Arts & Entertainment
Australia’s ‘Bachelor in Paradise’ accused of queerbaiting viewers
the series promo showed a same-sex kiss that never happened

‘Bachelor in Paradise” (Screenshot via YouTube)
Australia’s “Bachelor in Paradise” has been accused of queerbaiting in a recent promo for the show.
In the promo, Megan Marx, who is bisexual, says she finds fellow contestant Elora Murger “absolutely gorgeous.” The next clip appears to show Marx and Murger, who has long brown hair, kissing in the ocean. However, in the actual episode, Marx is kissing contestant Thomas Perras, who also has long brown hair.
Here’s the part of the promo where Channel 10 deliberately cut together Megan talking about Elora with her kiss w/ a long-haired brunette, to make it seem like they were going to deliver a same sex couple. Turns out it was Thomas. Queerbaiting at its finest. #BachelorInParadise pic.twitter.com/ywKqzC0YUb
— Jenna Guillaume (@JennaGuillaume) April 17, 2018
Viewers were outraged that the series promoted a same-sex hookup that never occurred.
so the ‘bisexual’ relationship on #BachelorInParadiseAU presented in the promos is actually just a megan and a guy with long hair. bisexuals such as myself love queer baiting!!! we love it so much it makes us feel so validated !!!!!
— evie (@yeevz_) April 16, 2018
OMG MEGAN IS KISSING A WOMAN!
…A BEARDED WOMAN!?
Oh no wait, that’s right Channel 10 just queer-baited us for 2 months.
Soz. #BachelorInParadiseAU pic.twitter.com/aHzmDV2NwB
— Mark (@markp_) April 17, 2018
Look, @BachParadiseAU is not that important but it’s humiliating to get excited and then tricked, and feels shit to know it was done so shamelessly and deliberately to promote the show.
It leaves LGBTI people feeling excluded and like the butt of the joke again. #queerbaiting https://t.co/f5ACVSwEmx
— Sally Rugg ?️? (@sallyrugg) April 18, 2018
Lol way to set up the sneak peak ads to look like Megan kissed Elora.. @channelten that’s pretty shitty to advertise queerbaiting it would have been nicer if there was actually some same sex couples #BachelorInParadiseAU
— Krystal Birch (@birchyyk) April 17, 2018
Poorly played, #BachelorInParadiseAU. And Megan has been such an articulate asset to the Bachie franchise, speaking openly and with confidence about her sexuality … No doubt opening a lot of minds.
This does a disservice to her truth too. https://t.co/CINWFdp70A— Danielle Binks (@danielle_binks) April 17, 2018
Marx has been open about her sexuality since appearing on the fourth season of Australia’s “The Bachelor.” After leaving the show she and fellow contestant Tiffany Scanlan briefly dated.
Celebrity News
Madonna announces release date for new album
‘Confessions II’ marks return to the dance floor
Pop icon Madonna on Wednesday announced that her 15th studio album will be released on July 3.
Titled “Confessions II,” the new album is a sequel to 2005’s “Confessions on a Dance Floor,” an Abba and disco-infused hit.
The new album reunites Madonna with producer Stuart Price, who also helmed the original “Confessions” album. It’s her first album of new material since 2019’s “Madame X.”
“We must dance, celebrate, and pray with our bodies,” Madonna said in a press release. “These are things that we’ve been doing for thousands of years — they really are spiritual practices. After all, the dance floor is a ritualistic space. It’s a place where you connect — with your wounds, with your fragility. To rave is an art. It’s about pushing your limits and connecting to a community of like-minded people,” continued the statement. “Sound, light, and vibration reshape our perceptions. Pulling us into a trance-like state. The repetition of the bass, we don’t just hear it but we feel it. Altering our consciousness and dissolving ego and time.”
Denali (@denalifoxx) of “RuPaul’s Drag Race” performed at Pitchers DC on April 9 for the Thirst Trap Thursday drag show. Other performers included Cake Pop!, Brooke N Hymen, Stacy Monique-Max and Silver Ware Sidora.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)














Arts & Entertainment
In an act of artistic defiance, Baltimore Center Stage stays focused on DEI
‘Maybe it’s a triple-down’
By LESLIE GRAY STREETER | I’m always tickled when people complain about artists “going political.” The inherent nature of art, of creation and free expression, is political. This becomes obvious when entire governments try to threaten it out of existence, like in 2025, when the brand-new presidential administration demanded organizations halt so-called diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programming or risk federal funding.
Baltimore Center Stage’s response? A resounding and hearty “Nah.” A year later, they’re still doubling down on diversity.
“Maybe it’s a triple-down,” said Ken-Matt Martin, the theater’s producing director, chuckling.
The rest of this article can be found on the Baltimore Banner’s website.
