To take a line out of Jimmy Nicholson‘s book, fans of The Bachelor Australia were “blindsided” last night when he sent home Carlie Hodges. I assume it’s because she’s too perfect. I’m still mad about it, clearly.
We chatted to Carlie about being the fan favourite for many and why she thinks Jimmy sent her home in the end. Here’s what she had to say about her time on The Bachelor Australia.
PEDESTRIAN.TV: What was it like reliving being called ‘predictable’ by Jimmy?
Carlie Hodges: [Laughs] I remember that being very awkward for a minute. I was laughing watching that back last night, because I knew what he was trying to say. I think it was evident from when we were on the camping trip, for example, that he really – I think he almost sought refuge in me a fair few times because he knew that I was solid and he knew I wasn’t getting involved in the girl drama.
I think he was trying to explain to my family that I was a calming presence to him and he knew that. I guess I was predictable in the sense that I wasn’t going to fly off the handle and he knew that I was solid with him.
PTV: It looked like you had such a genuinely strong connection with Jimmy, so did we miss something? We were just so shocked to see you go.
CH: [Laughs] I know! Um, I don’t think anything was missed. When I left and Jimmy and I had a conversation before I hopped into the limo, it really came down to just something missing for him. That kind of thing you can’t quite put your finger on, which I completely understand.
I think the other women in the experience had fallen pretty hard and deep and I was certainly on my way, but I wasn’t there yet. Maybe that’s because I’m in my 30s and I had more to think about and I wasn’t wanting to rush into a relationship, so I think we were just more of a slower burn and when you don’t have time on your side and you trust your experiences, you kind of just go with your gut and that’s what we had to do.
PTV: Did you have a feeling you were going home?
CH: Weirdly yes, but for no particular reason. I’d had an emotional couple of days between hometowns and the rose ceremony and I couldn’t really put my finger on it. So when I didn’t receive a rose it was almost like, “Oh, was my intuition telling me something?”
So although there was a reason for me to think I was going home, I wasn’t overly shocked by it either. And also, I guess I understood that although I saw this as equally being my journey and my love story – this whole process is actually about Jimmy and Jimmy choosing who he wants to be with, so I guess I was a bit realistic knowing that that could happen at any time. You could be blindsided – stealing a Jimmy line – but yeah I guess I’m just understanding of the process as well.
PTV: What was the goodbye like?
CH: It was really nice! [Laughs] It was really respectful and lovely. We gave each other a big hug and both said that we’d miss each other and that we’d hope we could be friends with each other in the future, which I definitely think we will be. We’ve got a real mutual respect for each other and love each other as people, we just weren’t right as a couple. It was sad obviously, but I thanked him for being so open and allowing me to be so open with him.
I really do think he reminded me that amazing guys do exist and he also probably helped me through a couple of little things that I wanted to work on with who I was in a relationship. He was just so easy to be open with and I was really appreciative that he helped draw that out of me.
PTV: So many people were so shocked to see you go, what has the online response been like?
CH: Oh, it’s crazy! It’s overwhelming – I didn’t think that Australia would care about me so much, I guess. Going into the experience you know you will have some kind of public presence for a short period of time and you don’t know what that’s going to look like. So you kind of have to brace yourself a bit, but seeing how disgustingly positive it’s been and how loving it’s been has been so overwhelming. It’s made reliving this process that little bit easier.
PTV: So, what are your thoughts on the final three?
CH: Despite the way that some of them have been portrayed, they’re all beautiful people in different ways. And I think it’s clear that Jimmy has feelings for all three. Um, I know that Holly [Kingston] and my friendship has been mentioned a lot and we are so close, so I’m gunning for Holly because she’s my bestie and I just know how awesome and amazing she is, and what she can offer her partner. So I’m hoping he’ll choose Holly.
The Bachelor Australia airs 7.30pm, Wednesdays and Thursdays on Channel 10.
