Dicko reveals Mariah Carey’s wild dressing room demand and weighs in on Australian Idol return

Six white Labrador puppies… that was Mariah Carey’s dressing room demand on the Saturday morning TV show where The Traitors Australia player Ian ‘Dicko’ Dickson was working – and it barely raised an eyebrow.

“Their bowel control is not the best in the dog world,” the 63-year-old tells TV WEEK, laughing at the memory. “That was hilarious.”

So, when the drama quickly escalated on the set of The Traitors, Dicko, surrounded by a cast of self-proclaimed divas, didn’t blink.

“There were tears, tiaras and tantrums at bedtime,” Dicko says. “And long may that continue! I could tell it genuinely rocked some of the other cast members, but, for me, I thought: ‘I can do this; this is my home turf. Go for your life, ladies!’”

And, while Dicko has had a long career managing some of music’s biggest – and most demanding – personalities, the outspoken Brit also built a reputation doing the opposite, crushing egos with brutal honesty as a judge on Australian Idol.

Now that he has dipped his toe back into the reality TV pond, and Kyle Sandilands has announced his departure as judge in recent weeks, would Dicko ever return to the show that started it all?

“I’d have to do it differently,” he admits. “I don’t think TV networks or audiences at home want that level of honesty anymore.”

The Traitors Australia airs Tuesday and Wednesday at 7.30pm on Network Ten and 10Streaming.