Australia's Next Top Model (cycle 5)

Australia's Next Top Model, Cycle 5
Cycle 5 cast
Country of origin	Australia
No. of episodes	11
Release
Original network	FOX8
Original release	28 April 2009 (2009-04-28) – 7 July 2009 (2009-07-07)

The fifth Cycle of Australia's Next Top Model was an Australian reality television program which was broadcast on the Australian subscription television channel, FOX8. The cycle premiered on 28 April 2009. Auditions were held during October and November 2008 across Australia. Supermodel and television personality Sarah Murdoch took over as host for this cycle, replacing Jodhi Meares, who resigned from hosting duties after cycle four finished. Production of the show began on January 2009 and concluded on March 2009, it was not affected on the heat wave of that year.

There were major changes of prizes for this series: Harper's Bazaar, Cosmopolitan and Maybelline replaced previous series’s regular sponsors Vogue and Napoleon Perdis.

The prizes for the series included representation by modelling agency Priscilla’s for twelve months, A$25,000 trip for two to New York paid by Maybelline; feature as the face of Maybelline’s new colour collection; feature in an exclusive eight page editorial in Harper's Bazaar (Australia) magazine and receive A$20,000 courtesy of U by Kotex.

The competition was won by Tahnee Atkinson who defeated Cassi Van Den Dungen in the final.

Episode summaries

A Fashion Baptism of Fire

Original airdate: 28 April 2009

The thirteen new girls meet their new host, Sarah Murdoch, and are put through their paces straight away in front of Australia's A-list of fashion. The first photo shoot reveals a new pack of "Bitchketeers". The girls arrive at a surprise press conference and runway show with fashion industry experts including Wayne Cooper and Collette Dinigan, the judges as well as Australia’s Next Top Model alumni Eboni Stocks, Samantha Downie, Alexandra Girdwood, Jordan Loukas and Demelza Reveley. Franky, Laura M. and Clare are all praised for their runway walks whereas many of the others struggle. Cassi is scolded for swearing while on the runway, and Georgie is told she did not look confident. Franky is deemed the winner of the runway challenge, and is given immunity from elimination as her prize.

The models are then given the keys to their new house and are welcomed by bags of gifts. Cassi begins to annoy some of the other girls with what they perceive as attention seeking behaviour. In a house meeting Georgie and Franky attack Cassi, but other girls then jump to her defence, making Franky upset. The photo shoot takes place at Sydney Olympic Park, where they have to do a Swimwear Couture photo shoot Leah makes some nasty comments about Clare and her pale complexion, causing her to get upset. Franky and Georgie struggle with their shoot whereas Cassi and Tahnee excel.

In judging, Cassi is praised for her ability to transform in front of the camera, Eloise is commended for her amazing body, Madison is told that her photograph was stunning but there was only one usable picture, Franky delivered a good shot but was reprimanded for having poor film and Laura M. is criticised for squinting in her photo. Adele and Laura T. end up in the bottom two, Adele for not living up to her potential in the shoot and Laura T. for criticising other girls when she delivered a less-than-stellar photograph despite previous modelling experience. Adele is spared, and Laura T. is asked to leave the competition.

• First call-out: Franky Okpara
• Bottom two: Adele Thiel & Laura Tyrie
• Eliminated: Laura Tyrie
• Featured photographer: Georges Antoni
• Special guests: Charlie Brown (designer), Wayne Cooper, Collette Dinigan, Samantha Downie, Alexandra Girdwood, Lisa Hensley, Jordan Loukas, Demelza Reveley

Let's Get Physical

Original airdate: 5 May 2009

Last week's elimination forces the girls to get serious, but that won't stop any of their hidden agendas. Sarah has decided to go the old school NTM route and get these girls a nutritionist and a trainer. The girls learn about portion sizes and healthy eating before heading to a gym to learn about fitness.

The next day, the girls are sent to a gym, where they met with an Australian gymnastics champion. There, they go through a beginner’s gym class. Cassi "hurt" herself during this, and some girls don't believe this at all. Clare wins the challenge because she brings the most fashion to her routine. Her prize is going to the ballet with Sarah. She picks Tahnee to come with her because she got the second highest score.

The photo shoot is a challenging contest with Cosmopolitan as the client. It was also announced that the eight best photos would appear in the magazine as an editorial. At the photo shoot, Clare and Cassi shine, while most of the others fail to impress.

