They share such a close bond.

Photos of Barry ‘Bear’ Myrden and Sam arriving at a Sydney hotel has reignited chatter that their close bond during The Golden Bachelor left the show’s female contestants fuming.

The sighting came back in March during production. Sam and Bear, 61, were attending a star-studded charity gala alongside the ladies, which features in an upcoming episode.

A host of Channel Nine faces also attended, including Richard Wilkins, Sylvia Jeffreys and David Campbell.

Despite their clear camaraderie, Sam has definitively shut down talk that she is the one who ends up with Bear’s final rose.
Samantha Armytage and Barry “Bear” Myrden have reignited speculation around their close bond. (Credit: Getty)
“I promise you, I have not been dating the Golden Bachelor,” Sam also told Stellar during her recent interview.

Seemingly proving their point – and learning from their walk down the TV WEEK Logies red carpet together in August – Sam and Bear kept clear of each other at Nine’s 2026 programming launch last week.

Instead, Sam mingled with the likes of Rodger Corser and Paul Gallen.

Sam shares a close bond with Bear and has gushed over the “good man”, but has firmly shut down any dating speculation.

“He stood out to me from the start. He’s raised three boys, pretty much on his own; his wife died when the youngest was quite young,” she told Stellar in September.
After their Logie Awards red carpet debut, they steered clear of one another at Channel Nine’s Upfronts event. (Credit: Getty)
“He’s been to rock bottom, he’s experienced one of the worst things anyone could go through in a marriage, so he’s got this enormous understanding of emotion, which is good for a man.

“He knows grief, which I think is quite valuable as an adult – to have been to some low places. It makes you a better person.”

Bear will be looking for his second chance at love on The Golden Bachelor after losing his wife, Audrey, 14 years ago.

Sam, who has been single since splitting from her husband Richard Lavender last year, has formed a friendship with Bear, but denied that anything romantic is going on between them.
Bear will be looking for love on The Golden Bachelor from October 20. (Credit: Channel Nine)
“Well, you can’t host the show and then steal the Golden Bachelor. Hello. That wouldn’t be much fun, would it?” Sam said on Nova’s The Chrissie Swan Show.

“He’s a friend, and I’m the host, and he’s the golden bach. And there are 20 wonderful ladies who were just so excited to meet him.”

The 20 glamorous ladies vying for Bear’s attention on The Golden Bachelor are set to make their debut alongside the single man during the show’s premiere from October 20.