More than 100 submissions made by residents to Warringah Council included complaints about odours from the on-site sewerage systems, lighting, traffic and an overall disruption to the leafy residential area of Duffy’s Forest, west of Mona Vale. [Source: news.com.au]

Sydney is certainly not short on gigantic houses and assorted other venues in which the show could be filmed but after three seasons at The White House it’s likely to throw a spanner in the works at this late a stage. Filming for the new series was expected to start this month but that now seems unlikely.

I shudder to think of the rivers of sweat should they start filming in December. Unless they go deep into the Blue Mountains where the weather remains relatively mild, things could get ugly!

She’ll be sentenced on the 13th of January next year and faces possible jail time, which may rule her out as host of The Biggest Loser or may just mean a temporary replacement may have to take over during filming.

In my unexpert opinion I suspect she won’t actually go to jail over this, it will probably be a community service order plus having to repay the money and go on a good behaviour bond. But I could easily be wrong…

Stay tuned for the next 2 months to find out!

[Source: The Daily Telegraph]

This time it’s the SMH, who have printed this article about the torments inflicted on the “ugly” and “fat” people of the world.

Apparently the Medical Journal of Australia has compiled statistics which show a marked increase in the number of “cosmetic and weight reduction” procedures being performed in 2006 and 2007. With The Biggest Loser starting in early 2006 in Australia, clearly the Medical Journal of Australia subscribes to the “correlation is causation” school of thinking.

Clearly a show which champions healthy eating and strenuous exercise over surgical solutions is to blame for a rise in the number of surgical solutions taken, and not other shows such as the - also mentioned - The Swan and the dozens of other shows like it.

While it’s true that many Loser contestants go on to have surgery after the show to fix problems like excess skin, if people are watching The Biggest Loser and coming away with the idea that what they need to do is get a bunch of lipo, a boob job and a facelift then I think the show actually had little to do with it. Clearly they were already feeling insecure about themselves and instead of receiving support and understanding from their friends and family, they instead got the message from everywhere that everyone was doing it.

What’s a little Botox between friends, after all?

[Source: SMH]

So that they don’t have a procession of annoying husband and wife teams of fatties, they’ve opened it up to a fairly loose interpretation of the word. Brother and sister teams are okay (though I’d imagine they’d frown on brother-sister husband and wife teams) as well Mums and sons, even work mate teams are permitted… As are grandparent/grandchild teams.

I’m a little horrified at the thought of the last one, I don’t mind telling you.

Applications are now being accepted via the website, so if you know two fat people, suggest they roll over that way? I’m sure that will make them love you all the more!

I believe if you go to the official site you can also see the ad with Shannan and Michelle touting the new season applications, but you should really try to catch it on TV for yourself so that you too can experience the hilarity of Shannan mouthing Michelle’s lines.

He still has a ways to go when it comes to presenting for the televisions.

The charges apparently relate to a time between 2001 and 2005 when Ajay was receiving a single parent payment when she wasn’t eligible to be receiving any such payment.

Some news sites are reporting that she knew she shouldn’t've been receiving the payments, others are simply leaving it at not being entitled to the payments.

Tune in again on July 8, I suppose? Unless Ajay does a runner!

For those who have somehow missed the hype, the Nintendo Wii recently got its first “exer-gaming” title in Wii Fit, which despite the higher than usual pricetag has been selling out pretty much everywhere the game has been released.

Wii Fit came bundled with an interesting peripheral, the “Balance Board”. Essentially a high tech set of scales, the Balance Board is capable of measuring shifts in weight with an amazing degree of accuracy. This allows the board to become, in essence, a new kind of controller. Players are able to shift their balance left and right, forwards and backwards to complete various challenges within the game.

And, of course, it can also tell you how much you weigh. If you’re not afraid to find out.

There’s exercises, too, including all the usual squats and lunges and push ups you’d be familiar with. Jillian’s cohort Bob Harper would probably love it - the game also features a fairly decent variety of yoga poses, too.

What sorts of exercises will Jillian’s game have?

They’re not saying, yet. Only that the title is aimed at the casual market, women in particular. So I guess you should expect tips on applying makeup and buttercups will spring up all over the screen every 5 minutes?

What does Jillian think of the latest thing she’s putting her name to?

“I truly think this type of product will be instrumental in revolutionizing the fitness industry and will help combat the childhood obesity epidemic in this country,” Michaels said.

Wow, that’s quite some praise. Quite some very generalised praise that could apply to virtually any fitness product. Hmm.

The game is apparently scheduled for a “Holiday release” which I assume means the Christmas holidays? Americans are a little silly in that regard. What’s wrong with the standard Summer, Winter, Spring or Fall/Autumn? No, it has to be “holiday”…

There’s not much more to the Hollywood Reporter article, but you can still click here if you’d like to read the rest of it.