While the girls wait before elimination, Tahnee, Lola, Franky, and Mikarla take turns trying on Cassi’s elimination dress and making fun of it.

In the judging panel, at the first the judges was impressed with Clare and Adele's photo, and the two will be featured in Cosmo. Next step was Georgie, which she looked adorable in her photo, but Alex says it came much more from the dress, however, she will be featured in Cosmo. Leah and Lola was heavily criticized by the judges for looked boring and sleepy, so they won't be featured in Cosmo. Madison and Franky also received good photo with some mixed reviews but they also featured in Cosmo.

The next shot is Tahnee, which is very unimpressed the judges but she was able to be featured in Cosmo. Eloise and Mikarla comes next, but Eloise's shot is not as strong as last week while Mikarla's shot was improving, so Eloise won't be featured in Cosmo and Mikarla would. 7 girls has featured in Cosmo, 3 didn't, and 2 girls left while only 1 other page is left. Cassi comes next, but her shot was universally impressed the judges and blowing them away, so she would be featured in Cosmo, and there was no page left.

The last girl, Laura M. came to the judges, but her shot was deemed the best by the judges. Sarah has told her that there was no page left for her, which Laura M. also told that she was OK with that because "everybody had their part". However, the Cosmo editor told that her shot is very impressing and she will appeared in Cosmo as well, combining nine pages. Laura M. earned First Call-out for her impressive photo but at the end, Georgie is in the bottom two pictures because the dress saved her shot. She’s joined by Leah, who is there for being too boring. In the end, Leah gets the boot because not getting the gig is far, far worse than boring the judges.

• First call-out: Laura Mitchell
• Bottom two: Georgie Kidman & Leah Johnsen
• Eliminated: Leah Johnsen
• Featured photographer: Ellen Dahl
• Special guests: Bronwyn McCahon, Dr. Joanna McMillan Price, Dasha Joura, Lucinda Dunn, Aisha Ashe

Makeover Meltdown

Original airdate: 12 May 2009

High Drama fills about the makeover week. When told that she is going to have all her hair cut off Franky threatens to go home rather than going through with it, protesting that her hair never grows and will look awful if short. When she sees it Franky is happy about the cut, realising that it suits her. Most of the girls are happy about their transformations despite the incredible differences that are wrought.

They meet with Nigel, a professional makeup artist for Maybelline, who gives them a makeup lesson. Mikarla and Georgie cheat by doing their own makeup and pay the price for doing so. After the lesson, they are given a challenge to perform in a Maybelline commercial, in which they have to deliver one line of their own. Cassi tells everyone the line she intends to use during the challenge, informing them that they are not to steal it.

At the commercial shoot the director is impressed with Laura M.'s ideas on her performance and delivery, but thinks Adele gives very little of herself. Jonathan and the director love Lola's script, which she is blatant about stealing from Cassi, which leaves Cassi devastated when she is told she can't use her line as it's already been used. The theft of her line bashes her confidence and means her delivery lacks enthusiasm or conviction.

After the challenge, a furious Cassi confronts Lola regarding her 'theft' of the much-rehearsed line. Representatives of Maybelline are on the set and this outburst doesn't impress anyone. The announcement that Lola is the winner of the challenge does not go down well at all with Cassi who is still trying very hard to control her temper.

Six the next morning the girls are told that the photo shoot will be 'natural beauty'. Mikarla is reduced to tears when she has trouble with the light in her eyes, Madison can't stop her frowning, Lola can't relax her mouth, and Franky's personality fails to come through in any shot. Clare and Tahnee shine, while Cassi steals the shoot.

The night before elimination there is a confrontation between Franky and the other girls in the house when it is revealed that Franky is talking negatively about everyone.

At elimination the judges are impressed with Tahnee, Eloise, Cassi and Clare's photos, but they aren't so impressed with those of Mikarla and Georgie which leads to the two girls ending up in the bottom 2. In the end, Sarah tells Georgie that she's a bit too young for the competition and she is sent home, though she vows to continue on.

