The Block NZ is a New Zealand reality television series based on the popular Australian series The Block. The first season premiered on Three on 4 July 2012.

The Block NZ
GenreReality
Created by
  • Julian Cress
  • David Barbour
Based onThe Block
Presented by
JudgesSee list of judges
Country of originNew Zealand
No. of seasons10
No. of episodes417
Production
ProducerAaron Dolbel[2]
Production locations
Running time60 – 120 minutes
Production companyWarner Bros. International Television Production
Original release
NetworkThree
Release4 July 2012 (2012-07-04) –
9 October 2022 (2022-10-09)

The show is hosted by former New Zealand cricketer Mark Richardson and Shelley Ferguson,[1][non-primary source needed] while Peter Wolfkamp serves as site foreman. It follows four couples as they compete against each other to completely renovate, room by room, four neighbouring houses in Auckland,[5][6] and then sell them at auction. Each couple keeps any profit made on the house, and the winner receives a bonus cash sum.[6]

The current main sponsors are paint manufacturer Resene, car manufacturer Suzuki, flooring retailer Flooring Xtra, and fast food chain Subway. Throughout seasons 1–2, car manufacturer Mazda was also a main sponsor, but for season 3, the sponsorship was awarded to car manufacturer Honda.[7] Other previous sponsors include Bunnings, BP's Wild Bean Cafe, AMI Insurance and Pita Pit.

The series premiered in Australia on 9Go! on 12 August 2012.

The eleventh series, which was set to air in 2023, was originally postponed to 2024 due to a "challenging house market" and the dismal results of the 10th season.[8][9] However in May 2024, despite the 11th season being almost ready for filming, Warner Bros. Discovery cancelled the series due to the network restructure.[10][11][12]

Development

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The show was initially announced on 24 February 2012, when a casting call went out[13] and saw over 1,000 couples apply.[14] The four couples selected for the first season were announced on the official Facebook page on 17 June 2012.[15][non-primary source needed]

Hosts and judges

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Timeline of hosts, judges and other personnel
Starring Season
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Current
Mark Richardson[1] Host
Shelley Ferguson[1][16] Judge Host Judge
Jason Bonham[17][18] Judge Judge Judge
Peter Wolfkamp[19] Site foreman
Former
Shannon Ryan[1] Host
Victoria Bidwell[20] Judge
Stewart Harris[20] Judge
Janice Kumar-Ward[21] Judge
Jeremy Hansen[21] Judge
Mark Gascoigne[16] Judge
Fiona McLeod Judge
Paul Izzard Judge
Bernadette Morrison[17][18] Judge Judge
Kristina Rapley Judge
Lizzi Whaley Judge
Chris Stevens Judge
Ann-Louise Hyde Judge
Lauren Mirabito Judge

Series overview

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Season Title Location Episodes Originally aired Result
Season premiere Season finale People's Choice Award winner Winning team Winning profit (NZD) Total profit
1 2012 Takapuna, Auckland 20 4 July 2012 (2012-07-04)[22] 6 September 2012 (2012-09-06) Not awarded Libby & Ben Crawford $157,000 $237,000
2 2013 Belmont, Auckland 31 26 August 2013 (2013-august-26) 4 November 2013 (2013-november-04) Pete & Andy Alice & Caleb Pearson $181,000 $261,000
3 2014 Point Chevalier, Auckland 49 26 August 2014 (2014-august-26) 18 November 2014 (2014-november-18) Jo & Damo Alex & Corban Walls $227,000 $307,000
4 Villa Wars Sandringham and Three Kings, Auckland 40 29 September 2015 (2015-september-29) 6 December 2015 (2015-december-06) Cat & Jeremy Brooke Thompson & Mitch Davies $190,000 $290,000
5 Girls Vs. Boys Meadowbank, Auckland 46 29 May 2016 (2016-may-29) 14 August 2016 (2016-august-14) Dyls Cossey & Dylz Guitink Sam Cable & Emmett Vallender $380,000 $480,000
6 Side X Side Northcote, North Shore, Auckland 49 25 June 2017 (2017-june-25) 17 September 2017 (2017-september-17) Andy Murdie & Nate Ross Andy Murdie & Nate Ross $31,000 $131,000
7 On Point Hobsonville, Auckland 49 8 July 2018 (2018-July-08) 30 September 2018 (2018-September-30) Amy Moore & Stu Watts Amy Moore & Stu Watts $69,500 $169,500
8 Firehouse Kingsland, Auckland 48 17 June 2019 (2019-06-17) 8 September 2019 (2019-September-08) Sam Whatarangi & Ethan Ordish Lisa Ridout-Gordon & Chris "Ribz" Gordon $50,000 $150,000
9 2021 Point Chevalier, Auckland 48 14 June 2021[23] 14 November 2021 Dylan & Keegan Crawford Tim Cotton & Arthur "Arty" Gillies $660,000 $760,000
10 Redemption Orewa, Auckland 37 18 July 2022 9 October 2022 Maree & James Steele Chloe Hes & Ben Speedy $4,000 $104,000

