Australian Survivor: ‘Brains v Brawn’ viewers were left puzzled on Tuesday after host Jonathan LaPaglia announced that fan favourite Ben Bylett had left the show.
After an outpouring of sympathy from fans asking for an explanation, the Sunshine Coast dad has taken to his social media to reveal that his hasty exit came after he experienced an ‘unexplained’ medical emergency.
In a shock revelation, Ben said that once back home, it was discovered that he had come down with a severe case of pneumonia.
‘As you saw last night, my Survivor journey has come to an end,’ he said on the Instagram video which he posted on Wednesday to thank his followers.
‘Not the way I dreamed of it happening, it is what it is you know,’ a disappointed Ben added.
In his lengthy share, Ben explained that before he was flown off the filming location of Upolo, Samoa’s main island so he could receive treatment, he was already nursing a torn calf muscle he got during the water challenge.
Australian Survivor : Brains v Viewers were left puzzled on Tuesday after host Jonathan LaPaglia announced that fan favourite Ben Bylett (pictured) had left the show
After an outpouring of sympathy from fans asking for an explanation the Sunshine Coast dad has taken to his social media to reveal that his hasty exit came after he experienced an ‘unexplained’ medical emergency – which turned out to be pneumonia. (Pictured)
‘It wasn’t shown much on TV, but it was a tricky injury and something I had to battle through,” he explain.
To make matters worse, Ben ended up spending several nights in the rain, ‘sleeping in a puddle’ in a big pen.
‘I got really sick [after that],’ the Mount Coolum businessman explained.
He continued: ‘Long story short after the hoop challenge I re-tweaked my calf muscle and I couldn’t catch my breath for hours afterwards…
‘Unfortunately for me, I was put on the next plane home, and I was treated for what turned out to be pretty severe case of pneumonia.’
Ben also shared that he lost 13kg during his three and a half weeks on the show and that he was still recovering from his case of pneumonia.
To top it off Ben said he reckoned that he had entered the show while suffering from an undiagnosed bout of Ross River Fever, a virus spread by mosquito bites.
‘Survivor is no joke. It’s a real challenge and challenging conditions,’ he said, revealing that he had returned to his home in Queensland after losing 24 kgs over three and a half weeks spent filming the show.
In his lengthy share Ben explained that before he was flown off Upolo, Samoa’s main island so he could receive treatment, he was already nursing a torn calf muscle he got during the water challenge. To make matters worse he also revealed he entered the competition with an undiagnosed case of Ross River Fever. Pictured: The cast
It comes after Ben, a stonemason, told the Gold Coast Bulletin last month that he had been dreaming about competing on Survivor for 25 years.
He said he was first introduced to the franchise in 2000 when he caught the US version of the global hit.
‘I knew even back then that I wanted to have a crack at testing myself out in the elements playing the world’s best game,’ Ben told the publication.
‘Fast forward to Australian Survivor starting 10 years ago, I jumped straight into applying and after many, many attempts, persistence paid off and off to Samoa I went.’
The cast for the latest season of long-running reality series sees two teams battling it out to win a $500,000 cash prize.
The competition is split into two groups: ‘Brains’ and ‘Brawn’
Included in the Brains tribe is Logan Shine, who is married to Western Bulldogs star Jason Johannisen.
PhD student Kaelan, doctor Karin and ‘business mogul’ Kent will also be joining the team alongside self-confessed witch Laura, primary school teacher Max and Myles who is a financial analyst.
The team is rounded out by film director Mitch and PTA president Zara.
Meanwhile, Olympian Morgan Mitchell will be leading the charge for the Brawn Tribe.
The runner, who specialises in the 4x400m relay and the 800m, was hoping to complete her third Olympic campaign last year in Paris by narrowly missed out on selection.
She is joined by an equally eclectic cast of characters on the Brawn Tribe, including pro skater Jesse and model Candy.
Aviation fire fighter Kristen, dancer and DJ Kate, and salesman Nash will also be joining the fray alongside powerlifter Ursula, NPL Football coach Paul and Paramedic Paulie.
The Brawn Tribe is rounded out by hip hop artist Zen, who already left 2025 after injuring a finger and ‘footy fanatic’ Laura.
It’s shaping up to be a huge 2025 for the reality show, with two Survivor iterations airing on Australian screens this year.
Apart from Brains V Brawn II, a second series – Australia V The World will also be screened simultaneously Down Under and in America.
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