'Craziest ride of my life': MasterChef judge leading by example
Andy Allen was working for his cousin on a building site in Wickham 13 years ago when he received the phone call that would change his life.
"I was an electrician at the time, and I had sent out the application [to be a contestant on MasterChef Australia] thinking nothing would come of it," he tells Weekender.
"A friend of mine dared me to do it, actually.
"I still remember being on the job site and getting a phone call from an unknown number - this was a couple of months after I'd filled out the application, so I'd pretty much forgotten all about it.
"I answered, and it was a producer on MasterChef asking if I could come down to Sydney and have a crack.
"So I had to talk to my boss, who was my cousin, and I was like 'Mate, I've gotta go down to Sydney for a couple of days and I'll see you next week'. Well, one thing led to another and another and I never went back to the job site!"
Andy, who was born and raised in Maitland, was one exam away from completing his electrician qualifications. He loved to play basketball and he loved to cook, and watched cooking shows to improve his skills.
But he took a punt, made it to the final 24 contestants on season four of MasterChef Australia, and on July 25, 2012, defeated Julia Taylor and Audra Morrice in the grand finale.
After the show, he published his first cookbook, The Next Element, and started working as a cook at Sydney restaurant Three Blue Ducks.
In 2016, he jumped on board as a co-owner when the Three Blue Ducks opened a new restaurant in Rosebery. Two years later, it was awarded an SMH Good Food Guide chef's hat.
Andy dipped his toe into the television presenting world, working on Andy and Ben Eat Australia, Andy and Ben Eat The World, Farm To Fork and Three Blue Ducks for Network 10.
In 2020, in what was a first for the series worldwide, Andy returned to the MasterChef kitchen as a judge. He's currently on our television screens as a judge on MasterChef Australia: Back To Win alongside Sofia Levin, Poh Ling Yeow and Jean-Christophe Novelli.
He's in Melbourne when Weekender calls, having recently bought a house with wife Alexandra (the couple married in 2022) for $3.85 million in Northcote.
I know how much he paid because the finer details of the sale were shared widely by the media in April.
"I was pretty shocked at that ... it must have been a slow news day," Andy quips.
"Alex and I had been toying around with the idea of buying a place down here for a while. I'm loving it - I have jobs to do, mow the lawn, all that stuff. I'm finding myself turning into my old man, which is a little bit scary. I now understand why he would just potter around the house on a Saturday morning."
Any electrical work that needed to be done?
"No, we got a place that was fully ready to go," he replies, laughing.
"It's the first home we've purchased together, so it's nice to feel a sense of accomplishment for something we've worked really hard for."
He describes his first season as a judge, alongside Jock Zonfrillo and Melissa Leong, as "bizarre".
"Matt [Preston], Gary [Mehigan] and George [Calombaris] had done their thing for such a long time. It wasn't so much nerves, I was more wondering how this was going to go," Andy says.
"It was so weird, as soon as I got that first critique out, I realised that they respected my opinion, they respected what I'd done in the industry, they just wanted to get better, and they knew that this was a huge learning process.
"It was a huge weight off my shoulders.
"Doing Back To Win again, I feel like I'm part of the furniture now at the studio."
MasterChef is produced in more than 50 countries and airs in 200 territories. I ask why it is that MasterChef Australia continues to rate the highest among international audiences.
"You know, I have thought about it, and I reckon it's so popular because we treat it as a cooking competition," Andy says.
"I mean, I was a sparky in Newcastle before I filled out that application form and went on the craziest ride of my life.
"When all you're trying to do is get the best out of people in such a positive environment, they realise that they can grab onto this opportunity with both hands and see what they can do with it. They know it can change their lives."
There are so many former MasterChef Australia contestants working in the food industry, in the media, and writing books. It's proof that this is a competition with a reward that extends beyond the $250,000 prize money.
"We film for five-and-a-half months a year, contestants leave their friends, their family, their careers. There's so much on the line for the contestants," Andy says.
"It's an experience for people to walk into that kitchen, let their guard down, lap it up and see what they can get out of it.