But the real question is - would you buy it? Forget for a moment whether or not you actually have a Nintendo Wii, plus the required Balance Board. If you had them, would you really buy a fitness game endorsed by Jilliam Michaels?

These charges are not related to The Biggest Loser or her involvement with Channel 10 as they relate to matters which predate her hosting the show.

In all, Ajay is facing a whopping 23 charges, 9 of which relate to “receiving a financial advantage from a Commonwealth entity.”

That entity? Centrelink.

They probably had it coming.

Details are pretty scarce but it seems likely that Ajay probably received some dole money she shouldn’t've, or failed to report some earnings she should have, or any of a number of other petty excuses Centrelink can ruin your life over, even if you did not intentionally do anything wrong.

There may be more details available next week so we can decide who receives the pitchforks and torches treatment.

[Source: NineMSN]

Sam, Kirsten and Alison battle it out for the grand prize, while all the eliminated contestants scuffle over the crumbs.

The voting in the poll here on the Recap says Sam will win, followed by Alison and with Kirsten bringing up the rear. Are you guys as smart as you all think you are? Huh? Are you?

Read on to find out!

Ajay’s in a dress that is doing nothing for her weight problem. It’s black and has some sparkly bits around the waist but my god is it ugly.

BEGIN THE RECAPS! Adro, Chris, blah blah blah. If it’s recapping I ain’t gunna say shit about it. Which means this may very well be the shortest recap ever! ;)

Ajay is pimping a Biggest Loser World First which is going to be very exciting and so on.
The Eliminated Contestants prize is $30,000.

And John is going to be there? What the hell, Ajay? He shouldn’t be there. At all. Disgraceful.

And now we get a recap of old stuff. If we hadn’t watched the season so far and seen this, why would we be watching the Finale? Stupid. Get to the weighing in already!
Although one bit was amusing. Cosi being excited about a weigh in result and then a shot of Michelle seeming to be very excited and pleased about it. Yeah, that’s not at all out of context!

Ajay then says all the contestants had one thing in common - the biggest loser scales. Idiot.

Debbie’s the first to be revealed.
She’s wearing a sleeveless purple gown. A mistake, since the loose skin on her arms is quite apparent. Shocking hairdo and still appears quite chunky under the lower parts of the dress.

Sean’s out next. And oh my. He looks simply amazing. He’s in leather pants and a black shirt, sunnies, kickass short haircut. He is a completely changed man, it’s extraordinary.
Seriously, seriously impressed.

Michael’s out next. He looks a little unhappy and seems to still be carrying a little around the guts. He cheers up as he walks down and gees the crowd up at the end of the catwalk. He’s looking pretty good, but not a patch on Sean.

And now John? Ajay reminds us about John’s indiscretion. He’s not on stage, but he is in the audience. He doesn’t look real impressed when Ajay calls for his round of applause.
He says his health is great now and his grandson is awesome and so on. Ajay asks him what advice he’d give to people with a medical condition and John says you’ve got to just keep battling on, it’s up to you, take control of your own life.
Ajay prompts him about getting medical advice and John says yes, absolutely.
Ajay asks him to get up and show off the body. Then offers him a walk down the catwalk. OH COME ON. You may as well have just had him walk out like everyone else because this amounts to the same thing - an absolute disgrace.
He even gets to join his team on the stage.

Debbie says she didn’t understand the Blue for Life when Shannan pitched it first, but she gets it now and she credits it with getting them so far.
They were underdogs, but they bite!

Ajay says Sean is unrecognisable and the crowd agrees. Sean tells us all again that he’s recently had blood tests done and there’s now no indication that he was ever diabetic!

Michael looks hot, Ajay says.
Michael says it was a tragedy that Monica left in the first week but he’s glad it wasn’t him because he doesn’t think he’d be anywhere close to where he is now.

And now Monica comes out as the only non-teamed person.
Unsurprisingly, for someone who was only there a couple of days, she’s still chubby. But she’s a lot less chubby than she was back at the start and seems to be happier, too. Real, proper happy. Not faux-fat-girl happy.
Monica says her biggest motivation was her family, plus her personal trainer and friends. Ajay says she looks like a princess!

And now it’s time for the Red Team recapping and their stage entry and so on.

Rachel’s the first red out of the gate and she looks terrible. She’s in man clothes and they’re way too tight because she’s still way too fat to be wearing such things.

Next up is Sheridan.
And oh my, she’s a stunner. She comes out in a little red dress. It’s loose around her hips and thighs so she’s probably still packing a little junk in the trunk, but she looks great anyway!

Nicole is out the gates next.
Was she on the show at all? Because you can’t tell.
No, okay, she’s lost some of the hideous belly fat. Or is wearing a super strength girdle. But her face is as fat and unappealing as ever.

