The Block fan favourites return to TV for brand new renovation series: 'So excited'
Three years after competing on The Block, Rachel and Ryan Carr are returning to TV with a brand new renovation series. The fan favourite couple have set themselves a challenge to transform a tired property on the South Coast of New South Wales into their dream holiday home on Holiday Home Makeover with Rachel and Ryan.
Speaking with Yahoo Lifestyle ahead of the show's premiere on Sunday, Rachel and Ryan admit they're 'so excited' for Australia to see a different side to them following their tumultuous experience on The Block. Fans would remember that the couple famously replaced Elle Ferguson and Joel Patful after they quit the reality show on day two, and were only given 30 hours' notice before joining the cast.
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'We had a very different Block experience than the majority of The Block contestants in that we got there late,' Rachel reflects. 'It was mayhem, and it took us a couple of weeks to really find our feet, so I don't think that the viewers got to see as much of the fun and the funny.
'So I feel like you're gonna see more of who we are and the fun that we like to have, and mix that in with the kind of renovation that we like to do, and you see our kids and the family. What you're seeing now is truly us.'
Rachel and Ryan explain that they bought the property in 2023 shortly after they competed on The Block and quickly came up with the plan to transform it into an 'elevated reno' that's both a holiday home and a holiday rental.
'We were like, we want to take the best bits of luxury hotels and transform that with the best bits of a home and make this hybrid holiday rental that we can also have for our family too,' Rachel details. 'We were talking to the network about it, and we were like, 'Why don't we film it?'. And it just took off from there.'
After filming took place and the renovation was completed, the series was then reworked by Channel Nine over the past year to become a primetime show.
'They took what we had and they have elevated it and made it this absolutely bells and whistles prime time show,' Rachel says, while Ryan adds, 'It was worth waiting around for'.
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The couple admit the project was definitely 'a lot of work', and they couldn't have done it without their prior experience on The Block.
'Before going on The Block, there's no way we could have committed to a 14-week renovation that big,' Ryan shares.
'Coming off something like that, you realise what you're actually capable of,' Rachel agrees. 'We were in that momentum at that point. We were like, 'Let's just get in there and get it started and let's make it bigger'. We were riding that train.'
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Rachel and Ryan add that while they were happy to put pressure on themselves to complete the renovation in a 14-week timeframe, they wouldn't have enjoyed the experience as much if it were in a competition setting.
'This is something we've always wanted to do, so we just had enough pressure riding on that and thought, we've got to nail this,' Ryan says. 'We want people to see it, and we also want to impress ourselves on what we can do.'
'And we reveal to a few special people along the way,' Rachel teases. 'There are a few special people who come in there who really know and understand holiday homes and design, and they give their feedback. So it's really nice.'
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