Is it really?
Yeah. I just wanted to come in and meet you and say thank you very much.
It's not often that you're driving past...
And it's quite a good look of me. Like, it looks like me.
Well, we actually pinched it off the Block website...
Did you? ..of you standing exactly like that.
With my arms folded? Yes.
And a friend of ours, who is an artist...
Really?
..turned it into a caricature for us.
Oh, my goodness me. Can we have a photo out the front, please?
Absolutely.
And perfect timing 'cause I just made hot sausage rolls.
Oh...
I've also got Dean here, who's the artist. Oh!
He's popped over as well for sausage rolls.
(BARKS)
What a privilege this is. It's absolutely outstanding.
I wish I had my blue shirt on.
Just here. I'll just stand here like this.
Just like that. It's a one-to-one likeness.
And who have we got here? Hello, mate.
This is Alistair. Alistair.
How are you, buddy? Would you like a biscuit?
Oh, I'd love a biscuit, thanks, buddy.
This is the best morning of my life! (LAUGHS)
I've got a hay bale statue of myself, hot bickies and hot sausage rolls.
# Bring me a dream # Bom-bom-bom-bom-bom-bom-bom... #
# Come and roll with me We'll rock them body moves... #
It's all happening back at the block
as contestants power through getting their guest bedrooms ready
for Sunday's reveals.
And in House One,
Kinsman have arrived to fit out Tom and Sarah-Jane's wardrobe.
Today, we have got some painting touch-ups to do,
Carpet Court to lay carpet, Carpet Court to do the blinds.
We've got Grafico wallpaper to go... On the roof.
..up on the ceiling and electrical fit-off. Yes.
House One are doing a nursery
and because it's in the old part of their house,
they've decided to add heritage touches,
including a spearmint-green wainscoting.
The hero of the room will be a bold wallpaper on the ceiling
from Grafico.
It's a nursery. And what do babies do?
They lay on their back 24-sevs, staring like this.
So now they get to stare at beautiful magnolia flowers
and that's why I put it on the roof.
And Tom and Sarah-Jane aren't the only ones
going for bold wallpaper this week.
Over at House Four,
Jenny's showcasing her Grafico to her real estate team.
Check out that wallpaper. Oh, yeah!
So this is the kids' room.
# Do you believe in magic? #
House Four's kids' room
will feature an amazing forest-scene wallpaper designed by Jenny,
along with white wainscoting,
a combination double and single bed,
plus a magnificent suspended swing chair
which has just arrived from the Block Shop.
It's getting dirty. (LAUGHS)
There we go. Throw it on top of that...
Oh, on that? Yep.
Look how it'll sit... How cute is that!
So now we just have to play around
with where we're gonna put everything.
Kids' room this week. This is, like, you know, what...
If I could make any kind of room for my three kids, this is it.
House Two's room will be a kids' paradise,
with plenty of toys and games,
plus Rachel's own designed Grafico wallpaper of trees and stars
and a moon-ball light to add to the cosmos feel.
The finishing touches will be a hand-painted artwork
from Ryan and Rachel's three children,
as well as a special artwork from a Sydney artist.
Hey, hey. Hello!
How are you? How are you?
Yeah, we're good. Oh, my gosh! I'm so excited!
Nathan is an artist under the name Blacklist,
who is from the Shire, in Sydney, where Ryan and I are from.
So, thank you very much for doing this.
It's a pleasure. Custom artwork. I know.
I obviously have your piece in my house at home.
Yeah. It's a good connection. Shire.
We gotta stick together. The Shire's gotta stick together.
When I saw this, I knew straight away we needed it.
Yeah. It's gonna work well, I think. Yeah. Yeah.
It's a perfect fit. Yeah.
"Look at you, you're beautiful."
We say that to our kids all the time.
OK, I'm gonna get emotional. I miss my kids.
(LAUGHS) The reveal. # Dun-dun-dun! #
Oh, my god! "Look at you! You're beautiful!"
Oh, I love that. Here we go.
Yay! Here we go.
It's gonna be a good fit for you guys.
It's amazing. It's a perfect fit.
Just to see that art that's going into a room that we have built
based on what our kids love
made me emotional.
I'm trying really hard to not cry over the last few weeks.
Yep, The Block is an emotional rollercoaster,
up one day, down the next.
House Three is on a high today,
celebrating their massive personal win
of the fully kitted out Ford Everest.
We won the challenge. Yep. That's definitely the peak.
And winning, like, an $80,000 car is quite insane.
Unfortunately, what's really insane
is the state of Ankur and Sharon's budget.
Oh, hello, Jo.
Block accountant Jo has discovered they are massively in debt.
So we've got the Xero app up... Yes.
That worries me. Yes, we do.
So, Ankur and Sharon. House Three.
I'm really concerned about where their budget is going.
Really?
At the moment, they are thousands in debt.
That's not their debt, is it? No.
That's what they're over now? Yeah.
Ankur and Sharon are over budget to the tune of $53,000.
How did that happen?
I think that... That's outrageous.
..their outgoing costs have just not been...
There's been no regard for the actual budget.
So you reckon they haven't even looked at the budget?
They've just been spending willy-nilly?
I find it hard to believe that they are spending...
That much over? Yep.
That's so unfair for everyone else, because you spend that much more,
then you've got a massive advantage, haven't you?
Oh, gosh, yeah. We've gotta pull that in.
Yeah, definitely.
I don't even know if we're gonna pull that back with what budget's left.
It's going to be tight to pull it back, Scotty. Honestly.
We'll have to sell a few things. Maybe they could sell that wine.
