Walking into “Lego Masters” contestants Brad Bergman and Mike Tarrant’s home is akin to entering a toy store.
Legos and assorted paraphernalia dominate the Bellingham spouses’ spare room just off the foyer. In addition to a large table full of spare parts, shelving units holding plastic totes full of Lego pieces span from floor to ceiling. The room also features Lego carousels, various multi-story structures, Ferris wheels, posters and an entire wall of completed mini-figurines (known as “minifigs”).
In the living room, a large Lego build Tarrant and Bergman will be bringing to a “Lego Masters” viewing party at a friend’s house reads “Everything is Awesome” and has a working roller coaster. In the kitchen, yellow Lego daffodils are placed just so in a glass vase.
But the couple’s home creations won’t be featured when the reality series airs Thursday, Sept. 28. The show features their time on the set, but doesn’t delve into their private life.
“We had an awesome time,” Tarrant said. “We met so many creative people. Brad’s been plugged into that community for quite a while, but meeting all the different people and their different ways of building and their personalities and everything was great.”
The couple, who own at least 100,000 Lego pieces, said they made a holiday creation with an estimated 20,000 pieces. Bergman is more likely to be the one to make creations on a regular basis, and gets new pieces delivered to their home nearly every day.
Legos helped build the couple’s connection
Bergman, 51, admits he was the one who brought his Lego obsession into the relationship. He’d been a fan as a kid, and revived his passion for them when he started working at a toy store in Northern California in his 30s and was tasked with making elaborate window displays out of Legos.
“Mike married into it and is the supportive Lego husband,” he said, laughing.
Tarrant, 61, said he knew right away about Bergman’s love of Legos, and fully approved. On their first date in Everett, they met at a Lego resale store Bergman owned at the time, Bricks & Minifigs, and Tarrant observed how Bergman interacted with his clientele.
“I’d watch him interact with the customers, both the adults and the kids,” Tarrant said. “And you could tell that everyone was really loving Legos while in the process of making things and being creative. He connected so well with people that I was like, ‘He’s husband material.’”
In fact, when the time came to propose, Tarrant built a small Lego scene featuring minifigs representing the two of them. In between the outstretched hands of the plastic doppelgängers, Tarrant had placed a gemstone on what looked to be a ring but is oftentimes used as a toilet seat or life preserver for Lego builds.
Bergman was originally confused about what the ring represented and what Tarrant was asking him, but eventually realized what was happening and answered in the affirmative. They were married in a small ceremony during the pandemic, and will soon celebrate their third anniversary.
Joining the show
Bergman has always been impressed with how Tarrant is able to use Legos to create things in a more abstract way. Rather than following technical instructions to the letter, Bergman said his husband is able to “throw things together in ways I never even thought of and that Lego probably never thought of.”
Tarrant’s talents came in handy when the duo was selected to join the fourth season of “Lego Masters.” Hosted by actor and producer Will Arnett, 12 teams square off with different challenges on each episode. At the end of each, one team is sent packing.
Bergman had to get Tarrant up to date on terminology and give him a “boot camp” on some of the more technological aspects of Lego building, but by the time they flew to Atlanta, Georgia, in late February, the couple were excited to take part in the show.
Tarrant and Bergman couldn’t talk about their standing after the first episode or many behind-the-scenes details, but they said they stayed so busy and intent while building the challenges they often didn’t notice they were surrounded by cameras.
They also said they enjoyed meeting the other teams, and the vibe among all of them was one of support rather than of a cutthroat competition. Because the teams are composed of people who already knew each other — spouses, friends, a grandfather and grandson, and co-workers are among the contestants — it was easier to build familiarity.
While the publicity that has surrounded Bergman and Tarrant after the teams were recently announced has drawn attention to them, Bergman said fame is not the reason he got into Legos.
“I love the side of how it brings people together,” he said. “You put bricks on a table and people will start playing. When people are building, they talk and they open up more — kids, too.”
The first episode of season four of “Lego Masters” airs at 9 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 28 on Fox.