Before we see the rest of Red Team we see a replay of Alison going home. INCLUDING A SHOT OF HER HUGGING HER SON. Suck it, haters!
Alison says she’s getting close to looking like a “Yummy Mummy”. Already does as far as I’m concerned!

Nicola comes out next. And as I predicted way back at the start of the season, she looks gorgeous!
There’s still a little meat on her legs but it’s not an unattractive amount, it gives a nice shape to them. And she’s wearing a pretty sparkly dress!

And now it’s time for Cosi.
He’s looking pretty darn buff! Just looks like any regular dude. His boy gets up on stage with him to show off their guns!

Garry as the last eliminated Red comes out last. And big surprise, he’s still super tall!
And I think there’s a lot of support garment under his nice smart-casual clothes because you have to figure there’s a lot of loose skin under there. He’s looking very slim though, which is great!
Garry gives all the credit to his trainer and teammates.

Ajay says Sheridan is looking hot. Michael is looking down at her with longing. Hmmm.

Ajay says one of the most memorable parts of the show was finding out there’s a baby-Cosi on the way and Cosi says yep, they’re doing great!
Nobody’s looking at him with hate in their eyes. Quite a few - Blue and Red - smile over at him. Hmm.

Ajay doesn’t say anything on-screen to Nicole and Rachel though. Double-hmmm.

And the winner of the “Missing Eleven” $10,000 prize is Craig Smith!
He weighed in at 142.3kg at the start and now weighs 91kg, a loss of 51.3kg! Very impressive. 36.5% of his total bodyweight. Let’s see how it stacks up to everyone else!
Craig did it for his son, who he can now spend a lot more time having fun with. Awww!
He gets to come up on stage and yeah, he’s looking pretty damn good.
And I think that was Steven in the crowd applauding him. Hmm.

But we before we move the show along any further, let’s see a bunch of old footage of Kirsten!

Ajay tells us that soon we’ll get to chat to Bob and Jillian. Not sure why, they don’t have anyone in the finale mopping the floor or anything. HA!
But first, here’s some old footage of The Black Team that got kicked pillar to post!

Steven comes out first. Hello, he quit, why is he there? Sigh.
Still has a big round head, but the silly hair is gone!
Still also carrying a bunch of weigh under his very loose fitting suit.
He gets his girl up in his arms on stage and she immediately bursts out crying. Bwah!

Carrianne’s out next. She’s looking better than her twin sister Nicole, but then she started out a lot thinner too.
She seems to have gone backwards from when she left, but I’m sure she’ll have lost a little weight. She surely wouldn’t've come back otherwise.

Michelle’s third out. She’s looking pretty tan compared to her before shot and the haircut is a vast improvement!
Still huge around the hips and butt though.

Bryce was the last man standing and he’s not the last out the doors.
And damn, he’s looking very good. He doesn’t look like he’s ever been fat, just looks super fit and trim.

Steven says his daughter was his inspiration.
Bryce has competed in a triathlon! Jeepers. And has been playing footy with a local team.
No talking to Michelle and Carrianne? Hmm.

And now they’re going to make mention of JJ. I’m assuming he’s not there, or he’d've come out with Red or Black, surely?
Bryce says JJ is a clown and he’d like to break his nose sometimes. But yes, Bryce would never ever mention threats of physical violence against another Contestant, tra la la, happy families!

Ajay says to JJ that they miss him, wherever he is, and they wish him the best of luck. Awww!

Time for everyone else to weigh in.
Steven is not eligible because he’s a big fat quitter.
Bryce is not eligible because he already cashed out.
John is not eligible because he wasn’t allowed to be because of his medical condition.

But first. THE COMMANDO! Looking very serious and imposing, as always. He chats to Ajay first.
Ajay says, “Traditionally you’ve been a man of very few words.”
Commando stares.
How would you describe this year’s competition? “Intense.”
“Right, thanks for that!” You can tell Steve wants to crack up at that.

Bob and Jillian time now! Bob says he’s proud of them and Jillian is too. And they should be proud of themselves, too.
Jillian says they’re emanating health and happiness.
I’d've said oozing. And not health and happiness.

First up is Steven because he’s not eligible for a damn thing.
Steven’s start weight: 166.6kg
Steven’s current weight: 133.5kg
Steven’s loss: 33.1kg
Steven’s percentage: 19.87%

PATHETIC. Ajay says he’s done well. I say Rachel might beat him.

Bryce’s start weight: 139.2kg
Bryce’s current weight: 87kg
Bryce’s loss: 52.2kg
Bryce’s percentage: 37.5%

Phenomenal result. He doesn’t need to lose anymore than that because he’s got the msucles and stuff now, so 87kg is fine for his height. Good for him!

