Miss World Australia Courtney Thorpe was SO nearly the next Bachelorette.

BREAKING BACHELORETTE NEWS: We’re one step closer to knowing who the next Bachelorette is.

Yes, after Sam Frost found everlasting love last year, we’re ready to go for another season. The only question is, WHO?

Well, it’s not former Miss World Australia Courtney Thorpe – although she did come in as runner up.

Thorpe told Confidential over the weekend that she was one of the final two in the running to be the star of the reality TV show, but that she was thwarted at the last minute by another contestant.

Thorpe, 26, says the producers decided to go for “someone older” (which, let’s be real, probably means about 27 or 28. This is still television, after all).

It’s a shame for Thorpe, who says she’s looking to meet a “nice, sweet guy” and that she “loved seeing Sam find happiness on the show.”

It’s also a shame for the avid Bachelorette fans, as the revelation leaves us with the same burning question as before: Who? Who? WHO????

Will Heather be the next Bachelorette? Watch her speak about the possibility on The Project…