A dream that has spanned two decades finally came true for Nelson super fan Dave Ward, aka Wardie, when he got the call to say he would be one of the 16 contestants competing on Treasure Island: Fans v Faves. Sara Hollyman sits down with Wardie to find out about the experience and the journey that led him to Fiji.
Have you always wanted to be a Treasure Island contestant?
It goes back to the year 2000, the first year that Survivor was produced in the U.S. I was just like ‘that is amazing I need to do that, how?’ I was one of those geeky guys who started messaging Jeff Probst, the host, on Twitter, saying ‘hey, when are you going to do an international season?’ I just thought ‘that’s something that I reckon I might be reasonably good at.’ I loved the fact that it was all based on communication with people and relationships. Survivor just got better and better, some of the characters that came through were just huge and I thought if New Zealand ever does a version, then I need to put my hand up for it.
When did you first apply?
In 2016, Survivor NZ was announced so I applied, as did thousands of others. I made the short-list of the last 20 or so but missed out on one of the final 16 spots. In 2017, I applied again and got cut three or four shy of the 18 spots. It was incredibly frustrating, but they said, ‘make sure you apply again next time.’ I was like ‘beauty, 2018 here we go, done’… and then they stopped making Survivor NZ. I thought, ‘I don’t know where to go from here’ but it was never something I was going to give up on. It took 23 years to finally happen but that’s just testament to never giving up if you want something bad enough.
When did you find out you had made the show?
Last year, maybe August, I got the call from one of the executive producers saying ‘are you driving at the moment? You better pull over’. They said ‘welcome to the show’, I was in tears. I went dead silent, my face started leaking. It was such a feeling of triumph, I finally bloody did it.
A question from a young fan: Who is your favourite Survivor or Treasure Island contestant of all time?
Survivor - I thought Boston Robb was brilliant, hugely charismatic, very smart guy and hugely strategic. Penner, he had a really good social game and I like his ethos.
Treasure Island – it’s hard to narrow down. Dame Susan Devoy is one of my favourite kiwis, she has no quit, she has a bullshit free zone and I love that about her. Favourite of all time, apart from me, it’s hard to go past Sam Wallace, but probably Courtney Louise.
Filming wrapped up last year. Is it frustrating not being able to tell people what happened?
Absolutely, I can’t tell you how hard that is. I had goals. I didn’t want to be first out, I wanted to make the merge and then I wanted to start playing the individual game. For those that are fans will know that I betrayed Alex.
I’m not going to not do what’s in my best interest for someone else’s gain.
There are a couple of episodes coming up where people are going to understand the strategy, but not being able to explain what I was thinking at the time is really weird.
My sons and my significant other, Helen, were great. I’ve told them bits and pieces but not anything that breaches the confidentiality. So many people message me asking questions. I’ll just say to people ‘tonight’s a good one’. The most common thing I get asked is ‘do you you go and stay in a motel at night?’ Absolutely not.
Have you seen the episodes and how they are put together before they air?
We are there for three weeks, I’m immersed in it and then we leave. The next time we see it is the same time everyone else watches it as well. I’m sitting there shushing everyone, trying to watch it.
Do you feel like you’ve been portrayed accurately?
It’s very difficult for production to pigeon-hole people and work the narrative around that so they film it, cut it and air it. How people perceive that is up to them. I’m learning at the same time as everyone else just how unpopular, apparently, I was with my teammates, especially in Vai.
Am I fairly portrayed? Yes, of course, because that’s how it was filmed.
I think I had a hell of a lot more tactics and strategy than what is being portrayed. For example, I didn’t sit out of a challenge because of sunburnt shoulders.
Was it all it was cracked up to be?
It was living the dream. It was surreal. Outside of having my two boys, Murphy and Mac, it was the best thing I’ve ever done. It was ticking the top thing off my bucket list, and I’d do it again tomorrow.
The hardest part was being away from the boys and Helen, I wanted to be able to contact them and I couldn’t. But I’d do it again tomorrow.