Michelle’s start weight: 120.7kg
Michelle’s current weight: 89.7kg
Michelle’s loss: 31kg
Michelle’s percentage: 25.68%

Reasonable result. Ajay reminds her about knocking back $50,000 to leave early and Michelle says she still has no regrets. Twit!

Carrianne needs to have lost 28.6kg. Unlikely but doable.

Carrianne’s start weight: 111kg
Carrianne’s current weight: 81.2kg
Carrianne’s loss: 29.8kg
Carrianne’s percentage: 26.85%

Just above Michelle, so she’s now in the lead. Until the real competitors start to weigh in.

Sam gets a marriage proposal from someone at his welcome home party. I think the girl was kidding but you never can tell. Girls are very strange.
We don’t really see a lot of his recapping stuff though.

Now it’s time for Red to weigh in… no, wait, first we get to say hi to Michelle!
Michelle’s in a sparkly dress too. Terrible, horrible haircut though. Horrible, horrible, horrible. Makes her look way older and ugly as butt. Such a tragedy.
Michelle is proud of her team though!

Now it’s time to find out who’ll knock Carrianne off the pedestal. Shouldn’t take long!

Rachel’s start weight: 134.7kg
Rachel’s current weight: 115.1kg
Rachel’s loss: 19.6kg
Rachel’s percentage: 14.55%

She says it’s more than she thought. It’s less than I’d hoped for, I wanted Steven to get the wooden spoon! Ahh well.

Nicole needs at least 36.7kg to knock Carrianne off the pedestal.

Nicole’s start weight: 136.3kg
Nicole’s current weight: 99.4kg
Nicole’s loss: 36.9kg
Nicole’s percentage: 27.07%

So lazy, backstabbing two-faced Nicole wiped the floor with… oh, wait, Bryce actually caned them both and just wasn’t eligible to win. Whoops!

Cosi needs 38.2kg. Which he did inside the House I do believe…

Cosi’s start weight: 140.8kg
Cosi’s current weight: 98.2kg
Cosi’s loss: 42.6kg
Cosi’s percentage: 30.26%

Well, there’s a shock. Cosi has made a promise to his woman and his kid that he won’t weigh more than Homer.
Cosi’s the assistant coach to an Under 8’s footy team now, the fitness coach! He’s really stoked by that.
Nicole gives him a hug and a grin as he displaces her. Clearly everyone hates Cosi!

Nicola’s start weight: 112.6kg
Nicola’s current weight: 81.6kg
Nicola’s loss: 31kg
Nicola’s percentage: 27.53%

Ajay says she looks fantastic, like a supermodel!
No way, she needs to be half that weight to be a supermodel! Fatass! FATASS.
She just looks sexy. Not like a supermodel.

Garry needs to have lost 62.5kg to topple Cosi. Cosi cheers him on.

Garry’s start weight: 206.2kg
Garry’s current weight: 135.3kg
Garry’s loss: 70.9kg
Garry’s percentage: 34.38%

Gets a huge cheer from the crowd and gives one of his trademark “YEAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH” cheers. Then he gives another one at the request of Ajay, and even louder and longer one.
Shame Blue’s going to wipe the floor with you!

But wait, Sheridan’s still in the running! She needs 41.3kg. “That’s an Olsen twin!” Ajay asks if it’s two of them?
Think Sheridan may actually have this in the bag, she’s looking good in her skivvies.

Sheridan’s start weight: 120.1kg
Sheridan’s current weight: 75.3kg
Sheridan’s loss: 44.8kg
Sheridan’s percentage: 37.3%

Wow. “That’s so cool!”

Throwing to the break Ajay asks, “Can Sheridan hold on?” And we see a shot of Sheridan grinning and shaking her head, heh.

For those who can’t be bothered scrolling back, Sheridan was a mere .2% behind Bryce. Which sort of puts into perspective how poorly Black did, because I think we all know Sean’s got it in the bag at this point, right?

Monica has to get up by herself, awww!

Monica’s start weight: 116.8kg
Monica’s current weight: 96.1kg
Monica’s loss: 20.7kg
Monica’s percentage: 17.72%

Pretty good for someone who was only there a couple days.

And now… Shannan! Yay!
Shannan’s looking like a drunk gigolo. Twit.
Shannan’s thinks they’re looking good for the quinella!
He says respect and integrity is what has gotten them so far.

John gets to weigh in now too. Stupid. Stupid stupid stupid.

John’s start weight: 150.3kg
John’s current weight: 104.7kg
John’s loss: 45.6kg
John’s percentage: 30.34%

So if you completely ignore doctor’s orders you too can lose 30% of your bodyweight!
John at least admits that he should have listened to his trainer a lot more.

Debbie’s up next.

