In a mansion full of bold personalities, it can be hard to stand out. That was the predicament for booted bachelorette, Sharlene, who jokes that she probably only scored “15 minutes all up” with Bachelor Matty Johnson during her time in the mansion.
During the series, viewers watching at home have even joked on social media about Sharlene’s lack of air-time, which the bubbly wedding planner laughs about now.
“I think lots of people think I’m producer!” the 26-year-old jokes. “I’m not featured much. In fact, it’s so funny, but I do think Matty will watch the show and think, ‘Who’s that?’ I don’t know if he’ll even remember me! We hardly had any time together. But the truth is, it was quite an accurate representation of the vibe I had in the house. There were big characters and lots of bold girls in there.”
Despite not getting much time with Matty, Sharlene was still “shocked” by the revelation he didn’t have any feelings for her.
“I was confused why I was still there after all those rose ceremonies despite not having a one-on-one or many group dates,” she admits, adding that she was glad he was honest about his feelings. “But before that I had thought, ‘Oh, maybe something could eventuate!”
For Sharlene, taking a backseat in the mansion was the only approach that felt genuine in a situation she described as “pretty brutal” and “toxic” at times.
“There was some bullying going on, and I hate seeing that sort of thing,” she says. “Plus, I wasn’t going to be one of the loud people for the sake of it. I wasn’t going to throw myself at him, or do something crazy just to get attention. I wanted genuine conversations. I’m quite chilled-out and just wanted to be myself, whatever happens.”
As for who’s causing drama in the house, Sharlene doesn’t name names but says it’s “obvious” to viewers. “I think everyone is portrayed as they are, but I definitely did form friendships with the girls who didn’t behave that way because I felt like they were more genuine,” she says.
Even though things didn’t go to plan, Sharlene said from the first night she still thought Matty was “lovely, looked gorgeous and ticked a lot of boxes”. But the bubbly wedding planner doesn’t believe in “love at first sight” and stands by the fact that time was against them.
“I just don’t think we got to a point where we got to know enough about each other to be able to have a spark,” she says. “I didn’t see him and think, ‘This is it!’, but I did want to get to know him.”
Since The Bachelor filming wrapped up, Sharlene reveals she has been on a few dates in Darwin, which she describes as “lovely”.
“And I still believe in love and marriage,” adds the wedding planner with a laugh.