Profits

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Season No. of teams No. of properties sold at auction Winning Prize Average auction profit Combined auction profit1
1 2012 4 $80,000 $58,000 $232,000
2 2013 4 $74,750 $299,000
3 2014 4 $111,250 $445,000
4 2015 4 $100,000 $158,250 $633,000
5 2016 4 $245,250 $981,000
6 2017 4 $16,250 $65,000
7 2018 4 $51,362.50 $205,450
8 2019 4 2 $50,000 $50,000
9 2021 4 $537,500 $2,150,000
10 2022 4 2 $1,025 $4,100
Overall combined profit $5,060,450
Including Prize Money ($840,000) $5,900,450
  • ^1 The combined auction profit excludes the winning prize money

Returning teams

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Contestants Relationship Original season Returning season Combined profit
Quinn & Ben Alexandre Married 3 $40,000 10 $0 $40,000
Chloe Hes
&
Ben Speedy2
Friends 7 $11,500
&
$57,000
10 $104,000[24] $63,500
&
$109,000
Maree & James Steele Married 3 $147,000 10 $100 $147,100
Stacy & Adam Middleton Married 8 $0 10 $0 $0
  • ^2 Chloe and Ben originally appeared on the same season, however in separate teams. They returned to season 10 as a team.

Season synopses

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Season 1

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The first season of The Block NZ premiered on 4 July 2012 and ended on 6 September 2012. It is set in the Auckland suburb of Takapuna.

House Auction spot Couple Reserve Auction Result Profit Total Winnings Placing spot
1 4 Rachel & Tyson $798,000 $798,000 $0 $0 4th
2 2 Sarah & Rich $806,000 $870,000 $64,000 $64,000 2nd
3 1 Libby & Ben $804,000 $961,000 $157,000 $237,000 1st
4 3 Ginny & Rhys $794,000 $805,000 $11,000 $11,000 3rd

Season 2

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The second season of The Block NZ premiered on 26 August 2013 and ended on 4 November 2013. It is set in the Auckland suburb of Belmont.

House Auction spot Couple Reserve Auction Result Profit Total Winnings Placing spot
1 3 Alice & Caleb $945,000 $1.126m $181,000 $260,000 1st
2 4 Alisa & Koan $948,000 $1.014m $66,000 $66,000 2nd
3 1 Pete & Andy $925,000 $952,000 $27,000 $27,000 3rd
4 2 Loz & Tom $922,000 $947,000 $25,000 $25,000 4th

Season 3

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The third season of The Block NZ premiered on 26 August 2014 and ended on 18 November 2014. It is set in the Auckland suburb of Point Chevalier, the first time the Block was held outside of the North Shore.

House Auction spot Couple Reserve Auction Result Profit Total Winnings Placing spot
1 3 Quinn & Ben $1.325m $1.335m $10,000 $10,000 4th
2 2 Maree & James $1.325m $1.472m $147,000 $147,000 2nd
3 1 Alex & Corban $1.325m $1.552m $227,000 $307,000 1st
4 4 Jo & Damo $1.325m $1.386m $61,000 $61,000 3rd

Season 4

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The fourth season of The Block NZ premiered on 29 September 2015. It is set on the boundary of the Auckland suburbs of Sandringham and Three Kings.[25] The title for the fourth season was The Block NZ: Villa Wars.[26]

House Auction spot Couple Reserve Auction Result Profit Total Winnings Placing spot
1 3 Jamie & Hayden $1.175m $1.335m $160,000 $160,000 2nd (tie)
2 2 Sarah & Minanne $1.149m $1.272m $123,000 $123,000 4th
3 4 Cat & Jeremy $1.160m $1.320m $160,000 $160,000 2nd (tie)
4 1 Brooke & Mitch $1.160m $1.350m $190,000 $290,000 1st

Season 5

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The fifth season of The Block NZ premiered on 29 May 2016 and is set in the Auckland suburb of Meadowbank.[27] The title of this series is "Girls vs Boys", with two of the teams being made up of females and the other two made up with males.[28] It has netted the highest combined profits of $981,000.[29]