"The MasterChef kitchen is the ultimate leveller. It doesn't matter how much experience you've got, the challenges are just so random, and you can't be good at everything."
Scottish-born Jock died unexpectedly in April 2023, the day before season 15 of MasterChef Australia was due to premiere. The outpouring of grief from the 46-year-old's industry peers, family, friends and fans has been well-documented.
Andy and Jock shared a strong bond and were great mates. Was it difficult to carry on as a judge in a space that Jock filled with his personality and presence?
"Oh, it was rough at the start. It was rough," Andy says.
"I'm kind of lucky, I guess, because I've never had someone really close to me pass away, especially so suddenly. This was a full crash course in grieving.
"On last year's series, the first shot was just me in the kitchen with a light shining on me, 20-odd new contestants running through the doors, and I just remember feeling it was sink or swim at that point.
"There was one part of me going 'This is going to be really hard' and another part going 'What would Jock do?' And I know he would just get in there and do the best job that he possibly could.
"That's been my mission for a couple of seasons now; to really make sure that what we created lives on in the best possible way.
"And there's still many times when I get that wave of grief that sweeps me up ... and that's one of the things I've learned about grief, it will hit you any time, it will hit you over the most insignificant thing, and you just have to accept that and continue to move forward."
Andy reckons he's "getting there" when it comes to dealing with his grief.
"Last year it was a lot about missing Jock and wishing he was around. This year, I still miss him every single day, don't get me wrong, but for me it's now more about celebrating him and trying to move forward," he says.
"Sometimes this wave comes over me, it will be one small, minute thing and it just gets you, it cripples you, and there have been times on set when I just go white for no reason and the producers are, like, 'Are you OK?'
"But you have to just process it and move forward. When you love someone dearly and they're not there any more, that's what happens."
Outside of the MasterChef kitchen, Andy enjoys spending time in his own. He creates and shares cooking videos on social media and says he is inspired by the contestants he judges week in and week out.
"Cooking is still an outlet for me. I still enjoy it," he says.
"I'll come home after a 12-hour day and cook Alex dinner. That's my switch-off time, I can just focus on what's for dinner. It sounds so cringe but it's also so real: when there's a lot of other stuff going on in your life, you can process it while you're cooking a bowl of pasta.
"I get to spend six months of my life being inspired by what contestants can do with food when they're put under pressure. If you're not inspired in that kind of situation, it's probably time to give it up, you know?"
He had been training for a half marathon, however, says he "did a hamstring seven weeks out".
"I'm still not 100 per cent better. But my wife got there, and she ran another one last week. She's got the bug," he says.
In 2022, Andy co-founded new mid-strength beer Travla with Australian actor Travis Fimmel (Vikings, Warcraft, Raised By Wolves, Dune: Prophecy, Black Snow, Boy Swallows Universe), so that is also keeping him busy.
"He's a funny, unique man who will not quit until it's a success. He's the best business partner I could ever ask for," Andy says.
"Travla has started to go really, really well. It's starting to kick some goals as a beer brand that celebrates country living and country values.
"Travis is a country boy. He grew up just outside of Echuca, at Lockington, and it doesn't matter where he goes or what he does, he'll always be that guy from Lockington.
"He's got this total juxtaposition of what he's exposed to through what he does in Hollywood and around he world, but at heart he's a guy who just wants to be on the farm."
So, does he ever miss his sparky days?
"My tool kit is still at Mum and Dad's," he says.
"I'll go home to visit and sometimes there will be a box of downlights or a couple of ceiling fans in front of the door, and Mum gives me the eye.
"I can't really say no, can I?"
Andy Allen was working for his cousin on a building site in Wickham 13 years ago when he received the phone call that would change his life.
"I was an electrician at the time, and I had sent out the application [to be a contestant on MasterChef Australia] thinking nothing would come of it," he tells Weekender.
"A friend of mine dared me to do it, actually.
"I still remember being on the job site and getting a phone call from an unknown number - this was a couple of months after I'd filled out the application, so I'd pretty much forgotten all about it.
"I answered, and it was a producer on MasterChef asking if I could come down to Sydney and have a crack.
