By John Powell – GlobalTV.com

One of the most popular players, houseguests of the season Mallory Aurichio it was fitting that she would leave the house on the show’s 1,000 episode and be greeted by an audience of past players, her peers. They gave her a much-deserved standing ovation. Now back home with friends and family, Mallory is surprised by all the support she has received from Big Brother fans.

John Powell: It’s wonderful to be talking to you today. Thanks for taking the time to talk to us. All things considered, how are you feeling?

Mallory Aurichio: I feel pretty good. You know, it’s weird, but I’m back in my real life with my friends and family, so I feel pretty good.

John Powell: Looking back, it took you a little while to find your footing but once you did you seemed to gain so much confidence. Looking back, how did that happen and has that carried over now into your real life? Has the experience changed you?

Mallory Aurichio: I think it kind of happened when I stopped being on the block and feeling like I was fighting for my life. I think I was able to kind of show myself a little bit more and not feel in fight-or-flight mode. And then, outside here, I mean, I haven’t been out for too long but people seem to really embrace that I was just being myself and that’s what I wanted to go in there and do. I wanted people to be inspired to continue to also be themselves so I’m just going to keep being me.

John Powell: There’s friendship and then there’s game, right? You’ve been able to see a little bit more of Drew and how he’s been playing the game. What do you think about Drew the person and then Drew the gamer?

Mallory Aurichio: I love Drew as my friend. I think we’re going to be friends outside of here. He’s funny. He’s one of a kind. I do think in the game he is making some mistakes. You know, I mean, he outlasted me, so I’m one to talk. (laughs) He is not very liked game-wise in there. I’m sure people like him on a personal level but right in there, right now, at least when I left, people aren’t really liking him. If he doesn’t stand up to the Icons I don’t think he really has the chance of winning.

John Powell: Speaking of the Icons, you had a kind of up-and-down, roller-coaster relationship with Dee. Again, how do you feel about Dee the person and Dee the player? Because if you look at the house and you’re watching the streams, some people don’t see that there’s a difference. They think Dee the player is Dee the person.

Mallory Aurichio: Yeah, I mean, kind of the same thing. I think Dee is a fun person. I wasn’t as close with her as I was with Drew but she seems like someone that’s super fun outside of the house. Game-wise, you know, she definitely did not have my best interest, and, yeah, definitely wasn’t good for my game. (laughs)

John Powell: All through the series you’re hyped as the “rocket scientist”, “rocket scientist”, “rocket scientist”. Does that add any pressure to you when you know that’s your persona?

Mallory Aurichio: You know, I honestly didn’t really think about that too much. Yeah, that’s just been who I am. (laughs)

John Powell: It’s very rare for somebody in the Big Brother game to find someone that they can totally confide in, somebody they can trust 100% and you found that. You had a great relationship with Melody, but Barrett was the person that was there for you constantly and he seemed to be more of a friendship. What did it mean to have Barrett in the game?

Mallory Aurichio: Having Barrett was good in the game. One, because I felt like he was connected with the Icons, so I felt like he had more information than the rest of the house and he was able to tell me stuff. Secondly, I felt like he was always on my side and in my corner and I was just really able to confide in him.

John Powell: One thing that was interesting is you have this Mosh Pit alliance and everybody’s in on it. What do you think is going to happen with them and were you really surprised that they did what they did?

Mallory Aurichio: I don’t think Mosh Pit is going to last. I am a little bit surprised just because I don’t think this was the best logical move for Dee and I just was getting a lot of reassurance from Barrett that, at least for this week, it wouldn’t make sense to blow up Mosh Pit yet. At the same time, I didn’t fully trust them. I should have listened to that more.

 

John Powell: You must have at least a lot of pride in the sense that you’ve come out of the house all those former houseguests gave you a standing ovation and you see now how much support you have out there. So, you must have some pride in the way you played and the way you moved through the game.

Mallory Aurichio: Yeah, I do. I think it wasn’t all about just my gameplay. I think it was that I just was in there and I was myself. I think that’s what people really like.

Big Brother airs Wednesdays (8:00-9:30 PM, ET/PT), Thursdays (8:00-9:00 PM, ET/PT) live eviction show hosted by Julie Chen Moonves, and Sundays (8:00-9:00 PM, ET/PT). Big Brother: Unlocked airs Fridays (9:00-10:00 PM, ET/PT) on July 24, Aug. 7, Sept. 4, Sept. 18 and Sept. 25 on Global TV.