• First call-out: Tahnee Atkinson
• Bottom two: Georgie Kidman & Mikarla Hussey
• Eliminated: Georgie Kidman
• Featured photographer: Bec Parsons
• Special guests: Joh Bailey, Nigel Stanislaus, Michael Joy

Runway Hell

Original airdate: 19 May 2009

This week, the girls were put to the test on their runway skills with runway coach Mink Sadowsky. Clare, Franky and Adele excelled but Cassi, Lola, Madison and Mikarla had a difficult time with their walks. In an effort to make the girls take things more seriously after their walking lesson, Sarah sends them on an early runway assignment to the fruit market. The girls had to walk on the back of a truck in front of the market workers. While Tahnee, Clare, Adele and Franky excel, Madison and Mikarla failed, Tahnee is deemed the winner of the runway challenge and she is given a $10,000 shopping spree at The Corner Store, and chooses to give Adele $1,000 of her prize.

In the house, Cassi physically threatens Clare because she woke Cassi while showering. Also, Tahnee and Eloise put a McDonald's bag filled with cigarettes on Mikarla's bed in an effort to make her quit smoking. This backfires and results in Mikarla calling Tahnee fat and attacking Eloise; Cassi then pours the cigarette contents in Eloise's bed as pay back.

This week's photo shoot was with U by Kotex where the girls had to strut their stuff while showing confidence. Monty Koble, a Kotex representative, said that the best photo will be used as an advertisement, giving all of the girls extra incentive to perform at the shot. At elimination, Franky finds out that her photo will be used in a U ad campaign. Adele earned First Call-out this week for her massive improvement but ultimately in a double elimination Mikarla is sent home because she has a bored attitude and doesn't take the competition seriously, and Eloise is eliminated for not taking on the judges previous criticism and being a one-look wonder.

• First call-out: Adele Thiel
• Bottom three: Cassi Van Den Dungen, Eloise Hoile & Mikarla Hussey
• Eliminated: Eloise Hoile & Mikarla Hussey
• Featured photographer: Kane Skennar
• Special guests: Mink Sadowsky, Monty Noble, Joh Bailey

Diamonds and the Desert

Original airdate: 26 May 2009

Cassi is extremely shocked that Mikarla has been evicted in the previous week, and considers quitting the competition. The other models view it as one less girl in the competition and don't encourage her to stay.

This week the girls are put to the test on a dirty farm shoot with a nasty stylist, ridiculous wardrobe and some squealing pigs. The shoot aggravates most girls, Cassi in particular. Sarah then reveals that the shoot is fake. This week's challenge has the girls wearing Cerrone jewelry and posing with props made of ice in front to an A-List crowd. Lola shows commitment by placing her entire face on the ice for the duration of the challenge, and receives an 18 caret A$2,000 necklace. This further disappoints Cassi and she expresses her strong desire to leave the competition during a phone call to her mother.

The next day, it is revealed that the girls will be going to South Australia, Clare's home state, into the Outback for the photo shoot. After arriving in Adelaide, they are driven to Parachilna, a remote town amongst the Australian Outback. Russell James is this week's photographer, and the shoot has the girls posing with a male model in high fashion lingerie. The heat of the desert along with the large amount of flies makes the photo shoot a challenge for most girls, but Cassi, Clare, Tahnee, Adele and Franky excel. Madison is criticized for her shoot as she is unable to remove the frown from her face and for moving awkwardly. Laura also performs poorly, displaying discomfort in her body and not connecting it with her face.

At panel, Clare's impressive photo and attitude earned her First Call-out but Madison and Laura end up in the bottom 2. Laura M. is saved due to her better portfolio leaving Madison eliminated for lack of versatility despite having some stellar photos in the past episodes.

• First call-out: Clare Venema
• Bottom two: Laura Mitchell & Madison Waller
• Eliminated: Madison Waller
• Featured photographer: Russell James
• Special guests: Justin Spittle, Phillip Boon, Reuben Dabrow

Cruising the Catwalk

Original airdate: 2 June 2009

The show opens with the girls talking about how much they miss Madison. They are then taken to the Harper's Bazaar office to learn about fashion, as the very top models have a strong sense of personal style and are very knowledgeable about the fashion industry. The girls are taught about the three latest trends and are divided into teams to replicate the trends. All three teams do pretty poorly and the editor from the magazine is not impressed.

This week’s challenge is walking for Alex Perry and his consultant, Trevor. The girls take turns walking for them and they are going to pick two girls to be in a ridiculously fancy fashion show. Alex and Trevor choose Clare and Adele to win the challenge. Tahnee was also chosen to be in the show.

Virgin Blue flew all of the girls' mothers to the house for a visit.

This week’s photo shoot was all Chanel. The girls had to model on a rickety pylon, but a lot of girls fell flat on the photo shoot.