"So I had to talk to my boss, who was my cousin, and I was like 'Mate, I've gotta go down to Sydney for a couple of days and I'll see you next week'. Well, one thing led to another and another and I never went back to the job site!"
Andy, who was born and raised in Maitland, was one exam away from completing his electrician qualifications. He loved to play basketball and he loved to cook, and watched cooking shows to improve his skills.
But he took a punt, made it to the final 24 contestants on season four of MasterChef Australia, and on July 25, 2012, defeated Julia Taylor and Audra Morrice in the grand finale.
After the show, he published his first cookbook, The Next Element, and started working as a cook at Sydney restaurant Three Blue Ducks.
In 2016, he jumped on board as a co-owner when the Three Blue Ducks opened a new restaurant in Rosebery. Two years later, it was awarded an SMH Good Food Guide chef's hat.
Andy dipped his toe into the television presenting world, working on Andy and Ben Eat Australia, Andy and Ben Eat The World, Farm To Fork and Three Blue Ducks for Network 10.
In 2020, in what was a first for the series worldwide, Andy returned to the MasterChef kitchen as a judge. He's currently on our television screens as a judge on MasterChef Australia: Back To Win alongside Sofia Levin, Poh Ling Yeow and Jean-Christophe Novelli.
He's in Melbourne when Weekender calls, having recently bought a house with wife Alexandra (the couple married in 2022) for $3.85 million in Northcote.
I know how much he paid because the finer details of the sale were shared widely by the media in April.
"I was pretty shocked at that ... it must have been a slow news day," Andy quips.
"Alex and I had been toying around with the idea of buying a place down here for a while. I'm loving it - I have jobs to do, mow the lawn, all that stuff. I'm finding myself turning into my old man, which is a little bit scary. I now understand why he would just potter around the house on a Saturday morning."
Any electrical work that needed to be done?
"No, we got a place that was fully ready to go," he replies, laughing.
"It's the first home we've purchased together, so it's nice to feel a sense of accomplishment for something we've worked really hard for."
He describes his first season as a judge, alongside Jock Zonfrillo and Melissa Leong, as "bizarre".
"Matt [Preston], Gary [Mehigan] and George [Calombaris] had done their thing for such a long time. It wasn't so much nerves, I was more wondering how this was going to go," Andy says.
"It was so weird, as soon as I got that first critique out, I realised that they respected my opinion, they respected what I'd done in the industry, they just wanted to get better, and they knew that this was a huge learning process.
"It was a huge weight off my shoulders.
"Doing Back To Win again, I feel like I'm part of the furniture now at the studio."
MasterChef is produced in more than 50 countries and airs in 200 territories. I ask why it is that MasterChef Australia continues to rate the highest among international audiences.
"You know, I have thought about it, and I reckon it's so popular because we treat it as a cooking competition," Andy says.
"I mean, I was a sparky in Newcastle before I filled out that application form and went on the craziest ride of my life.
"When all you're trying to do is get the best out of people in such a positive environment, they realise that they can grab onto this opportunity with both hands and see what they can do with it. They know it can change their lives."
There are so many former MasterChef Australia contestants working in the food industry, in the media, and writing books. It's proof that this is a competition with a reward that extends beyond the $250,000 prize money.
"We film for five-and-a-half months a year, contestants leave their friends, their family, their careers. There's so much on the line for the contestants," Andy says.
"It's an experience for people to walk into that kitchen, let their guard down, lap it up and see what they can get out of it.
"The MasterChef kitchen is the ultimate leveller. It doesn't matter how much experience you've got, the challenges are just so random, and you can't be good at everything."
Scottish-born Jock died unexpectedly in April 2023, the day before season 15 of MasterChef Australia was due to premiere. The outpouring of grief from the 46-year-old's industry peers, family, friends and fans has been well-documented.
Andy and Jock shared a strong bond and were great mates. Was it difficult to carry on as a judge in a space that Jock filled with his personality and presence?
"Oh, it was rough at the start. It was rough," Andy says.
"I'm kind of lucky, I guess, because I've never had someone really close to me pass away, especially so suddenly. This was a full crash course in grieving.