Debbie’s start weight: 135.2kg
Debbie’s current weight: 92.1kg
Debbie’s loss: 43.1kg
Debbie’s percentage: 31.88%

Not bad, not bad at all! Not enough to bump Sheridan off though.

Sean’s turn now. He needs to have lost at least 65.2kg. OUCH.

Sean’s start weight: 174.6kg
Sean’s current weight: 94.8kg
Sean’s loss: 79.8kg
Sean’s percentage: 45.7%

SLAUGHTERED IT. Incredible.
Sean says the show has saved his life and given him a whole new life.
Sean’s now in the lead for the $30,000 with only Michael in his way!

Michael needs 80kg. Crikey. I don’t think he’s done it. I think it’ll be close, but he won’t have it.

Michael’s start weight: 175kg
Michael’s current weight: 124kg
Michael’s loss: 51kg
Michael’s percentage: 29.14%

Impressive, but not enough!

Sean has just won himself $30,000! Well done Seany!

And now down to the nitty gritty.
But first… Sigh.
One piece of advice from the trainers? Shannan says consistency is the most important thing. John proved that consistency is important. Michelle says keep your calories in check.

First out onto the stage is Kirsten!
But first we have to watch some recap footage again. We already did this!
Lots of chatter from various contestants about how strong she is interspersed throughout.

Kirsten comes out from behind the curtain… holy crap, she has muscles! And collarbones! And muscles!
She’s going to be tough to beat methinks!
Ajay asks if her competitive spirit helped her get so far and Kirsten says definitely.

Next up, Sam!
Shannan says Sam was young and a lot of people thought he’d struggle to make it through the game.
Then lots of other nice things being said about him. And a reminder about how shattered Sam was when he had to go to Red for a while.
Michael says the trait he admired most was how fast Sam grew up.

Now he comes out on stage… SWEET JESUS. Is that really him? He’s skinny as hell!
Well, not Chris “Skeletor” Garling skinny. But he looks amazing, as Ajay remarks.
Sam says he couldn’t do it at home but he needed to do it to save his life.

Alison is last of all.
Everyone says lots of nice things about her. Kirsten says Alison never whinged in training, she just got it done. And Shannan says about halfway into the game, she just went BANG on the scales.
And Shannan also says he would never, ever bet against her.

She comes out from behind the curtain… MILF! MILF! MILF!
She’s looking just as trim, taut and terrific as Kirsten. And she has the lovely wavy hair back instead of that god awful straightened crap she had when she left!
Ajay says she looks smoking hot.
She was a size 26 when she went into the House and today? She’s wearing a size 10! Crikey!
I can’t pick who’ll win. All three of them look phenomenal. Just extraordinarily good.

And coming up after the break, “live on this very stage”. Yeah, right Ajay. Don’t pretend like this is live.

First to weigh in will be… Alison!
who looks awesome in her singlet.
She’s not that nervous, for a change!

Alison’s start weight: 121.7kg
Alison’s current weight: 66.5kg
Alison’s loss: 55.2kg
Alison’s percentage: 45.36%

Kirsten’s face was hilarious and she immediately mouths “SHIT!”
Just behind Sean. Only just, a tiny tiny amount behind him. Amazing.

Next person will be… Kirsten!
Kirsten needs 57.6kg. She’s shaking her head, I don’t think she’s got it? She thinks it’ll be close, but not quite!

Kirsten’s start weight: 126.8kg
Kirsten’s current weight: 71.9kg
Kirsten’s loss: 54.9kg
Kirsten’s percentage: 43.3%

Close but no cigar! She looks great though and she weighs less than she expected, so she’s not disappointed at all!

Sam versus Alison? Wow.
Sam needs at least 70.2kg. Wow. Sam has a scared look on his face. Alison has a shocked look on her face. If Sam makes it, he’ll be the youngest winner ever. If Alison wins, she’ll be the first ever female winner. Woo!

Sam’s start weight: 154.6kg
Sam’s current weight: 82.9kg
Sam’s loss: 71.7kg
Sam’s percentage: 46.38%

HE’S DONE IT! But sweet jebus was it close! All three within a couple of percentage points of each other, extraordinary!
Congratulations Sam!

One more surprise to come, Ajay says.

After an ad break. In which a lot of people probably switched off because we know who won now!

Alison in second place gets a paltry $25,000 prize. Kirsten gets $10,000. Weak! The prizes for the top three should be more than the runners up prize!

“The Biggest Loser Super Scales”. They’re all going to weigh in together to show how much they’ve lost as a group. Oh. How rivetting. They couldn’t just tell us the total figure, could they?
All the Biggest Loser Club 11 come out to get on the scale, too.

