Bachelor Jimmy claps back at rumours he’s ‘breached’ lockdown rules

Jimmy Nicholson’s celebrity status has quickly risen since his season of The Bachelor premiered last month, gaining Instagram verification and thousands of social media followers.

However, the pilot's newfound fame has also come with intense public scrutiny.

In fact, just last week Jimmy was spotted by an eagle-eyed fan lining up for his Covid-19 jab at a Sydney vaccination clinic.

The sighting came shortly after he was also photographed by reality TV blog The Wash, seemingly going against lockdown rules when he didn’t wear a mask or practice social distancing while meeting up with a group of friends in Bondi.

Chatting with Yahoo Lifestyle, the 31-year-old commented on the recent spotlight that’s been cast on him and his every move.

“Look, it’s weird,” he admitted. “What I’ve realised is that you've got to be so so careful that you're crossing your t's and dotting your i’s in everything you do.

“Yes, there was a picture of me getting vaccinated. We've all got our own stance on that and that's fine and the majority of people were really happy to see that.”

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Jimmy went on to dispute claims that he recently ‘breached’ Covid regulations when seen out and about in Bondi.

“I live in the eastern suburbs of Sydney, so it’s perfectly fine to go and do some exercise with a friend,” he said.

“Even on the Bondi to Bronte walk, which I always do, there's a lot of people there. All it takes is for someone to be walking in the same direction as you, next to you, for it to look like you're in a big group of people walking around and that's it.

“There's a storyline saying you're ‘breaching Covid’ and everyone's pissed off because as soon as people see that now, people are genuinely really really upset.”

The reality TV star also wanted to make it clear that he has been taking the pandemic very seriously due to the severe personal impact it has had on him.

“I think it's important for people to realise that I've actually been affected by this Covid thing probably more so than the everyday person,” he explained.

“I had eight months off work with no pay last year, I'm stood down now for another few months of flying, unfortunately, so I do take it really seriously and I’m doing everything in my power to make sure I don’t slip up.

“And everyone slips up every now and then, but I've been pretty harshly affected by it. I'm not out throwing parties and breaking Covid. It’s weird being in the public eye and being under such scrutiny.”

While Jimmy acknowledges that he’s received a lot of criticism for his Bachelor appearance, he’s also had “a heap of support” from past stars of the franchise.

“I did a podcast with Matty J and Laura [Byrne] and they’re just an amazing couple,” he said. “They were really supportive and they're a lot of fun.

“Sam and Snez [Wood] also sent me a really nice message saying they're loving the show and they're really enjoying it, so it's good to have some support from people that have done it before.”

Jimmy also revealed that he received advice from former Bachelors Locky Gilbert and Tim Robards before the show started airing.

One person who he hasn’t been contacted by, however, is the mysterious Blake Garvey from season two of the reality show.

“Bloody Blake hasn’t hit me up, I’ll have to have a word from him,” he joked.

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