Hit renovation series, The Block is gearing up for a major return in 2023 but while Blockheads are on the edge of their seats, the residents where the new season is being filmed are furious.
Channel Nine sent an “intrusive” letter to the residents on Charming Street in Melbourne’s Hampton East which included some demands as filming begins.
The network revealed it would be filming a television commercial for the renovation series and asked locals to keep their cars off the street, including “modern cars” as vintage cars from the 1950s was the theme.
“We will bring various 7 x 1950s cars to park on the street and period piece props and costumes. As we are dressing the street we do request on Friday evening that you please not park on the street or in your driveways,” the letter read.
“We will film on the footpath outside house — with our camera looking towards house — and –. Can house — kindly keep any cars off site so we don’t have a modern car in the shoot. That would be greatly appreciated.”
The residents house numbers have been concealed for their privacy.
One resident revealed on Facebook they reached out with a representative as they didn’t want to park their car elsewhere.
“We requested to put our cars further up the driveway as this request was a bit much for us!” they wrote.
“It doesn’t work for us to not have the car at the house this weekend…unfortunately they didn’t consider the potential impact of people’s possible reactions.”
Another resident set up a Facebook page to share with fans the show’s every move, revealing that his home was ”smack bang” in the middle of the production and that crew had asked if they could fly a drone over his house for the next three months, presumably for aerial shots of renovation progress.
But overall, reactions to the letter was “unreasonable” and residents didn’t ask for The Block to be filmed on the street, therefore there was “no way” they would abide by those rules.
“In all seriousness, get some money out of them. Park cars on your lawn and invite someone over for a BBQ in the front yard,” one person wrote.
”The Channel Nine producers handling of it has been nothing short of a joke,” another resident said whilst others became frustrated to see the show’s top producer – Julian Cress – parking his half a million dollar Porsche on the street, with cringey personalised number plates wherever he pleased.
It remains to be seen what other demands the network will make of locals once production of the show actually commences.