Channel 10 gaffe reveals Bachelor winner ahead of finale

There are still a few days to go before Australia finally finds out which of the gorgeous final three women - Abbie Chatfield, Chelsie McLeod and Helena Sauzier - handsome astrophysicist Matt Agnew chooses as his forever love.

But it appears that the identity of the lucky lady has already been revealed ahead of The Bachelor finale on Thursday - and by Channel 10, the network that produces the reality TV show, no less.

Chelsie to win

Keen-eyed Bachie fans are convinced that Matt, 32, ends up with 28-year-old chemical engineer Chelsie because of a photo gaffe by 10.

Dedicated viewers have looked back at previous seasons of both The Bachelor and The Bachelorette and analysed the snaps of the final three contestants.

And in a conspiracy theory to end all conspiracy theories, perceptive fans have noted that the winner of several of the earlier seasons - Georgia Love’s, Sam Frost’s, Richie Strahan’s and Sophie Monk’s - is positioned smack-bang in the middle of each and every image.

Let’s break it down: Sasha Mielczarek, who Sam chose in 2015, is flanked by runners up Richie Strahan and Michael Turnbull.

Georgia’s pick in 2016, Lee Elliott, is seen standing between his fellow final three-ers, Matty J and Jake Ellis.

In the same year, Richie’s ‘number one,’ Alex Nation, is also given prime position, with Olena Khamula and Nikki Gogan on either side.

And Stu Laundy, is - yep, you guessed it - pictured front and centre in a promo shot before being chosen by Sophie over Apollo Jackson and Jarrod Woodgate in 2017.

If we apply this hypothesis to this year’s final three portrait, then it seems that centrally positioned Chelsie - not Helena to her right nor Abbie to her left - will be Matt’s final choice.

However, we did a bit of our own digging and may have found a flaw in the theory. First of all, some of the images were taken during a rose ceremony (Sam Frost’s, Richie Strahan’s and, of course, Matt’s) while Georgia Love’s and Sophie Monk’s final three were snapped elsewhere.

Comparing rose ceremony and non-rose ceremony pics could be a bit like comparing apples and oranges in terms of how the producers arrange the contestants.

Furthermore, in the final three rose ceremony pic from Sam Wood’s season, winner Snezana Markoski is not positioned in the centre. Instead, second runner up Sarah Mackay is in the middle with Lana Jeavons-Fellows to her right, which may also debunk the winner-in-the-centre hypothesis.

Abbie and Helena sent packing

Adding fuel to the Chelsie-photo-conspiracy fire, however, are earlier comments by recently booted bachelorette Emma Roche who told Yahoo Lifestyle that Chelsie was one of her hot picks to win.

Indeed, Chelsie has been a frontrunner right from the start, with bookies tipping her to win before the series even went to air.

On top of that, Chelsie also lives in Matt’s hometown Melbourne and works just a short walk away from his current office, making her a great logistical choice.

There’s also the argument that Chelsie and Matt connect on more of an intellectual level and are at similar life stages, while 23-year-old rival Abbie has been dogged by accusations she’s in the competition for the wrong reasons.

Third remaining finalist, Helena, has also been rumoured to win after fans spotted Matt in her home state of Western Australia but, after all her to-ing and fro-ing at hometowns, it seems unlikely these star-crossed lovers will make the distance.

Does Matt dump the winner?

Whoever Matt chooses, it appears that there might be trouble in paradise. Rumours are circulating that he ‘pulls a Blake Garvey’ after the finale and dumps his first choice only to start dating the runner up.

New Idea magazine cottoned on to the idea after Matt said that while he is still in a relationship, he never specified that his girlfriend is the same woman he picks at the end.

Only time, at this stage, will tell.

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