Now that Bachelor in Paradise has finally premiered in Australia (Osher‘s party shirts! Tara‘s commentary!) it’s a good time to remember that Blake Colman once hospitalised a man and laughed about it afterwards.
You probably remember Blake from Sophie Monk‘s season, who had an almighty whinge when he didn’t get a rose. Shortly afterwards, it emerged that he’d assaulted a man in 2015 so violently that the victim required four staples to close his head wound. A nearby companion was sprayed with blood.
The victim, Tristan Cooper, told Perth Now that he thought he’d never walk again after the assault.
“Blake and his group were yelling and we were walking away,” he told the publication, which he found out from watching CCTV footage. “Then he just came running up and with all his body weight sort of grabbed me in the back of the head and threw me into the side of Hungry Jack’s. He picked me up by my neck and threw me down and my head’s whacked the corner of the window as I’ve gone down. I got knocked out and then I came to. When I went down he stepped over my lifeless body and then proceeded to get in a fist fight with [my companion].”
Police obtained footage and audio of the taxi Colman got into after the incident.
“He was in the taxi laughing about how well he got me, to his friends,” said Cooper, who watched the footage.
Two years later, Colman pleaded guilty to the assault and was ordered to pay Cooper $850. As of October 2017 last year, Cooper hadn’t received the money. Questions put to Colman’s publicist by PEDESTRIAN.TV as to whether he’d paid the fine were not answered by the time of publication.
After news broke, Colman put his social media to ‘private’, and Channel 10 released a statement on his behalf:
“I am truly remorseful and accepted full responsibility for my actions.”
When it was reported by New Idea a short while later that Colman would be returning for Bachelor in Paradise, P.TV sought comment from Channel 10 as to why it was appropriate to recast him, given his history of violence.
At the time, Channel 10 refused to comment on “speculation”.
“Laurina, Keira, Tara, Davey, Michael and Apollo have been confirmed as the first six Bachelor in Paradise participants,” said a spokesperson. “Ten will neither confirm or deny further speculation, but can reveal that many more of Australia’s favourite Bachelor characters are ready to head to the tropical resort in Paradise. Let the games of love begin.”
Channel 10 have yet to comment further on Colman’s inclusion on the show, but viewers last night were less than impressed that he appeared.
anyone else feeling weird about watching Bachelor in Paradise and just overlooking the fact that Blake Colman has a history of violence and shouldn’t be anywhere near a dating show
— Kristen (@kristendaly) March 25, 2018
Blake = 50% douche, 50% arrogant, 100% shouldn’t be given any time on a national television show #BachelorInParadiseAU
— Tahlia Pritchard (@Tahls) March 25, 2018
Yes always good to have a bloke convicted of aassault put forward as a romantic prospect #BachelorInParadiseAU
— Victorian Values (@vic_values) March 25, 2018
Many viewers also brought up an alleged revenge porn incident. His ex-girlfriend – and Bachelor alumni – Jen Hawke reported that Colman was threatened to sell her nude photos.
At the time, NSW Police would only confirm that they had received the report, and wouldn’t be commenting further on the open investigation.
Blake was charged with assault after he left a man paralysed. He was also investigated for revenge porn after threatening to sell naked photos of Jen, who is also going to be on #BachelorInParadiseAU. Wtf channel 10, this is not ok.
— Dash Jayasuriya (@gameonmoll) March 25, 2018
Blake Colman threatened his ex with revenge porn and viciously assaulted a man.
Why is he on #BachelorInParadiseAU @channelten?@NOW_aust pic.twitter.com/atjAYJUjH7— TakedownMRAs (@TakedownMRAs) March 25, 2018
Blake has actual literal criminal charges against him, he is a danger to all those women, get him the fuck off the island! #BachelorInParadiseAU
— georgia is on maternity leave! (@georgetweets2u) March 25, 2018
@channelten interesting that you had Danny Green on im a celeb in support of his cowards punch campaign yet Blake has been allowed to Paradise? Where is the logic? Don’t you run background checks? It’s actually revolting. #BachelorInParadiseAU pic.twitter.com/VJf3luTVv5
— Samantha Elizabeth 💫 (@samxo) March 25, 2018
Over the weekend, Colman told the West Australian that he “didn’t really want to be the villain” on The Bachelor and that it was simply “edited that way.”
“I had a lot to think about after the show and see how people actually viewed me as a villain, thinking that I was an actual bad guy. And I just wanted to go onto this one and really show people who I am as a person.”
As far as the assault goes, he said that “there are some things I can’t change and I made some mistakes … I can’t change the past but [I can] make the future better.”
That includes a stint as an ambassador for Happiness Co., an organisation working to prevent men’s suicide. It is not clear if Colman continues to be an ambassador, but posted once to his Instagram account about the organisation on March 11 this year, including a link to buy $150 tickets to the organisation’s upcoming cocktail event.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BgVqhgKBdVs/?taken-by=blakecolman
If this truly is a remorseful turn of events for Colman, then more power to him. But that doesn’t mean he should get a second go of it on national television to somehow “prove” he’s not a villain.
So as the Bachelor franchise continues to support Colman and use him to score ratings for their shows, here’s your friendly reminder that he doesn’t deserve to be anywhere near it.
