Is there a stink on The Block NZ site already?

Filming is underway on the sixth season of Three’s The Block, and today Spy has the first look at the new contestants battling it out in the DIY wars.

The show hits our screens on June 25 and will be battling it out for reality TV supremacy, going up against the last weeks of TV2’s Survivor.

This season, the build is back on Auckland’s North Shore with hosts Mark Richardson and Shelley Ferguson. It’s a family affair for three of the four teams.

We can introduce Auckland identical twins Julia and Alexandra Heaney; Christchurch brothers Levi and Zachary Inglis, also known as Ling and Zing; and brothers-in-law from Hamilton Andrew Murdie and Nathan Ross. Best friends Stacey Cottrill and Yanita Mcleay, from Palmerston North, make up the fourth team.

So who are the early favourites? Each team seems to have some talents which will come in handy.

Julia and Alexandra should be strong in the design stakes, with a feature design company called Opulent. Watch these twins. They have been celebrated for their work in design festivals such as lighting up Vivid Sydney. Julia is Miss Organisation where Alexandra has the artistic flair.

Spy heard rumours that there was already tension on The Block, with the classy twins upset at one of the male team’s lack of hygiene.

No-one has owned up to being the mucky pups, but there may be clues here — Ling told Spy, Zing has bad morning breath and stinky farts. In return, Zing claims Ling is lazy and messy.

The jovial, laid-back brothers fancy their chances. Younger brother Ling is familiar with home ownership, taking on a mortgage at age 21, whilst Zing has recently finished his electrician’s apprenticeship.

But the other male team, Nathan and Andrew, also have some skills behind them. Andrew works as a fireman and makes furniture in his spare time, while Nathan is doing his builder’s apprenticeship. They’re not confessing to any hygiene issues, but say colour schemes will be their bone of contention. Andrew thinks Nathan is colour blind, while Nathan’s convinced Andrew is colour-obsessive.

Last up we have Stacey and Yanita. Stacey has renovated three houses and a commercial building. Yanita doesn’t have the same experience but reckons her student life means she’s a budgeting pro, and her well-documented past research skills and quick thinking should come in handy as the teams look to pocket big bucks from their home makeovers.

This article was first published on Spy and is republished here with permission.