FOLLOWING weeks of playing it coy in the face of mounting speculation, Survivor contestants Lee Carseldine and El Rowland have finally confirmed the hottest secret on reality TV: They’re officially a couple.

The loved-up pair made the confession in a joint interview with The Daily Telegraph’s Confidential, admitting that a relationship was the last thing on their minds when they each entered the Samoan jungle in a quest to win $500,000.

“It wasn’t in my mind at all, to find somebody I click with so well,” said 33-year-old army corporal Rowland.

“We’ve got similar personalities, similar lifestyles and we’re both single parents. We connected on that level and on a life level as well.”

Aerial photographer and ex-cricketer Carseldine, 40, acknowledged that the pair had met in the “most unusual of circumstances”.

The pair had previously played it coy about their burgeoning relationship, despite their fellow castaways making frequent references to their close bond during their time on the show.

They acknowledged that trying to make a relationship work in real life after such unusual beginnings had been a struggle at first, with Rowland saying their “mental and physical states” weren’t the best after filming finished.

“We’ve thought about the long-term, and he’s definitely someone I’d like to keep seeing,” she said.

“Outside of the show, it’s all about getting to know each other. It’s been a bit of a whirlwind, trying to get back to work and into real life,” said Carseldine.

The super-fit single dad has made no secret of his quest to find a new partner, having been in the running to be The Bachelor for the 2013 season of the show. Don’t expect him to try out for any other reality shows anytime soon, though.

“I think I’m going to retire now on top in regard to doing one of the best reality TV shows in Survivor, that’s not knocking The Bachelor or MasterChef or anything like that, but there was a choice to do reality TV, it would be Survivor,” he said.