SEASON PREMIERE

THERE ARE NO RULES WHEN CHARLIE O'CONNELL STEPS OUT IN MANHATTAN AS "THE BACHELOR," AS THE SEVENTH EDITION OF ABC'S POPULAR ROMANCE REALITY SERIES GETS UNDERWAY WITH A TWO-HOUR PREMIERE, MONDAY, MARCH 28

Less Formal Rose Ceremonies and More Real and Spontaneous Reality Makes New "Bachelor" an Exciting Ride

The First Single Mom in "Bachelor" History Is Just One of 25 Feisty, Competitive Women Trying to Capture Charlie's Heart

It's "The Bachelor" unplugged, without rules: roses handed out randomly, a rapid dating session where five women are immediately eliminated, the once coveted individual dates with higher stakes than ever - get a rose or go home! Rose ceremonies will never be the same, as the women speak their minds in a free for all discussion. All three exotic overnight dates take place in one location, with the first ever "on-the-road" rose ceremony occurring right there. It'll be a season of constant surprises and unlike any other. Anything can happen, as the quintessential bachelor, Charlie O'Connell, 29, a self-described fun-loving "good guy," takes the opportunity of a lifetime to discover if love is out there waiting for him, when the seventh edition of "The Bachelor" premieres with a two-hour special, MONDAY, MARCH 28 (9:00-11:00 p.m., ET), on the ABC Television Network.

On the premiere of this newest edition of ABC's popular romance reality series, which will once again take place in New York City -- Charlie's hometown -- 25 women, including the series' first single mom, barely have a chance to get settled in their rooms at the Roosevelt Hotel. Thinking they have a day to prepare for the start of the show, the girls are ambushed and told that they'll meet the then undisclosed Bachelor in just five minutes. A mad dash ensues - women not dressed, without makeup - as they congregate to learn Charlie's identity and immediately begin a rapid dating session with him, trying desperately to make a good first impression - some disarming and funny, some feisty. During the rapid dating, Charlie hands out two roses to those women who have impressed him the most, only to have host Chris Harrison surprise him with the news that he will have to immediately eliminate five women.

After the 20 remaining women move to their loft in Tribeca, Charlie calls to make three group dates. The stakes are raised and the competition gets fierce as the power is put in the ladies' hands to decide among themselves who will accompany Charlie on each of these group dates. The ladies know that there are now NO rules, and that at any moment roses could be won or lost. On the first date, which is full of surprising behavior, some of the ladies accompany Charlie to a neighborhood pub to play pool and raise a glass of cheer. The next group date takes the women to a nightclub where they dance the night away. But the pressure is already too much for one woman, who walks out and leaves. On the final group date, the remaining women play a no-holds-barred game of volleyball and rock climb at Chelsea Piers.

A few of the women come to the first rose ceremony with nothing to worry about, since they already have roses in hand. But for the others, emotions run high in this stripped down ceremony, and cat fights break out as the women face off and dish the dirt on each other to Charlie as he hands out his remaining roses.

Charlie is a financially secure jack-of-all-trades, a real estate investor and actor who enjoys a fantastic lifestyle and a love for life that is contagious. He has long cherished his carefree bachelor lifestyle, but will he find among these 25 beautiful bachelorettes one girl who can stop him in his tracks and inspire him to settle down?

Growing up in New York City, Charlie currently splits his time between both coasts. For the last eight years, Los Angeles has been his main residence, where he lives with his older brother, actor Jerry O'Connell. He also spends much of his time at his family's home in Montauk, Long Island with his parents, whose marriage of over 30 years serves as the model relationship he so desires.

The new Bachelor will get to know the 25 women in a series of fun and exciting dates that will elicit real and raw emotions. In the new series, women will continue to be eliminated each week, but now they never know when they might be going home. And if at any point along the way a woma should decide that she's no longer interested in the Bachelor, she can reject his invitation to continue dating.

Hosted by Chris Harrison, "The Bachelor" is produced by Next Entertainment in association with Telepictures Productions. Mike Fleiss is the executive producer. Lisa Levenson and Scott Jeffress are co-executive producers.