When they first came in the gates they weighed in at 4,051.5kg. Crikey.
Through diet, exercise and hard work, they now weigh. 2,897.6kg
Loss: 1,153.9kg
Pretty big number. But we all know some of them contributed to that figure a little more than others.

Ajay says we can head to the official site now and watch the whole show over again. And it’s been an honour sharing in the journey with everyone.
But no mention of a new series? That does not bode well…

And that’s all she wrote, folks! No more Australian Biggest Loser for this year. Possibly no more Biggest Loser ever!
Congratulations to Sam, the overall Biggest Loser, and to Sean, the winner of the Runners Up prize.
And to all of the contestants this year, I hope you manage to maintain your losses and continue to live a healthy lifestyle. Thanks for entertaining us all this year!

But who will win? Vote now!

Want my take on it?

Sam: The youngest of the three, Sam is also the only male of the remaining contestants. While neither factor guarantees a win, the two combined ought to provide a significant advantage to Sam. Excellent support from his family and friends will also contribute to Sam’s chances.
Working against Sam will be the temptation of returning to his “uni lifestyle”, which is what he credits with getting him in such a state to begin with.
Sam also has a question mark over his nutrition. Some contestants have said that Sam is not eating enough, plus Alison and Kirsten have been helping him with his meal preparation, assistance he will no longer receive at home.

My Prediction: First by a narrow margin. Sam won’t want to be the guy that lets a woman win. Coupled with his youth and being the only male left, he will be going home with the title.

Kirsten: In between Sam and Alison in age, Kirsten has earned her reputation as “The Enforcer.” Both Australian and American trainers have been impressed with Kirsten’s work ethic during training. Coupled with weightloss in line with the men in the competition, Kirsten has been considered a major threat for many weeks. With little at home to distract her, Kirsten will have little in the way of getting in the training she needs.
But she’s still female, and females always find it tougher to lose the weight than males. Enforcer or not, Kirsten has a very hard road ahead of her.

My prediction: Second, just behind Sam but ahead of Alison by a comfortable margin. Kirsten’s guts and determination will ensure it is a very close race, but ultimately it is unlikely to be enough.

Alison: The eldest of the group, Alison is the real dark horse in this race. In recent weeks her determination has grown as she has come to realise she might actually be a chance at winning. That determination will stand her in good stead at home. Also, having been looking after Sam’s nutrition, she clearly has her head screwed on right in that regard.
Unfortunately as the eldest in the group she will find it a little tougher, particularly tougher than ex-sportswoman Kirsten. A mother of three, she will also find there’s a lot of distractions in the real world as she returns to her regular life. She could choose to neglect her family obligations in favour of winning, but she is extremely unlikely to do so.

My prediction: Third, a couple of percent behind Kirsten. But be prepared for a surprise as stranger things have happened!

Who do I want to win? Alison. I still like Sam and would love to see him win, but a victory by Alison would be a great come-from-behind story, on top of being the first female Australian Biggest Loser. As a mother of three, she could also use the money more than either Sam or Kirsten.

Who do you think will win, and why? And who do you want to win?

Can the Blue Team finish off the last remaining Red Team member or can Garry save himself from humiliation.

It’d sure make a nice change!

(And don’t forget to check out my Big Brother blog, if you’re into that kind of thing. It starts tomorrow night!)

Lots of dramatic music and talk at the beginning of this episode about the journey so far and how it’s all come down to the final weigh in and the final elimination.

Alison says that it’s been Blue’s plan to have the three remaining Blues get through to the final, ever since Michael was eliminated. They told themselves that that was it, they had to make it happen.

Garry says he’s a fighter.
Alison’s feeling apprehensive.

And now it’s weigh in time!
Alison and Sam both think Garry’s got it in the bag. Sam thinks he’ll be in a lot of trouble at this weigh in.

Due to Alison’s immunity, there’s technically only one spot above the Yellow Line tonight. Two of the remaining three will be below the Line. Which means Garry must beat Sam and Kirsten in order to be safe, essentially. Otherwise he’ll be below the Line with a Blue with two Blues above the Line. Doomed!

Alison weighs in first. She is safe so long as she doesn’t put on weight. Which makes that “guaranteed” immunity even more dubious.

Alison’s previous weight: 79.9kg
Alison’s current weight: 79.3kg
Alison’s loss: 0.6kg
Alison’s percentage: 0.75%

Close call! But she got there and will now be guaranteed a spot in the Finale! For reals. Maybe. Unless they decide to offer her more money.
Alison says she didn’t change anything this week, not her diet or exercise, so she was a little surprised at the small loss.
Garry says that Alison and Kirsten work out together so maybe she’ll lose only a little, too.

Sam’s up next.