House Auction spot Couple Reserve Auction Result Profit Total Winnings Placing spot
1 1 Niki & Tiff $1,170,000 $1,320,000 $150,000 $150,000 4th
2 3 Dyls & Dylz $1,190,000 $1,341,000 $151,000 $151,000 3rd
3 2 Emma & Courtney $1,210,000 $1,510,000 $300,000 $300,000 2nd
4 4 Sam & Emmett $1,230,000 $1,610,000 $380,000 $480,000 1st

Season 6

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The sixth season premiered on 25 June 2017.[30] It is set in the Auckland suburbs of Northcote, North Shore.[31] The title of this series is "Side X Side", as each of the houses were large 4-storey townhouses, the largest houses in terms of floor area in The Block NZ. It had a combined profits ($65,000), and it also saw the first time a house did not meet reserve, but got the highest bid on the re-sell.[29]

House Auction spot Couple Reserve Auction Result Profit Total Winnings Placing spot
1 1 Ling & Zing $1,299,000 $1,300,000 $1,000 $1,000 4th
2 2 & 5[a] Andy & Nate $1,219,000 $1,250,000 $31,000 $131,000 1st
3 3 Julia & Ali $1,229,000 $1,242,000 $13,000 $13,000 3rd
4 4 Stace & Yanita $1,251,000 $1,271,000 $20,000 $20,000 2nd

Season 7

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The seventh season premiered on 8 July 2018. It is set in the Auckland suburb of Hobsonville. The title of this series is "On Point".

House Auction spot Couple Reserve Auction Result Profit Total Winnings Placing spot
1 2 Claire & Agni $920,000 $950,000 $30,000 $30,000 3rd
2 1 Ben & Tom $930,000 $987,000 $57,000 $57,000 2nd
3 4 Chlo & Em $910,000 $921,500 $11,500 $11,500 4th
4 3 Amy & Stu $940,000 $1,009,500 $69,500 $169,500 1st

Season 8

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The eighth season premiered on 17 June 2019. It is set in the Auckland suburb of Kingsland. The title of this series is "Firehouse", as the contestants are renovating apartments in an old fire station.

Apt Auction spot Couple Reserve Auction Result Profit Total Winnings Placing spot
1 3 Stacy & Adam $1,480,000 $1,480,000 (after auction) $0 $0 2nd
2 1 Lisa & Ribz $1,290,000 $1,340,000 $50,000 $150,000 1st
3 2 Ethan & Sam $1,390,000 $1,390,000 $0 $0 2nd
4 4 Sophia & Mikaere >$1,600,000 $1,600,000 (after auction) $0 $0 2nd

Season 9

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The ninth series premiered on 14 June 2021. It is the second season to be set in the Auckland suburb of Point Chevalier. Production began in 2020 but was paused for 13 months due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[32]

House Auction Spot Team Reserve Auction Result Profit Total Winnings Placing spot
1 4th Connie & Rach $2,270,000 $2,692,000 $422,000 $422,000 4th
2 3rd Meg & Dan $2,222,000 $2,700,000 $478,000 $478,000 3rd
3 2nd Dylan & Keegan $2,155,000 $2,745,000 $590,000 $590,000 + Suzuki Jimny 2nd
4 1st Tim & Arthur $2,165,000 $2,825,000 $660,000 $760,000 1st

Season 10

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The tenth series of The Block premiered on 18 July 2022. It is set in the Auckland server of Orewa, and features contestants from previous seasons.

The series was won by Chloe & Ben, however it is the current lowest auction to date as they only went over the reserve by $4,000, then Maree & James by only $100, whilst the other two teams homes were passed in and received nothing, making only a combined profit of $4,100.[33] After the auction, TSB New Zealand (sponsor of the series) gifted Quinn and Ben, Maree and James & Stacey and Adam with $10,000 each for the hard work and failing to achieve a profit.[34]

House Auction Spot Team Reserve Auction Result Profit Total Winnings Placing spot
1 2nd Quinn & Ben $1.199m Passed in $0 $10,000 3rd=
2 4th Chloe & Ben $1.141m $1,145,000 $4000 $104,000 1st
3 3rd Maree & James $1.152m $1,152,100 $100 $10,100 + a Suzuki Vitara JLX[35] 2nd
4 1st Stacy & Adam $1.148m Passed in $0 $10,000 3rd=

Notes

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  1. ^ House was passed in as the reserve was not met the first time, and then went back to auction after fourth auction was complete.

