‘Pulling a Bradbury’ has become something of an iconic Aussie phrase for an unexpected victory, but unfortunately Steven Bradbury was unable to repeat his famous move on Australian Survivor this year.
After his early plan to establish a sporting alliance amongst the Champions, the Olympic gold medallist’s plan backfired after the team turned against him and when Nova Peris was booted out, he knew he was next to go.
We chatted to Steve about all things Survivor plus, the sweet life lesson he learned from his time on the Fijian island.
TV WEEK: You seemed pretty certain you were going to be sent home. Were you surprised by the turnout of the vote?
Steven: No, I wasn’t. I was pretty sure that I was the only person not voting for me that night.
TV WEEK: Your fake idol plan was a pretty good one, did you think you’d be able to get away with it?
Steven: Not really, I was throwing out a last-ditch effort. Being the person who put together the sporting alliance and it disintegrated, my head was on the chopping block from that point and I knew it was a matter of time.
If the Champions lose the next immunity challenge then either Simon or ET, I’d be almost certain would be the next ones to go.
Olympic champion Steven was unable to ‘pull a Bradbury’ this time round.
(Image: Network Ten)TV WEEK: There are some big characters on the Champions team, do you reckon a Champion could win?
Steven: Most certainly, I think it’s only a matter of days until a tribe swap and with the numbers so uneven from one tribe to the other I think that there will probably be large numbers of people being swapped so that the whole game gets thrown on its head and who knows where you’ll land there? You might go from a very weak position to a strong position or the other way around?
I felt quite a few times out there that I was sort of stuck somewhere between real life and the game.
READ MORE: Is Survivor Australia real or fake?
TV WEEK: Was that something that surprised you during your time on the island?
Steven: I think I had a feeling and that was why I wanted to quickly put together the sporting alliance and having the numbers straight away because that made the game a lot simpler.
In my head if you’re an athlete then you know how to stick to a plan and you’re disciplined and it took away all of the game play and would allow us to enjoy the experience of being on the island and enjoy doing the challenges and have a laugh at the same time.
WATCH: Nova talks her elimination on Australian Survivor. Post continues after video…
TV WEEK: As a former Olympian, do you think coming from an athletic background is a big advantage on Survivor?
Steven: I think it is, yeah. I didn’t struggle with the survival side of the show at all, the sleeping on the ground, the lack of food, the change in environment. All that sort of stuff was pretty comfortable and all the challenges were exhilarating and so much fun. We’ve got a lot of people who spent a lot of time and energy and money designing those challenge courses and it was kind of like a playground for adults.
If you had a rough night where you were wet and cold and sleeping on the ground because it was raining and it was windy, you always had in the back of your mind that there was another challenge coming up tomorrow and I can’t wait for that.
Steven described the Survivor challenges “like a playground for adults.”
(Image: Network Ten)TV WEEK: Surely you must’ve struggled with the food situation?
Steven: Not really. The first day or two I suppose my body was adapting, I had a bit of a migraine for about a day, day and a half whilst I suppose my body was detoxing from all the preservatives and crap that I put into it in the food I eat back here. But once I adjusted, it was pretty quick and I felt like I was getting stronger every day. The rice and beans, especially the beans, weren’t particularly tasty but you’re not going on Survivor and expecting to eat gourmet meals.
TV WEEK: So now you’re back in the real world will you be sticking to rice and beans?
Steven: (Laughs) Definitely not! I’ll be more than happy to leave the beans behind. I’ve had my fill of coconut too!
No more rice and beans for Steve!
(Image: Network Ten)TV WEEK: What was the biggest learning lesson you got from your time on the island?
Steven: I think I was able to do some soul searching, you know there’s a fair bit of time out there. I’m not the kind of person who can sit there and chat away all day every day. I love a good conversation but I also like time by myself and I was able to have plenty of that on Survivor and I was able to think about some of the things in my life that are important that I probably take for granted back home just because I’m in routines and I’m busy all the time.
Since I’ve returned I think I’ve been able to put some more time into my relationship with my wife and my kids. They’re the most important things and I was able to think about some strategies on how to stop taking things for granted so much.
Steven is backing his fellow Champions Simon Black (pictured) and ET.
(Image: Instagram @stevenbradburyofficial)TV WEEK: So who do you think will win?
Steven: I’m hoping that somehow Simon and ET can hang on but it’s highly unlikely. Hopefully they get a long way through the game but in Survivor, generally the person with physical fitness and strength at some point is seen as too much of a threat and they get ganged up on by people who are not physical and seen to sneak along in the background and don’t get noticed too much. The other people think they can vote them out whenever they feel like it but then they can’t.
It’s all about the numbers and if you’re not physically strong, it doesn’t change the size of your vote.
