Mark H, or Tarzan as he is known, got dysentery soon after being evicted from Australian Survivor. Credit:Nigel Wright "And if that had of played out I would have been very disappointed to be going out, basically, in a body bag with the zipper open." He believed he could have picked it up from the water well provided, because "it's just out in the open ... and everyone's dipping in and out of it so anything's possible, but I could have picked it up in the mud challenge". Network Ten has since denied that Tarzan could have contracted dysentery from the show since no one else got sick, especially his other tribe mates who all drank the same water and were in contact with the mud mentioned. A spokesperson said that he didn't go to a doctor for a diagnosis or treatment, and that it could have been something he contracted on his way home.

In saving Tessa, Mark H was eliminated from Australian Survivor 2017. Credit:Nigel Wright Tarzan said many of the women competing were ill (he did not specify with what) while they were toughing it out in Samoa. "I think you'll find the Survivor game we play is far truer than Bear Grylls' game, we don't go in with anything," he said. Tarzan and Locky didn't always see eye to eye, and that cost the fatherly lime farmer in the end. Credit:Nigel Wright "We basically have got nothing and we really only ended up with the one thing that was of any use to us, that you could say was given to us, was a machete and there was one of those amongst 12 and it was blunt!

"It's a hell of a lot tougher than it looks." Tarzan has no regrets about being on Australian Survivor, or his conduct. Credit:Nigel Wright I would have been very disappointed to be going out in a body bag with the zipper open Tarzan Despite his wife Natalie being surprised to see him home so early, Tarzan has enjoyed the continued and unrivalled camaraderie he has experienced with his fellow contestants. "I think my timing was right ... and I loved [being on the show] and I thought that was all that matters," said the Queensland lime farmer. "I've never felt better."

Tarzan thinks Locky poses the greatest danger on Australian Survivor. Credit:Nigel Wright The fan favourite was voted out on Sunday night after being stabbed in the back by superfan and strategic player A.K. after Tarzan revealed his plan to remove their tribe's leader Locky in a bid to save his adopted "show daughter' Tessa. By taking the noble approach and finding an idol for soon-to-be-evicted Tessa while hatching a plan that went against the majority, Tarzan was left vulnerable and in his words, "the fury of the god has come upon me". So why help the 29-year-old Victorian doctor? "It was only because Tessa came down to me on the beach and asked for help, that was it. That was all she had to do."

Tessa, whose crumbling alliance left her on the outer among the tribe, shared with Tarzan a clue about the location of the idol, which gave the player immunity from being eliminated. Giggling like a schoolgirl on Sunday night, Tarzan was elated at discovering the idol's hiding spot, saying "I love this game". But his happiness was short-lived when AK, 29, revealed his plans to 27-year-old adventure guide Locky, instead of recruiting others to Tarzan and Tessa's side. Still, that's all part of the game. "Here's the devil in the detail, I'm probably not as a smart as the other guys and I'm not a superfan," Tarzan admitted. "Basically, my lack of experience in the game itself was my downfall." Interestingly, he remains in the dark over who goes all the way to the end, having asked that no one spoil his viewing of the show.

But not-so-surprisingly, he wants Tessa to win. "Mate, if Tess wins then I've won," he said. "Tess wouldn't have been there on basically two occasions ... I saved her the other night, I saved her tonight. I did that because I felt compelled to do it but she's got to win it. But I'd say Locky is going to give her a hell of a run for her money." Yet he wasn't despondent that his attempts to save Tessa may yet be thwarted by the majority. "I think we're setting new bars and reaching for new heights. Mark my words ... we will set it on fire," he said.

"I have a really strong feeling this will be a really amazing season and set a benchmark for seasons to come."