At elimination Adele's shot was deemed as the best ever shot in the competition so far by Sarah. Adele's shot also proclaimed by Alex as a real Chanel girl and so improving. Clare also received mediocre praise, while Tahnee, even if her shot is a bit strange because the shot didn't even took after they started the photo shoot (it took before it). Richard said that every Tahnee's shot is boring, catalog, and predictable, so it's the only shot of Tahnee that really works.

Lola received mixed critic for her shot, while Cassi was criticized for her shot is getting worse week by week either than getting better. Adele received First Call-Out but, Franky and Laura M. landed ended up in the bottom two for producing such a dreadful photos, the judges contemplated about giving one Laura M. more chance but in the end Franky was given a reprieve and Laura was sent packing

• First call-out: Adele Thiel
• Bottom two: Franky Okpara & Laura Mitchell
• Eliminated: Laura Mitchell
• Featured photographer: Richard Freeman
• Special guests: Claudia Navone

Media Virgins

Original airdate: 9 June 2009

This week, the girls were thrust into the media spotlight for a media lesson with Charlotte Dawson. The girls were representing V Australia and had to learn a variety of lines to promote the newest Virgin airline. All of the girls failed to win over the media, especially Franky, who jokingly threatened to kill a media official, and Tahnee, who spoke about Victoria's Secret for the entire time.

After the criteria, the girls received a Sarah Mail which lead to an early photo shoot. The girls had to model designer gowns while jumping a trampoline. The photos had a special meaning as the photos would be up for auction on the Australia's Next Top Model website to help support Fashion Targets Breast Cancer. Cassi, Clare and Tahnee impress the international photographers, Denis Montalbetti and Gay Campbell, but Adele and Lola disappointed.

The next day, all of the girls attended Hugos Lounge for a Fashion Targets Breast Cancer charity event. The girls had to model their designer gowns from the previous photo shoot and encourage the fashion A-Listers to bid on their gowns. Prior to the event, Ruby Rose and Mink Sadowsky spoke to the girls about the foundation and Adele revealed that she had her own breast cancer scare. All of the girls modeled their garments on the runway but Franky was a stand out and was deemed the best, while Cassi was deemed the worst. This resulted in Cassi being the worker for a day and Franky adjudicating all of Cassi's tasks.

During elimination, all of the girls got a 'caning' by Alex Perry due to their terrible outfits; despite this, all of the girls received positive praise for their pictures this week. While Clare and Tahnee were deemed safe by the judges, the judges were concerned with Adele as they feared that 'One look Adele' was coming back, and Cassi as they worried that she was lying about smoking and not putting in enough effort compared to the other contestants. Despite this, Franky and Lola ended up in the bottom two as they had the worst photos in the bunch and both hadn't made any significant improvements. Franky was saved for the second time in a row while Lola was sent home.

• First call-out: Tahnee Atkinson
• Bottom two: Franky Okpara & Lola Van Vorst
• Eliminated: Lola Van Vorst
• Featured photographer: Denis Montalbetti and Gay Campbell
• Special guests: Ruby Rose and Mink Sadowski

Tears and Emotion

Original airdate: 16 June 2009

At the start of the week, the girls are met by Opera singer, Sharon Zhai, singing in their backyard, who gives them a Sarah Mail. The girls immediately think it is a performing arts lesson, some even think that they have to sing opera.

The Sarah mail sends the girls to the National Institute of Dramatic Arts and the girls are greeted by Jonathan and Mark Gaal, who is an artistic associate and Ana Maria Belo, a tutor and previous student at NIDA. The girls are put through a range of acting challenges including controlling laughter and delivering a eulogy at a funeral.

The next day, a puppet show was performed for the girls, then one of the puppets hand the girls a Sarah Mail preparing them for their challenge. Then, the girls meet at Ogilvy and are met by Jonathan and commercial director, Adrian Hayward. Jonathan reveals to the girls that are auditioning to feature in a nationwide Telstra commercial. The girls pair up and audition for Jonathan and Adrian. Tahnee excels and lands the main role in the commercial and is joined by Franky and Clare, but Adrian reveals that Clare was too prissy and might be replaced by Cassi if she doesn’t perform well on the day of the commercial. It was also revealed that the losers, Adele and Cassi, would be assistants on the day.

