On May 20th, Bachelorette Australia made history after announcing the next lead, Brooke Blurton. Blurton’s season will mark the introduction of the franchise’s first Indigenous Bachelorette and first openly bisexual lead ever. Blurton, 26, hails from Western Australia and is a Noongar-Yamataji woman born to an Aboriginal-Malaysian mother and an English father. who was actually part of the sixth season of The Bachelor, (Australia) in 2018. While vying for Nick Cummins, Blurton became one of the final three contestants. However, Brooke exited the show prior to the finale. Later appearing in the spin-off series Bachelor In Paradise, Brooke explained that she left because Cummins had revealed to her that he did not intend to choose anyone.
Credit: @brooke.blurton on Instagram.
Brooke has spoken about how she takes pride in her indigenous heritage, and also gave a TEDx talk about the prejudice she faced in her youth where she touched upon the discrimination she faced for being someone who is mixed race. “I was fairer than some of the Aboriginal kids and they would call me a ‘half-caste’,” she said, “meaning I simply wasn’t Aboriginal enough for them.” “I was bullied and I was teased quite a bit, but the thing was they made me feel different. I remember being very confused at the time, thinking if I wasn’t Aboriginal enough and I wasn’t white enough where did I fit in this world? Where did I belong?”
Brooke is also a youth worker whose aim is to help at-risk Aboriginal youth to improve their lives, and is a dedicated advocate for mental health. Her motivation for her social work comes from her own experiences with trauma, saying that “It wasn’t until I kind of experienced my own mental health problem that I was like ‘this is something’”. She disclosed details about her upbringing during the same TEDx talk, detailing her struggles with her mental health and feelings of loneliness and loss.
Credit: @brooke.blurton on Instagram.
Blurton’s season will include men and women as contestants which is also a first for the series. Brooke was skeptical about this actually happening, which she expressed in an interview with The Babble podcast (prior to her being confirmed as the Bachelorette) saying that while she would be open to it, “I’m a little bit different in the sense that I date both sexes and whether Channel 10 and Warner Brothers would be up to a bi Bachelorette [is the question].” She went on to say “”I don’t know what they would think that looks like or if Australia would be ready for that.” Contrary to her ideas, the official announcement was well-received and Blurton has expressed her eagerness in her statement, “I am so ready for this.”
She continued, “Having the opportunity to choose my person and who I want in my life is a truly unique and special experience.” She also shared that her perfect person is “someone that loves me for me” and can “offer shared values and compassion for other.”