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Article Matt, Gary And George Are Leaving Masterchef

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In an unexpected and surprising move, Network 10 have dropped the original Masterchef judges and have confirmed that the well-known trio will not be returning to the blockbuster cooking show next year.

Channel 10 have said that Matt Preston, Gary Mehigan and George Calombaris will no longer be part of Masterchef from next year.

This comes amidst a host of allegations against restaurant owner, George Calombaris, which revealed that the famous chef had underpaid staff at his Melbourne restaurants by more than $7.8 million.

The CEO of 10 Paul Anderson has said that despite months of negotiation, “10 has not been able to reach a commercial agreement that was satisfactory to Matt, Gary and George.”

“We would like to thank Gary, George and Matt for their contribution over the past 11 years,” he added.

“MasterChef Australia has always been about ordinary Australians doing extraordinary things for the love of food and we believe it is very important to continue that ethos.

“Australia is full of remarkable cooking talent and we can’t wait to introduce another group – and the next generation of exceptional judges – in season 12 of MasterChef Australia next year.”

Wage Dispute

Calombaris has was fined $200,000 by the Fair Work Ombudsman for underpayment of his employees.

While the chef and restauranteur has apologised for his actions, many people have been calling for him to be fired from Masterchef. There was even a petition, with over 22,000 signatures calling for his dismissal.

The celebrity chef was also dumped from a WA tourism campaign earlier this week.

Calombaris starred in Tourism WA’s advertising campaign “Create Your Own Gourmet Escape in WA”, which was due to run until September.

Tourism WA managing director Brodie Carr on Monday said the ads with Calombaris had been suspended.

“We’ve paused all of our work with George for now and we’re talking to his management about recouping some of our costs that we’ve paid him,” Mr Carr told 6PR radio.

Do you think Calombaris deserved to go? Will Masterchef survive without the three original judges? Tell us in the comments below.

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Comments

  • Of course he deserved to be let go, he is a criminal, ripping off his workers while living the high life, disgusting. Probably about time they got some new blood in their anyway, not that I watch it, waiting for a plant based cooking show, not one full of meat and oil.

    Reply

  • I wish the media would tell the true story – particularly regarding the allegations against George. I think he has done amazing things for food… having said that, the show lost its appeal seasons ago.

    • George did rip off his staff, unpaid wages, who cares if he is a good cook or not, he is still a criminal.

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  • It’s never a good look when you have underpaid staff! Hospitality is a hard working low wage industry and it just doesn’t look good.

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  • Kind of ironic that they aren’t continuing on due to salary negotiations not going their way with this whole scandal looming over George’s head. Karma?!

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  • I liked the show in its original format where you actually learnt a couple of tips along the way. It will be hard to recreate the show differently I guess, but then a lot of people have already stopped watching it. I do think that what is happening to George Colombaris will drive other bad payers in the industry underground. He did pay everyone their backpay and also did self regulate and go to the Fair Work Tribunal with the problems once he was aware of them. Fair Work board wanted him to be an ambassador for others in the industry to follow suit, but now he has had all this backlash it won’t be happening.

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  • Greed! It was time for a change anyway. I might actually watch it again next season..

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  • I haven’t watched the show for awhile but if that is they way they eat in front of the cameras that is disgusting.

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  • I think they should have been changed ages ago. Probably should give the show a rest I reckon.

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  • Good, looking forward to a change. It was getting a little tiring when contestants cooked specifically in mind for the judges, not the customers/guest, particularly in team challenges.

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  • I really didn’t like these judges. I would love some fresh new faces.

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  • It sound like a good move to me!

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  • would be good to see someone new, maybe they should refresh or rotate the judges more often

    Reply

  • I would love to see female judges!

    • Totally agree

      • Yes definitely, I would suspect that is what they will do next season.

      • I hope so! There are wonderful female chefs that do not get the same coverage and high profile. Some of the recipes and food are quite modern, creative and innovative and appeal to all dietary requirements/needs.

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  • I forsee some former contestants and winners being called up for the show!

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  • Wonder who it will be now… Interested and kind of looking forward to the change

    Reply

  • Yes & yes!

    Reply

  • Maybe its time to give the whole show a rest for a while?

    Reply
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