The following day, the girls arrive at set of the commercial and film it perfectly. Despite feeling nervous about performing, Chantal Walker, a Telstra representative, was so impressed with Clare from the start, that Adrian told her that she would remain in the rest of the commercial. While Adele and Cassi slaved away doing jobs as crew members, Tahnee, Clare and Franky enjoyed the experience of filming a national commercial.

At Fox Studios, the girls posed with Fords from different decades, replicating different style icons. Sarah revealed that she would watch all of the girls on the shoot and also revealed that there were only four Etihad tickets to their International destination, London. They portrayed celebrity style icons:

Contestant	Vehicle	Portrayal
Adele	Model T	Greta Garbo
Clare	Fiesta	Twiggy
Cassi	N/A	Victoria Beckham
Franky	N/A	Grace Jones
Tahnee	N/A	Elizabeth Taylor

Before elimination, Cassi reveals that she no longer wants to be in the competition and will tell the judges that she wants to quit. This gets the other girls excited as that means the other girls get to go to London. At elimination, Cassi did not tell the judges she wanted to leave and when she told the other girls in the waiting room, Adele broke down at the idea that she might not make it overseas and Franky and Tahnee yell at Cassi for lying and not wanting to be there.

Previously, for the second time Clare became the brightest star of the bunch, impressed the judges by her Twiggy-esque shot, eventough Sarah has noted that mostly of her film was on the pose. Tahnee also excel, reflecting Elizabeth Taylor greatly and also selling the car. Both of Cassi and Adele's shot met with mediocre praise, Cassi with her simplicity but make her photo works and Adele's bone structure and skin are highly praised. On the other way, Franky was highly criticized for her photo, although she had good energy, she didn't excused it well. At the end, Franky was sent home after three times appeared in the bottom two.

• First call-out: Clare Venema
• Bottom two: Adele Thiel & Franky Okpara
• Eliminated: Franky Okpara
• Featured photographer: Paul Westlake
• Special guests: Sharon Zhai, Mark Gaal, Ana Maria Belo, Adrian Hayward, Chantal Walker

London's Calling

Original airdate: 23 June 2009

The girls are off to London, and after seeing their swanky apartment and getting a good night’s sleep. They arriving at London Heathrow Airport and greeted by Sarah's pal Gerry DeVeaux (Britain's Next Top Model, Cycle 4 judge) takes them on a shopping tour of London - High Street and TopShop, then some higher end brands, then Selfridges, where Supermodel Elle Macpherson is there to greet them. Elle feeds them stuff about how they are beautiful and need to be grounded and supported and what not. Adele wins the paparazzi challenge and chooses to take Cassi because she hasn’t won a challenge yet.

The next day, the girls have go sees at Storm and Premiere Model Management. At Storm, the managing director had nice things to say about everyone; Clare's skin and hair, Adele's improved photos (and for her Chanel shot, she told that it was the best ad photo she had ever seen), Tahnee's pretty face and Cassi's top model potential. At Premiere, they’re a bit more critical about Tahnee’s measurements, Adele’s height, and Cassi’s and Clare's walks. The Premier agents are most impressed by Cassi and Clare, stating that Cassi "was the first one they spotted when the girls walked in the door" and that Clare's look is "perfect".

The photo shoot is high fashion meets London sights. Gerry was impressed by everyone, but again Cassi shined above the rest. All the girls looked great, but it was clearly Adele who struggled the most. They return to Australia and Alice Burdeu is the guest judge. The judges, with the exception of Sarah, all hate Clare’s photo, think Adele looks cheap, think Cassi looks bored, and think that while Tahnee’s photo is the best of the bunch, it isn’t that great. After a tough deliberation, Clare’s complete package puts her on top and Cassi's strong performance in London keeps her safe. Tahnee and Adele land in the bottom two and Adele’s one note look ends up sending her home.

• First call-out: Clare Venema
• Bottom two: Adele Thiel & Tahnee Atkinson
• Eliminated: Adele Thiel
• Featured photographer: Robert Astley Sparke
• Special guests: Gerry DeVeaux, Elle Macpherson, Sarah Doukas, Anthony Gordon, Carole White, Alice Burdeu

The Final Three

Original airdate: 30 June 2009

The girls meet at Priscilla’s Modelling agency and are met with Priscilla Leighton-Clarke and Sarah Murdoch who tells the girls that they are going on castings for Rosemount’s Australian Fashion Week. Sarah states that this is the biggest challenge the girls will face and the girls are given their portfolios and head off to their 5 castings.

