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Shine Australia has started production on an Australian version of the romance reality show The Bachelor. The series was commissioned by Network Ten and will follow a similar format to its

American parent production, which is in its 17th season. The Bachelor will feature “Australia’s most eligible bachelor on a quest to find true love”. It will debut later this year, Ten said.

ADVERTISEMENT Ten’s chief programming officer Beverley McGarvey, said in the announcement: “The Bachelor is one of the longest-running and most successful television franchises in the

world, with productions in 24 countries. We are thrilled to be working with Shine to take this iconic show and create a uniquely Australian entertainment event.” Shine Australia’s CEO Mark

Fennessy, said: “There are few marquee brands which have enjoyed the same connection with audiences worldwide as The Bachelor. We’re delighted to bring this brilliant series to Australian

viewers and look forward to introducing our very own Prince Charming.” The structure of the show sees one bachelor date a pool of around 25 women. Initially he goes on group dates before

eliminations during “rose ceremonies” where the women going through are presented with a rose. Eventually, the field of women is whittled down to one. Australia has a mixed record for dating

shows. While The Farmer Wants A Wife has been a staple for Nine, A year ago Ten announced another reality dating show, Come Date With Me, produced by Granada Media, who also produced

Seven’s Marry My Boy. However, the show was never made. Another attempt by Ten in the genre was Taken Out, hosted by James Kerley in 2008. The show failed to find an audience at 7pm, before

moving to 6pm and eventually being moved to midnight. Dating show Perfect Match ran on Ten from 1984 to 1989 before being briefly revived by Seven in 2002.