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And that’s thanks to the women who’ve been cast as contestants: Ranging in age from 51 to 66, they’re all hoping for another chance at love with the “Golden Bachelor” himself, Canadian widow Bear, 61. He’s a nice enough presence on screen – handsome but so quiet that at one stage during the premiere cocktail party, host Sam Armytage had to check in with him and ask if he was actually OK. But it’s the women who really shone in the premiere, a diverse bunch of ladies who bring a little more depth to the show compared to younger Bach seasons. One standout moment came courtesy of this season’s eldest contestant, 66-year-old “age transformation coach” Jan (whatever that job is, she must be good at it, because she looks about 42). MORE: Aussie TV stars cashing in on secret deals Sitting down on a sofa with Bear for a one-on-one chat, Jan puts her cards on the table and opens up about a deeply personal issue. Her eyes well with tears as she details her long journey to acceptance that she’d never be a mother: A partner’s infertility, several unsuccessful rounds of IVF, and then a painful divorce at 40. “It took me a long, long time to get over that and realise that … that I wasn’t going to be a mother,” she said, as father-of-three Bear took her hand and listened intently. That moment of vulnerability struck a chord with viewers, who flooded Nine’s social media overnight with comments declaring Jan their early pick for winner of the season. “She’s elegant and honest about her struggles,” one viewer wrote. “This broke me today. Survivors like you. Make us better,” said another. “What a beautiful and elegant lady … she would have been an amazing mumma, so sad she didn’t get that chance,” wrote another viewer. And that wasn’t the only moving moment in last night’s premiere: Bear also sat down for a heart-to-heart with another contestant, 60-year-old Queensland doctor Kim, and soon discovered that they had more in common than he’d thought. Bear had lost his wife to cancer 14 years ago, he explained – to which Kim responded that she’d been widowed not once but twice. She’d lost her first husband in her 20s in an aeroplane accident, and her second to ill health in recent years. It provided a moment you previously couldn’t have dreamt of during previous Bach premieres: Two sixty-something singles, quietly forming an instant connection over the sort of trauma that only comes once you’ve actually lived a life. Genuine human connection, at a Bach cocktail party? Try as I might, I’ve never been able to get into The Bachelor over the years, but after last night’s premiere, this might be the first season I actually watch.