First, the girls visit Ginger & Smart. Cassi impresses the designers with her strong look but almost falls over when showing them her walk. Clare is the only girl that books Ginger & Smart. Secondly, the girls visit Wayne Cooper and he dislikes Tahnee’s walk so he ultimately chooses Clare and Cassi to walk in her show, even though Wayne Cooper states she needs to work on her walk. The next casting was Nicola Finetti. Once again, Cassi almost falls over but Clare and Tahnee perform well due to their walk and sexy vibe so they are booked for the fashion show. The next audition is with Anna & Boy, Cassi is the only girl picked as the designers feel she has a more suited look compared to Tahnee and Clare. Finally, the girls audition for the Diet Coke ‘Little Black Dress’ runway show and are met with Jonathan, Kim Marks and the producer of the fashion show. The girls all succeed and book the job but Cassi has a breakdown after her audition because she thought she didn't do well.

Designer	Cassi	Clare	Tahnee
Ginger & Smart	N/A	Booked	N/A
Wayne Cooper	Booked	Booked	N/A
Nicola Finetti	N/A	Booked	Booked
Anna & Boy	Booked	N/A	N/A
'Little Black Dress'	Booked	Booked	Booked

The first show was Ginger & Smart, and Clare impresses the judges as she performed beautifully on the runway with nor Tahnee or Cassi standing in her way. The next show was Wayne Cooper, which featured Clare and Cassi. Clare, once again, performed well but the judges were disappointed with Cassi as she under performed on the catwalk. The Nicola Finetti show was next, and Tahnee and Clare performed well and impressed the judges. The next show, Anna & Boy, featured Cassi, who performed significantly better than Wayne Cooper runway performance because Cassi is much more suited to swimwear. Finally, all of the girls grace the runway for the Diet Coke ‘Little Black Dress’ runway show and all of the girls performed perfectly on the runway, impressing all of the judges.

The next day, Sarah reveals that Clare won a trip to Broome with a friend as she was the deemed the best performer during fashion week. After her win, Clare is giving the opportunity to ring her mum to tell her the great news, but the two losers were getting a bit annoyed with Clare's prissiness. and then her mum reveals that the girls have a Sarah Mail which was slipped under the hotel door, hinting to the girls that a photo shoot is coming up and like always they guessed what they theme would be.

The next day, the girls arrive on Garie Beach National Park to meet with Jonathan and their photographer, Jez Smith. Jonathan and Jez reveal to the girls that they are going to be photographed together and will be wearing natural makeup. Not only do the girls have to work together and embrace one another but they have to deal with the strong winds, rain and large waves. After their successful group shot, the girls are photographed individually; Clare struggles to find intensity in her eyes and modeled a bit too much and Jaz said "she is coming up with some really weird poses that don't fit her personality", Cassi amazed Jez and Jonathan because of her creative poses and powerful body and eyes. Tahnee performed well but Jonathan was worried about her body but at the end she presented some amazing photos.

At elimination, Sarah asks the girls to tell the judges why they want to be in the top 2 as well as describing their strengths and weaknesses. All of the girls break down in tears and are praised by the judges for their responses. The judges were also blown away with their group and individual photos, which made choosing the final 2 very difficult. After a long and hard deliberation, Clare and Cassi are revealed as the bottom two. Both with their strengths and weaknesses addressed, Sarah announces that Cassi will join Tahnee in the top two. Clare was eliminated even though she booked the most shows for fashion week.

When Clare was about to leave the house, she threw Cassi's frog doll to the pool, just like Lola did when she was eliminated a few weeks before.

Cassi's place marks the history of Australia's Next Top Model for a girl to be in the final two without receiving a first call-out.

• First call-out: Tahnee Atkinson
• Bottom two: Cassi Van Den Dungen & Clare Venema
• Eliminated: Clare Venema
• Featured photographer: Jez Smith
• Special guests: Wayne Cooper, Nicola Finetti, Doll Wright, Kim Marks, Priscilla Leighton-Clarke

Live Finale

Original airdate: 7 July 2009

Live from Luna Park, Sarah Murdoch hosted the finale of Australia's Next Top Model Cycle 5. The finale began with an introduction of the judging panel that consisted of Charlotte Dawson, Alex Perry, Jonathan Pease, Priscilla Leighton-Clare, Claudia Navone, Russell James and of course, Sarah Murdoch. Soon after, the 11 eliminated contestants were re-introduced and modelled on the catwalk while Jessica Mauboy performed her hit, Burn.

