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Darren McMullen reveals how one cheeky moment has haunted him

'I'm better behaved now.'
Darren McMullen

The incident happened in โ€จa flash a decade ago. But โ€จjust a single moment of bad behaviour has dogged TV personality Darren McMullen for years.

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The Scottish-born host of Channel Sevenโ€™s new show Behave Yourself! wore a kilt to the MTV Australia โ€จVideo Music Awards in 2007.

In a cheeky moment, he hiked up โ€จhis kilt and showed his naked rear โ€จend to the photographers.

The photo of Darrenโ€™s hijinks can โ€จstill be found on the internet, a reminder of a moment he wishes he could undo.

Darren on the MTV Australia โ€จVideo Music Awards red carpet.

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โ€œI made a lot of mistakes publicly,โ€ the 35-year-old tells TV WEEK.

The prank struck a bum note in the popular presenterโ€™s career โ€“ and financially, the publicity cost him dearly.

Darren says he was close to signing a lucrative deal with a Swiss watch company last year, only for it to fall through in the final stages.

โ€œTheir legal department had googled me and seen that photo,โ€ he explains. โ€œOn the basis of that, they said I wasnโ€™t the right fit for the brand.

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Darren has lost potential business opportunities because of his cheeky moment.

โ€œIt was one of those moments where your past comes back to haunt you.โ€

The star can still see the funny side of making an arse of himself 10 years ago.

โ€œIโ€™d still probably do it now โ€“ as โ€จa 35-year-old man,โ€ he laughs.

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That same photo almost ruined his chances of a relationship with his now girlfriend of three years, American actress Crystal Reed.

She was one of โ€จthe stars of the MTV series Teen Wolf.

โ€œShortly after we met, we went to โ€จa bar in LA with a big group and took two cars on the way,โ€ he explains.

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โ€œUnbeknownst to me, she had googled me while in the car with her girlfriends.โ€

Yet again the cheeky snap came up for Crystal and her friends to see.

โ€œShe said, โ€˜I wanted to make sure you were legit and not some creep โ€“ and there you are with your b***s out!โ€™โ€ Darren laughs.

He talked his way out of the prickly situation by explaining it was just an instant of bad behaviour, captured โ€จby the media.

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In Darrenโ€™s new hosting role on Behave Yourself!, he gets to shine the spotlight on other celebrities to find out โ€จtheir little quirks and embarrassing traits.

โ€œIโ€™d say itโ€™s a social science quiz show,โ€ Darren says of the new format.

โ€œEssentially, we explore all of the weird, wacky and irrational things humans do. We use loads of research and science and have a panel of six celebrities discussing it.โ€

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Among the names joining in the fun are Kris Smith, Guy Sebastian, Claire Hooper, Kerri-Anne Kennerley, Nazeem Hussain, Gina Liano and Michala Banas.

The Scottish funnyman doesnโ€™t take himself too seriously.

There was one person Darren was most excited about having on the show.

โ€œI knew Shane Warne was going to โ€จbe a lot of fun,โ€ he says of the Aussie cricketing great. โ€œHe more than delivered. I just hope we can use โ€จit all with the timeslot weโ€™re in!

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โ€œHeโ€™s a true character and a great laugh too. He doesnโ€™t mind taking a jab at himself, which is great.โ€

Like Warnie, Darren is happy to make himself the butt of the joke. He admits he carried the โ€œbad boyโ€ tag for a chunk of his career, but says heโ€™s shaken it off.

โ€œIโ€™m a lot better behaved now,โ€ the star insists. โ€œI just needed the love of a good woman to settle me down.โ€

Kate Langbroek and Shane Warne on Behave Yourself!

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As for when he will marry Crystal, Darren concedes he might have missed the opportunity of a romantic proposal.

The pair enjoyed a four-week holiday in Italy earlier this year.

All his family and friends imagined he would pop โ€จthe question then.

โ€œNobody can believe I didnโ€™t,โ€ โ€จhe laughs. โ€œTheyโ€™re all saying, โ€˜Youโ€™re not going to beat that trip to Italy, so anything you โ€จdo now wonโ€™t be as good!โ€™

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โ€œI probably should have done something there, because youโ€™ll never top that, but it just wasnโ€™t on the cards.โ€

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