Mums the word! Tayshia Adams reflected on Clare Crawley’s “bizarre” Bachelorette premiere, which was filmed at one location amid the coronavirus pandemic. However, she was careful to avoid mentioning her appearance as the new leading lady, who is taking over mid-season.
“I thought it was so interesting how many people and how many times they referenced like, ‘This is the first time I hugged somebody in, like, six months or, like, holding hands even,’ you know what I mean?” the former Bachelor in Paradise contestant, 30, said on her new “Click Bait” podcast.
“That’s just the way of the world lately, and I couldn’t imagine having that much freedom, because we’ve been having to put masks on every single day,” Tayshia continued. “So to be able to, like, walk around and date and kiss and hold and do all that stuff without a mask is kind of bizarre.”
Of course, viewers are anxiously anticipating Tayshia’s appearance on season 16 after Life & Style exclusively broke the news on July 30 that Clare, 39, wanted to “quit” the reality dating show because she had already “fallen in love” with contestant Dale Moss — see spoilers here! A few days later, Life & Style confirmed the California babe would be stepping in to finish out the season.
Tayshia was photographed on set at the La Quinta Resort in Palm Springs, California, where the show was filmed, for the first time on August 20. She returned to social media on September 10 after a long hiatus. “Hiiiii, it’s been a minute,” she captioned a selfie on her Instagram Story.
That’s not to say the unprecedented Bachelorette switcharoo went off without a hitch. “The contestants don’t know what’s going on, the producers don’t know what to do next … The guys don’t know what to do but laugh, they feel like they’ve been whipped around,” an insider told Life & Style after it was revealed Clare ending her journey to find love early.
The former contestant from Colton Underwood’s season was “matched” with the remaining guys. According to Reality Steve, four other contestants, who were originally announced in March but did not appear on night one with Clare, were also brought in to meet Tayshia.
“The guys that are now left are just happy to get another chance at love,” added the insider about the remaining contestants. “The show is going to go on with a new Bachelorette and they are excited. Producers have to be creative, but they like the element of surprise and are hoping it will draw more interest.”
We’re ready for you, Tayshia!