Tabatha Coffey snips and snipes.
"Yes, I am tough and I don't really make any excuses or apologies for that," insists Tabatha Coffey. "When people get to know me during the course of the week at the salon they realise the reason I get upset is because I care. I think the viewer picks up on that as well."
Tabatha's Salon Takeover is the Bravo-produced series fronted by Australian hair stylist Tabatha Coffey. The Brisbane-born success story has worked in the UK and US and established her own salons. But it was her appearance in Shear Genius, which she admits was purely out of curiosity, that boosted her profile when she was subsequently offered her own series -- despite the fact that she didn't even win.
"To be honest I didn't think it through that much. It piqued my curiosity, and I figured I would go along and see what I could find out," she says.
"There was a moment of hesitation on my part. I didn't know if I wanted to leave my salon. They told me I had to give them five weeks and I didn't know if I really wanted to walk away from my business for five weeks."
But with her outspoken Aussie style she was soon noticed, and won the audience-voted Fan Favourite.
In her own series she gives struggling salons a makeover.
"Later in the series there's a salon owner who became ill quite quickly. He has MS and it struck him quicker than he knew what to do. He couldn't work so he gave the salon over to his daughter to run and they were just running it into the ground."
With just one week at each salon, she says she has to get to the point quick smart, even when that can sometimes be taken as being abrupt.
"It's hard to be patient when someone's asked for your help and you're there to legitimately try and help save their business. Sometimes they're resistant to change and it can be a little frustrating on my end," she says.
"But I don't feel like we create drama. It's highlighted by a clash of personalities. So that's good for TV. But in the end I really want to help these salons."
A little tough love never hurt any reality TV show, except when it turns malicious.
"Sometimes you need to be a little straightforward to make them step up."
Tabatha's Salon Takeover airs 7:30pm Wednesdays on Arena.
I tried watching this show for 5 minutes, she is with a doubt the most annoying person on the idiot baox. As is typical with "reality" shows (they are scripted, who are you kidding) there always tension, nobody gets along with her, and really, she's as ugly as a mud fence. I'm sure both of the viewers of this horrible program will give up watching soon.