Sam’s previous weight: 100kg
Sam’s current weight: 97.8kg
Sam’s loss: 2.2kg
Sam’s percentage: 2.2%

He’s pleased with that. Finally under 100kg. He’s stoked he got there before going home.
Sam says 2.2kg is great but he doesn’t know if it’s enough to keep him safe and with only one spot above the line the odds aren’t in his favour.

Sam’s in first place so far.
Kirsten will need at least 1.9kg to beat Sam. Sam figures he’s sunk because Kirsten will get that pretty easily.

Kirsten’s previous weight: 82.2kg
Kirsten’s current weight: 81.5kg
Kirsten’s loss: .7kg
Kirsten’s percentage: 0.85%

Only a tiny bit more than Alison, meaning Kirsten is definitely below the Yellow Line, too. It’s just down to Garry, now.
Kirsten says she’d be devastated to go home but she won’t blame anyone for voting her out. It’s been a good journey!

Garry will need to lose at least 3.2kg. That could be a tough ask at this stage of the game.

Garry’s previous weight: 141.4kg
Garry’s current weight: 140.1kg
Garry’s loss: 1.3kg
Garry’s percentage: 0.92%

Garry’s gonna go hooooome!
He looks. Disappointed. Unsurprisingly. Sam looks a little shocked, too.
Garry says he’d been hoping to ring his Dad and say he was in the final. But now that’s not going to happen because he fell short.
Alison feels sorry for him because he’s worked very hard and done an amazing job. Any one of them would be shattered standing up there and missing out on being a finalist.

Sam wins Biggest Loser and is now guaranteed a spot in the final, too!

Kirsten is the smallest loser, so if it’s a draw, she’ll be going home.

After the weigh in Garry doesn’t hang around the lounge room for long, choosing instead to head up to the bedrooms and have a sulk.
Down in the lounge room it’s hard for the Blues to celebrate.

Kirsten mutters, “You’re not going to screw me, are you?” The other two say huh? Kirsten again, “You’re going to vote Garry, right?”

Garry thinks Sam is the one he might be able to convince so he goes to have a chat with him.
Garry remembers he spoke up in favour of keeping Sam back when Sam was on Red and they eliminated Sheridan. So Sam sort of owes him one.
Apparently Sam’s been telling Garry about how the girls have been treating him and Garry says that he’d've preferred to be against Sam than Kirsten in elimination. He thinks he’d've had a better chance then. The girls see Sam as being in their way and they’d've voted him out, Garry thinks.
Sam says that he’s felt a bit of a third wheel since Michael left.
Garry tells him that loyalty is right up there with everything else, but he’s also got to think business. Sam’s up around 37% of his bodyweight lost, Kirsten’s at 36 and Garry’s only on 32.
Garry says he knows it’s a tough decision and Sam says that he’d brought up some stuff he’d not even though of.

Sam says that they’re going up against each other regardless now, whoever’s in the final. How loyal is he going to feel if Kirsten beats him by a couple kilos at the finale?

So it’s looking like the voting order will be Alison and then Sam, since Alison will obviously not vote out Kirsten!

Alison says that what’s best for people can vary. For some that can be voting out the threats, for some, like her, it’s more important to not look back on the game with any regrets about how you’ve played the game.

Elimination room time!

Kirsten is asked how sure she is about getting into the final three on the strength of the Blue bond.
She says she’s not too sure. It’s right at the very end and they’d be stupid not to think about voting out one of the biggest threats in the game.
Garry says he’d once saved Sam from elimination, but he won’t hold Sam’s vote against him if he decides to vote Garry out.

Alison says today’s vote was very difficult. Everyone at the table is very deserving of going to the final. Her decision is upsetting to her. The person she’s voted for she entered the gates with on the first day and spent the entire journey with them and the only fault she can give is that the person they’ve come up against is someone she could never write on a card.
So she’s voted for Garry!

If Sam votes for Garry, Garry goes home. If Sam votes for Kirsten it will be a tied vote and Kirsten will go home.
Before the ad break Sam points out that it’s a pretty bad situation to be in!

Sam says it’s pretty close to the end and he has to think about what’s best for him and who he wants to compete against. Kirsten is the closest to him on the leaderboard and is determined and motivated and Garry, who’s a bit of a dark horse. He’s a bit behind now but he just screams out potential.
So ultimately he can’t make his decision based on who is the bigger threat because either would be tough competition.
It sucks that it came down to this and he’s got to vote based on loyalty, though it really hurts him to do it.
Sam lifts his platter… and we can only see the back of his card. Ooops!

But yes, he’s voted for Garry. He apologises to Garry, who says it’s alright.

Garry says he’s devastated that he won’t be at the finale but happy to be going home to see his Mum and brother.
Garry says there won’t be many words when he gets home, just lots of crying!
Garry thinks his Dad will be proud anyway, even though he’s not made the finale.