Sarah then introduced the girls, including the final 2, as they all performed on the runway wearing designer clothes from The Corner Shop. After the girls spilled the beans on many memorable moments from the series, Sarah announced that Clare had won Australia's Favourite Model, winning her $5,000 thanks to Impulse.

After Tahnee and Cassi were interviewed, the voting lines closed and the judges were ready to vote after viewing the girls' portfolios, but not after a quick good luck message from the one and only Brüno. Before the judges votes were conducted, Tahnee and Cassi were surprised when both of their mothers joined them on stage to give them support during the judging. Jonathan Pease begun the voting and stated that he was looking for 'the whole package' and his vote went to Tahnee while Claudie Navone and Russell James voted for Cassi due to her strong look and her ability to take stunning photographs. After a commercial break, the judging votes continued with Sarah giving her vote to Tahnee as she felt that Cassi was not ready to model while Tahnee was ready to perform. Priscilla Leighton-Clarke voted for Cassi yet still had concern over whether she was ready to model. In a shock vote, Charlotte Dawson, who has supported Cassi throughout the entire competition, gave her vote to Tahnee as she was concerned that Cassi wouldn't have the drive to model and just return to her old life and Alex Perry voted for Cassi due to her good looks and her ability to transform in front of the camera. With only one vote between Tahnee and Cassi, it was up to the public to decide who would be Australia's Next Top Model. Unfortunately, throughout the judges deliberation, Tahnee had a nose bleed which brought light to a serious part of the show.

After all of the votes were tallied, Sarah revealed that Tahnee Atkinson had won Australia's Next Top Model, beating Cassi Van Den Dungen. Tahnee became the first winner of the show from Western Australia.

• Final two: Cassi Van Den Dungen & Tahnee Atkinson
• Australia's Next Top Model: Tahnee Atkinson
• Special guests: Jessica Mauboy, Russell James, Claudia Navone, Priscilla Leighton-Clarke, Ruby Rose, Brüno, Jane Atkinson (Tahnee's mum), Maree Rochester (Cassi's mum)

Contestants

(ages stated are at time of contest)

Contestant	Age	Height	Hometown	Outcome
Laura Tyrie	18		Perth, Western Australia	Eliminated in Episode 1
Leah Johnsen	18		Oakleigh, Victoria	Eliminated in Episode 2
Georgie Kidman	16		Castlemaine, Victoria	Eliminated in Episode 3
Mikarla Hussey	18		Wollongong, New South Wales	Eliminated in Episode 4
Eloise Hoile	20		Glenunga, South Australia
Madison Waller	17		Wurtulla, Queensland	Eliminated in Episode 5
Laura Mitchell	20		Ocean Reef, Western Australia	Eliminated in Episode 6
Lauren "Lola" Van Vorst	20		Newport, New South Wales	Eliminated in Episode 7
Franchesca "Franky" Okpara	18		Wanneroo, Western Australia	Eliminated in Episode 8
Adele Thiel	18		Hornsby, New South Wales	Eliminated in Episode 9
Clare Venema	16		Bridgewater, South Australia	Eliminated in Episode 10
Cassandra "Cassi" Van Den Dungen	16		Sunbury, Victoria	Runner Up
Tahnee Atkinson	17		North Fremantle, Western Australia	Winner

• Tahnee turned 17 during the filming of episode 2.

Summaries

Call-out order

Sarah's call-out order

Order	Episodes
	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11
1	Franky	Laura M.	Tahnee	Adele	Clare	Adele	Tahnee	Clare	Clare	Tahnee	Tahnee
2	Cassi	Cassi	Eloise	Franky	Adele	Clare	Clare	Tahnee	Cassi	Cassi	Cassi
3	Tahnee	Clare	Cassi	Tahnee	Tahnee	Tahnee	Cassi	Cassi	Tahnee	Clare
4	Eloise	Franky	Clare	Madison	Cassi	Lola	Adele	Adele	Adele
5	Clare	Mikarla	Franky	Lola	Franky	Cassi	Franky	Franky
6	Mikarla	Adele	Laura M.	Laura M.	Lola	Franky	Lola
7	Lola	Tahnee	Lola	Clare	Laura M.	Laura M.
8	Madison	Madison	Adele	Cassi	Madison
9	Laura M.	Lola	Madison	Eloise
10	Georgie	Eloise	Mikarla	Mikarla
11	Leah	Georgie	Georgie
12	Adele	Leah
13	Laura T.