I'm concerned how they're gonna finish the build.
Well, I am going to see them very shortly.
I'll have to shut them down.
Can we cancel their credit cards right now?
I can do that. It's not gonna be pretty.
Good luck. Thank you.
(THUNDER CRACKS) (DOG WHINES)
(BIRDS CAW)
(TENSE MUSIC)
SCOTT: It's Friday afternoon
and Shell and I are on our way to check out this week's rooms.
Hey, Jonno.
But I was informed earlier
that Ankur and Sharon have spent $53,000 over budget.
Their spending... Plastering bills are ridiculous.
Their plasterer was 24,000 and Tom and Sarah-Jane's was 13.
Yeah.
So I'm on the way to House Three
to do something I haven't done for many years.
Are you right there? Yep. Absolutely. Thank you.
Hello. Hello. Hello.
Hi. G'day.
WOMEN: Hi.
How are you? Good. How are you?
Good, thank you. I come bearing gifts.
Oh, thank you so much. Everything's wearing out.
Everyone's wearing thin. But you get some new boots.
Thank you so much. We've gone to our gumboots now.
Hey, what a ride yesterday was. I know.
Oh, god. I know.
We're still in shock, to be honest. Yeah.
It's, like, so... Unbelievable.
We've never won anything before,
so we still don't know how to process it.
But so grateful. It's a big win. 80 grand.
Oh, mate. I couldn't believe that was the prize.
Yeah. That was amazing.
Alright. How are we going in here for a win?
What do you think?
Well, this is our kids' bedroom
but we don't want to, like, lock it in exactly a kids' bedroom,
so it's a second guest room space.
Shelley and Scotty came in and we talked about our room.
It's really weird -
before walk-arounds, Anks tends to have feelings.
And this one, he was, like, "Oh, this feels a bit weird."
But I just went with it.
ANKUR: I just had a vibe.
The biggest thing that we had this week
was the colour of the wallpaper, so initially we went with this...
Yep. And then...
And then I freaked out and... Oh!
..we changed it. To what?
To a lighter, brighter one.
Time-wise, you're looking alright this week.
Yeah. Well, the plastering's done. Yeah.
Plastering done. Yeah, plastering... So that'll be...
There's a lot of wallpaper.
And then obviously ceiling to paint and then this...
Laminex. Is that Grafico coming in?
Yeah. Is that Block Bucks?
Yeah. Block Bucks.
Yep. All in Block Bucks. All in Block Bucks? Yeah.
Obviously Kinsman are doing the wardrobes...
Yeah. So it's Block Bucks...
Furniture, everything. Block Bucks. Furniture, everything.
Not installation, though, Shell.
Yeah, installation isn't Block Bucks.
You've gotta pay for that. So, yeah. It's a lot.
(TENSE MUSIC)
Yeah. The Block's a rollercoaster, isn't it?
Yeah. It's crazy.
Yes.
And then I noticed that there was a, like, shift in energy.
And I was, like, "We're gonna get pantsed."
I know you're down one minute, you're up winning a car the next.
Yeah. Yeah.
(CLEARS THROAT)
Then I said,
"Well, that 80 grand would've been great towards the budget"
and he's, like, "Well, now you bring up the budget..."
Well, it's interesting that you mention that...
Yes.
..because, as I said, The Block's a rollercoaster.
We did ask for an audit. Yes.
We were asked to do an audit... Yes. ..which we did. Yeah.
And that was basically to find out if anybody was really cheating...
Yeah. Yes.
..really, which we found it was a fair game...
Yeah. ..which was good.
But what we did find... Yeah.
..'cause we asked for everybody's invoices to come in... Yes. Yep.
..and all the receipts and everything and unpaid stuff...
Mm-hm. ..and you...
Mm-hm.
..have got, like, an encyclopaedia of unpaid bills.
Mm-hm.
The language that was used,
it was, like, straight on, like, pretty aggressive
with that fact,
saying that "You guys are just spending without thinking."
You're spending money as if you think
Channel Nine's gonna give you some more money.
It's just on our trades, Scotty, basically.
(CLEARS THROAT) Mate, you guys... You're an accountant.
Yeah, I know.
You guys are tens of thousands of dollars over...
In the red. I know. Yeah.
What do you mean you know? Well, how come you keep spending? Well...
I don't understand where you think you're gonna pay for it. We're not...
We've got three weeks to go.
Yeah, we haven't been spending on anything other than trades, so...
You've been... Well, your plastering bill was $24,000.
House One's was 13 for the same space.
It's not the same space. Ours is smaller...
Sharon, just listen to what I'm saying.
Yeah. OK.
I haven't done this since the Oslo. I'm cutting you guys off.
OK. You're gone.
(DRAMATIC MUSIC)
SCOTTY: I've already cancelled your cards.
You don't make any decisions with trades, purchases or anything
unless it goes through me.
VOICEOVER: Never...
I'm cutting you guys off.
You're gone.
..has it come...
You've got no more money.
..to this.
What's the point?
On a blockbuster Sunday.
I've just shut them down.
The fallout...
They're not gonna finish.
..shockwave.
I heard they were $80k in the rent.
It wasn't that. Owed $100,000.
It might be more.
We can just leave.
There's no empathy, no sympathy.
I think we'll just leave. We've embarrassed ourselves.
We've embarrassed the show.
Block walkout?
(SCREECHES)
It's time.
The reveals.
Tools down.
Ahhh.
You will have to see..
I'm feeling the love.
I reckon there'd be a lot of emotion in this room.
..to believe...
Oh, I'm in love.
Sunday, 7 o'Block on Nine.