Garry gives a big hug to Kirsten and a kiss, big hug to Sam. Garry tells Sam to keep going. Big hug and kiss for Alison, too.
“Oh, and one more thing. YEAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!” Garry yells as he heads out the hallway.

Final Three have been selected! Sam, Alison or Kirsten will be crowned The Biggest Loser and will win $200,000 cash!

Garry walks home? Not even a taxi? Weak!
He gives a big twirly hug to some girl. No idea who it is!

1 month on and Garry’s looking good!
He’s training every day, working on cardio and some upper body strengthening.
Garry now chops up the veggies and cooks up stir fries for his family.
He’s a lot happier looking in the mirror now. Used to wear a 147 waist, now down to 122!

Looking back at his audition tape he’s obviously lost weight around the face but Garry always carried most of his weight around his waist and hips.

He rang his Dad in Portugal and his Dad said he’s proud of him, awww!

Since appearing on the show Garry lost 66kg.

Everyone is excited about making the final. Alison’s also kind of sad because she won’t be getting to do all the exciting things with everyone ever again!

Sam says he came up the driveway in a 6XL shirt and pants around 46-48. Now he’s in a large/extra-large and 36-38 pants. He’s walking out in his dream outfit, which he’d never thought was achievable.

Alison’s leaving in her sexy dream hotfit, too. Kirsten looks good, too. Alison says Kirsten radiated happiness which made her really happy, too!
Kirsten and Sam come outside to see Sam in his spiffy gear. Wolfwhistles abound and they tell him he looks gorgeous and hot.
Alison says he looks so handsome and grownup. Being the Mum of the house, she felt really proud of the beautiful young man he’s grown into.

Meanwhile Shannan and Michelle rock up to the House to see who’s gone. They both look kind of crushed at Garry being gone. Though Shannan starts breaking into a grin behind Michelle’s back after not long.
Michelle admits her heart was crushed by Garry’s absence.
Alison says she felt sad for Michelle, too.

Michelle feels sad for Garry because she knows how hard he’s worked. Michelle congratulates them all. Shannan gives her a kiss and a hug.
Michelle says she was very concious of them knowing she was upset that Garry couldn’t be there so she left them to it so they could celebrate without feeling bad about it.

Shannan says, “You guys bloody rock! What is the chance of getting that done?” Alison replies, “Told you we’d do it!”
Shannan says the way they’ve played the game has paid off. They never sold out, never took the money, never took Temptations and their friendship has gotten them through.

Kirsten thanks Shannan and gives him a big hug. Sam thanks him and gives him a hug. Alison gives him a huge hug, too!
Alison says Shannan has helped her through so many things in the House. To have to say goodbye, knowing she won’t train with him again, was very difficult.

Kirsten says she’ll miss Shannan more than she thought she would. Even though he flogs them each week, he does it out of love!
Sam thinks he owes Shannan his life, even though it’s corny. He’s grateful and will be forever in Shannan’s debt.

The three finalists each get their own white limo to head back out in.
Kisses and hugs abound before they get in.
Kirsten says Alison means the world to her and they’ll never lose touch, after this.

Alison returns home in her dream outfit, but not in the limo. Hmm.
She says being away from her family was the hardest thing to do so she hopes they get a nice surprise.
She comes in the door and the looks on the faces of her friends and family are awesome. The shock on their faces is priceless!
She gives her girls big hugs.
Then says to her son, “Oh my god you’ve gotten taller!”
Alison says the plan for approaching the finale is to work her arse off. Time to finish first for a change!

Sam’s returning home in his limo. He never thought he’d be returning as a finalist.
His brothers haven’t seen him. Last time they saw him he was huge, now he might actually fit in with them.
Sam comes into a huge party and everyone screams when they see him.
His younger brother gives him a big bear hug, lifting him up off the ground, which he’s never been able to do in his entire life!

Sam announces he made the final three and that elicits a huge cheer.
Sam says he’d've not been happy with all that attention before. But 57kg lighter and feeling good about how he looks, it makes him feel great.
He announces that he’s ranked #1 in the final three and then gets an even bigger cheer!
Sam says regardless of whether he comes first, second or third, he’ll be there with a smile on his face.

Kirsten gets home and there’s a sign out front that says Shannan is hot! Which she agrees with!

Some of her friends have only known her while she was fat. She comes around a corner slowly and you can see the shock spread across the crowd of people as they can see her.
Her Dad barely recognises her!
Kirsten says it makes you feel fantastic. You expect the big reactions, but it’s still good to have the reactions!
Kirsten’s Dad says he’s proud of her.

And this Thursday night it’s time for the Finale!
Who will win? It really is anyone’s guess, with them all being pretty damn close in overall weightloss and weightlosing ability.

Don’t forget! Thursday night, 7.30pm to 9.30pm. Finale time. Watch it!