     The contestant was immune from elimination

     The contestant was eliminated

     The contestant won the competition

• In episode 1, Franky won the challenge and was therefore called first and immune from elimination.
• Episode 4 featured a double elimination with the bottom three contestants being in danger of elimination.

Photo shoot guide

• Episode 1 photo shoot: Haute couture swimwear at Sydney Olympic Park
• Episode 2 photo shoot: Tulle on trapeze for Cosmopolitan
• Episode 3 photo shoot: Natural beauty shoot
• Episode 4 photo shoot: U by Kotex campaign
• Episode 5 photo shoot: Lingerie in the outback
• Episode 6 photo shoot: Chanel by the Sea
• Episode 7 photo shoot: Fashion Targets Breast Cancer campaign on a trampoline
• Episode 8 photo shoot: Celebrity style icons
• Episode 9 photo shoot: London edge
• Episode 10 photo shoot: Raw beauty on the beach

Makeovers

• Georgie: Bob cut inspired Naomi Campbell and dyed brown
• Mikarla: Bob cut inspired Linda Evangelista and dyed platinum blonde
• Eloise: Gisele Bündchen curly hair extensions
• Madison: Melania Trump hair straightened and highlights
• Laura M: China Doll inspired bob cut Katie Holmes
• Lola: Layers added
• Franky: Pixie cut Halle Berry
• Adele: Dyed fiery red
• Clare: Dyed platinum blonde
• Cassi: Layers added and highlights added
• Tahnee: Hair extensions, Highlights, Lowlight

Judges

• Sarah Murdoch
• Charlotte Dawson
• Alex Perry

Other cast members

• Jonathan Pease – style director, model mentor

Controversy

Before the cycle premiered, there was controversy over a number of issues.

Sixteen-year-old Cassi Van Den Dungen was criticised for being a proud bogan and "smoker" with her mother in support, having to take anger-management classes to control her temper whilst participating in the series and for being engaged and living with a 25-year-old bricklayer. She also received backlash from Hume City Council mayor Jack Ogilvie over her comments in which she described her hometown of Sunbury as "like a ghetto", with the mayor stating that she is a "very immature, silly little girl" and that "she owes Sunbury an apology. I wonder if she knows what a ghetto is. Sunbury is far from being a ghetto, far from it.".

Eighteen-year-old Mikarla Hussey's appearance initially shocked host Sarah Murdoch. In the second episode, a nutritionist assisted the contestants with healthy eating, weight management and lifestyle choices. Mikarla initially weighed 50 kg (110 lb) before production began. After her swimsuit photo shoot showed off her technically unhealthy body, she was forced to gain extra weight. She now weighs 56 kg (123 lb).

Lola Van Vorst was involved in a nude photo scandal, involving pictures taken by an ex-boyfriend.

On 6 June 2009, it was revealed that Clare Venema, Adele Thiel and Tahnee Atkinson had previous professional modelling experience that had not been disclosed during the show.

Post Top Model careers

• Tahnee Atkinson is signed to Priscilla's Model Management as well as ONE.1 Management in New York, and has modeled for Bond-eye Swimwear. She has been in the oct. 2012 issue of Cleo Magazine.
• Cassi Van Den Dungen is signed to Next Model Management (NY, Paris &Milan), Premier London, and Work Agency (Aus). She has modeled for Vogue Australia, Harpe's Bazaar, Elle and numerous fashion magazines in Australia and Asia. She has exclusively walked for Miu Miu, Calvin Klein, Giles Deacon, to name a few. She has worked with Numerous Australian designers such as Alex Perry, Ellery, Sass & Bide, Dion Lee, Romance Was Born, Zimmerman and other local brands.
• Adele Thiel has been signed to London MGT Group.
• Lola Van Vorst has been signed to The Agency Models.
• Georgie Kidman has been signed to Giant Management and EMG in Sydney.
• Laura Tyrie has been signed to Chadwick Models.
• Leah Johnsen has been signed to Vivien's Models in Melbourne.
• Eloise Hoile Has been on the cover of Adelaide Matters Magazine in June 2011 and has done tests and print work.
• Mikarla Hussey has done some test shots and is now a mother.

External links

• Official Australia's Next Top Model website
• Alamela Rowan's Next Top Model blog