September 24th, 2025Block Watch

Hepburn Shire locals are loving, mostly, watching the challenges on The Block and last week’s Phoenix @ The Rex proved popular.
“We love a side challenge on The Block and this one delivered some shocking results,” it was reported at website, 9now.nine.com.au
“The Blockheads were tasked with bringing Daylesford’s Phoenix cinema, in the heart of the old Rex Theatre, back to life.

“For this challenge, the Blockheads were split into two bigger teams. On offer was an impressive $10,000 cash and a $10,000 voucher thanks to Stony Creek Gallery to split among the winning team.
“Steph and Gian, Emma and Ben and Britt and Taz took over the candy bar and balcony lounge. They were ‘quietly confident’ they were going to win.
“Meanwhile, Han and Can, Sonny and Alicia and Robby and Mat were the ‘Cinema Team’. They were quietly confident they had ‘second place in the bag’.
“The esteemed judges were local legends and business owners Tina Banitska (The Convent), Alla Wolf-Tasker (Lake House) and Carol White (formerly of Lavandula).
“‘Wow,’ was all the judges could say as they walked into the newly renovated cinema space. They loved the ‘intimacy and gentleness’ of the room.
“In keeping with the theme that Steph and Gian set, the cinema was painted in rich cocoa brown and accented with gold wainscoting and art deco lights.
“They also had the massive job of assembling 70 red velvet theatre seats, luckily with help from the folks at Bunnings. Moving into the foyer, the judges thought the custom Bromley wallpaper was an excellent move.
“Over at the newly renovated candy bar and the judges had one major concern: ‘That’s not suitable for Daylesford, sorry.’ Ouch. Judge Alla was referring to the wall of colourful candy that filled the glass jars. They felt it was a missed opportunity to showcase local artisan products and produce.
“‘It should be a symbol of our community,’ she said. The easiest example being Daylesford choc tops! Then came the styling. ‘I know it’s deco, but this doesn’t feel deco to me,’ Alla continued. ‘For me, it’s functional but it doesn’t match the theatre and doesn’t match the rural location.’ The judges had nothing but praise for the much-needed meeting space in the foyer though! Who won? The Cinema Team!”
Read about the next cinema fundraiser on page 14.