The Blocks foreman and Blockinator Keith Schleiger is actually a big softie

THEY call him The Blockinator. Big. Bad. Keith.

He’s the resident foreman on The Block, who has been tasked with overseeing the work done by enthusiastic, exhausted and emotional teams for the last three seasons of the hit renovation show.

By his own admission he gets grumpy sometimes. Teams often cower when they see him approach for a little pow wow.

But despite his bullish demeanour, Keith Schleiger confesses he’s actually a big softie on the inside.

“I think there is a bit of a persona there,” the builder of 20 plus years tells news.com.au.

“I’m only cranky when they don’t listen or they prevent me or another contestant from moving forward and they tell me to get lost, that’s when I get upset. Off camera we all get along well, but I’m representing The Block and I just want to build the best apartments we can build.

“There’s always a bit of friction, but I’m definitely a bit of a softie. I’ve got two daughters who are two and four so there are three women in my house and then there’s me, so they’re definitely softening me up and mellowing me out.”

While most of the focus is on the hardworking couples, Keith has definitely collected his fair share of fans during his time on the show.

And he’s more enamoured with them than you’d expect.

“Fame has gradually crept up on me,” he says, “but now I know I can go anywhere and I’ll always have a friend. I can even go to a restaurant by myself and I’ll never be alone because there’s always someone who knows me and someone to chat to.”

Aww, Keith!

As the series approaches auction day, with the Grand Finale airing next Wednesday night, who better to predict the winner than The Blockinator himself?

“A lot of people think Kyal and Kara are going to take it out but I don’t think so, I think it’s going to be one of the faves. I think the living rooms set Alisa and Lysandra’s and Brad and Dale’s apart. Their living area are 20-30 per cent better than the newbies in size.

“Kyal and Kara’s biggest mistake was their guest bedroom along with their ensuite and walk in robe, it took up too much living space. But it was their only mistake, the timber panelling and everything else is fantastic, but at end of day it’s about a big large open living room. The way I see it the living area is where you spend most of your time so it should be the largest area.

“Even though the judges bagged it, I think Brad and Dale easily produced the best kitchen I’ve ever seen on The Block. I loved it, it looked fantastic, I liked the glass splashback the judges made them remove, I don’t think it came up as good with the tiles and it’s been the same with the public response.

“Having said that, I really couldn’t pick out a winner between the two faves and I’m being quite honest here, I really want to sit on the fence. Brad is sick of me saying he’s going to win, he thinks I’m going to jinx them and fair enough. But I think the boys and Alisa and Lysandra are pretty even. Brad and Dale’s first level is better than Alisa and Lysandra, but on the ground floor, the girls are five per cent better.

And here, Keith, who we must remember is never without a friend, gives us his thoughts on each of the couples:

Kyal and Kara

“They’ve done very well for a fan couple, they’re very driven, they don’t stop working or thinking, they’re a building machine. The Super K’s is a great name for them, because they really are. They’re so hard working, Kyal has good idea on building, he’s a carpenter which helps a lot and Kara is a great designer. We had a few problems with Kyal and safety issues in the beginning but overall they’re probably the best couple I’ve ever worked with on The Block.

Alisa and Lysandra

“I’ve always had a good relationship with them, we’re mates basically, we have arguments from time to time as you do on The Block but overall we’re good friends. I have lots of respect for them, they work really hard and I couldn’t imagine it with young kids, it must be so hard to spend a few months away from them. I’m going to miss them on the next one, but I hope they make a lot of money.”

Steve and Chantelle

“I think it’s just a classic case of they’re not builders. The audience thinks they should be, but imagine yourself going onto a building site and starting from scratch, you wouldn’t know where to start and Steve and Chantelle are no different, again, they’re not builders. Their organisation skills weren’t up to it, tradies were rocking up with no materials and Steve just spent a lot of time on the phone. It would be easy for people watching to go ‘oh how hopeless is he’ but they were just out of their depth. It wasn’t for lack of effort. It might not look like it, but we are mates. There aren’t any fireworks anymore, we get along pretty well, it was just spur of the moment instances which were only human nature and I walked away. I felt sorry for them initially and tried to help them as much as I could without cheating.”

Brad and Dale

“They’re just fantastic and as far as I’m concerned, it was a walk in the park for them. Brad is very intelligent and people might not know that, he doesn’t get enough credit for that, but I would love it if Brad built my house, I really would. He’s good on tools, every time he asks a question it’s warranted and they can both deal with any problem without any panic. I enjoyed working with them both, and I love Dale, he’s a prankster and I’ve got a lot of respect for him as a person.”

And finally, just because he’s such a nice bloke, Keith couldn’t let his mate Scotty Cam go without mention.

“I’m probably his number one fan,” he gushed. “I love everything about him. He’s an even better bloke than what you see on telly, every bit of advice he gives is correct. I just love him.”

Well Keith, you’ve got a fan in us too.

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