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e "The Block NZ's photo". Facebook. 20 May 2012. Retrieved 31 August 2014. Big news – the hosts of The Block NZ have been announced! We've got sports star turned broadcaster Mark Richardson as the show host and the gorgeous Shannon Ryan will join him as the challenge presenter. Bring It On!
  2. ^ Smithies, Grant (25 June 2017). "The Questionnaire: The Block NZ's Aaron Dolbel". Stuff. Retrieved 25 June 2017.
  3. ^ "The Block gears up for Auckland inner-city sites". New Zealand Herald. 19 April 2015. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  4. ^ "The Block 2016: The 'secret' location is out". 22 February 2016.
  5. ^ Hallahan, Marnie (31 May 2012). "Bargains on The Block". North Shore Times – via Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 31 August 2014.
  6. ^ a b "About The Block NZ". Three. Retrieved 31 August 2014.
  7. ^ Springall, Lesley. "The Block NZ – leveraged to perfection". Retrieved 21 October 2014.
  8. ^ Thomson, Lucy (30 November 2022). "House Rules NZ coming in 2023 as The Block NZ postponed due to 'challenging' housing market". Newshub. Retrieved 1 December 2022.
  9. ^ Hawkes, Colleen (30 November 2022). "The Block NZ is postponed due to 'challenging housing market'". Stuff. Retrieved 1 December 2022.
  10. ^ Hawkes, Colleen (14 May 2024). "The Block NZ cancelled as homes near completion". Stuff. Retrieved 14 May 2024.
  11. ^ Bevan, Darren (14 May 2024). "The Block NZ cancelled, won't return for new season". News Hub. Retrieved 14 May 2024.
  12. ^ Knox, David (14 May 2024). "New Zealand axes local version of The Block". TV Tonight. Retrieved 14 May 2024.
  13. ^ "TV3's The Block searching for contestants". newshub.co.nz. 24 February 2012. Retrieved 30 October 2016.
  14. ^ "The Block NZ contestants revealed". 3news.co.nz. 21 June 2012. Retrieved 31 August 2014.
  15. ^ "The Block NZ photo". Facebook.com. 17 June 2012. Retrieved 31 August 2014. The Block has finally come NZ and we're thrilled to announce the teams! Meet Sarah & Rich from Hamilton, Libby & Ben from CHCH & AKL, Ginny & Rhys from New Plymouth and Rachel & Ty from Wellington! Who will nail it? The Block NZ, Wednesdays and Thursdays from 4th July on TV3. C'Mon now!
  16. ^ a b "Meet the new Block NZ judges". Stuff. 10 July 2014. Retrieved 23 August 2014.
  17. ^ a b "Home".
  18. ^ a b "The Block NZ 2017: Judges revealed". Newshub.
  19. ^ "Home".
  20. ^ a b "Lights, camera... DIY". 27 May 2012. Retrieved 31 August 2014.
  21. ^ a b "Q&A with The Block NZ Judges". tv3.co.nz. Retrieved 31 August 2014.
  22. ^ "The Block NZ contestants revealed". 3 News. 21 June 2012. Retrieved 17 August 2014.
  23. ^ Hawkes, Colleen (11 June 2021). "What we really don't want to see on The Block NZ". i.stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 11 June 2021.
  24. ^ divided between each other for $52,000
  25. ^ "The Block gears up for Auckland inner-city sites". New Zealand Herald. 19 April 2015. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  26. ^ "The Block NZ Villa Wars". 10 September 2015. Retrieved 24 August 2014.
  27. ^ "CONTESTANT SEARCH: The Block NZ 2016". tv3.co.nz. TV3. Retrieved 3 January 2016.
  28. ^ "The Block NZ: Girls Vs Boys". Newshub.
  29. ^ a b "Social media lashes out at two attempts to sell winning Block house". New Zealand Herald. 17 September 2017. ISSN 1170-0777. Retrieved 18 September 2017.
  30. ^ "The Block NZ's Mark Richardson reveals what's different about this year's show". i.stuff.co.nz. Stuff. 18 June 2017. Retrieved 19 June 2017.
  31. ^ "The Block NZ heads to the North Shore". Newshub. 11 June 2017. Retrieved 25 June 2017.
  32. ^ Hawkes, Colleen (7 May 2020). "Coronavirus: The Block NZ postponed till 2021 due to Covid-19". i.stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 27 May 2020.
  33. ^ Hawkes, Colleen (9 October 2022). "Shock on The Block NZ: Chloe and Ben win at auction amid tears and disappointment". i.stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 10 October 2022.
  34. ^ Sadler, Rachel (11 October 2022). "The Block NZ: TSB giving three losing teams $10,000 each". Newshub. Newshub. Retrieved 20 October 2022.
  35. ^ as votes by the viewers
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