"On last year's series, the first shot was just me in the kitchen with a light shining on me, 20-odd new contestants running through the doors, and I just remember feeling it was sink or swim at that point.
"There was one part of me going 'This is going to be really hard' and another part going 'What would Jock do?' And I know he would just get in there and do the best job that he possibly could.
"That's been my mission for a couple of seasons now; to really make sure that what we created lives on in the best possible way.
"And there's still many times when I get that wave of grief that sweeps me up ... and that's one of the things I've learned about grief, it will hit you any time, it will hit you over the most insignificant thing, and you just have to accept that and continue to move forward."
Andy reckons he's "getting there" when it comes to dealing with his grief.
"Last year it was a lot about missing Jock and wishing he was around. This year, I still miss him every single day, don't get me wrong, but for me it's now more about celebrating him and trying to move forward," he says.
"Sometimes this wave comes over me, it will be one small, minute thing and it just gets you, it cripples you, and there have been times on set when I just go white for no reason and the producers are, like, 'Are you OK?'
"But you have to just process it and move forward. When you love someone dearly and they're not there any more, that's what happens."
Outside of the MasterChef kitchen, Andy enjoys spending time in his own. He creates and shares cooking videos on social media and says he is inspired by the contestants he judges week in and week out.
"Cooking is still an outlet for me. I still enjoy it," he says.
"I'll come home after a 12-hour day and cook Alex dinner. That's my switch-off time, I can just focus on what's for dinner. It sounds so cringe but it's also so real: when there's a lot of other stuff going on in your life, you can process it while you're cooking a bowl of pasta.
"I get to spend six months of my life being inspired by what contestants can do with food when they're put under pressure. If you're not inspired in that kind of situation, it's probably time to give it up, you know?"
He had been training for a half marathon, however, says he "did a hamstring seven weeks out".
"I'm still not 100 per cent better. But my wife got there, and she ran another one last week. She's got the bug," he says.
In 2022, Andy co-founded new mid-strength beer Travla with Australian actor Travis Fimmel (Vikings, Warcraft, Raised By Wolves, Dune: Prophecy, Black Snow, Boy Swallows Universe), so that is also keeping him busy.
"He's a funny, unique man who will not quit until it's a success. He's the best business partner I could ever ask for," Andy says.
"Travla has started to go really, really well. It's starting to kick some goals as a beer brand that celebrates country living and country values.
"Travis is a country boy. He grew up just outside of Echuca, at Lockington, and it doesn't matter where he goes or what he does, he'll always be that guy from Lockington.
"He's got this total juxtaposition of what he's exposed to through what he does in Hollywood and around he world, but at heart he's a guy who just wants to be on the farm."
So, does he ever miss his sparky days?
"My tool kit is still at Mum and Dad's," he says.
"I'll go home to visit and sometimes there will be a box of downlights or a couple of ceiling fans in front of the door, and Mum gives me the eye.
"I can't really say no, can I?"
Andy Allen was working for his cousin on a building site in Wickham 13 years ago when he received the phone call that would change his life.
"I was an electrician at the time, and I had sent out the application [to be a contestant on MasterChef Australia] thinking nothing would come of it," he tells Weekender.
"A friend of mine dared me to do it, actually.
"I still remember being on the job site and getting a phone call from an unknown number - this was a couple of months after I'd filled out the application, so I'd pretty much forgotten all about it.
"I answered, and it was a producer on MasterChef asking if I could come down to Sydney and have a crack.
"So I had to talk to my boss, who was my cousin, and I was like 'Mate, I've gotta go down to Sydney for a couple of days and I'll see you next week'. Well, one thing led to another and another and I never went back to the job site!"
Andy, who was born and raised in Maitland, was one exam away from completing his electrician qualifications. He loved to play basketball and he loved to cook, and watched cooking shows to improve his skills.
But he took a punt, made it to the final 24 contestants on season four of MasterChef Australia, and on July 25, 2012, defeated Julia Taylor and Audra Morrice in the grand finale.
After the show, he published his first cookbook, The Next Element, and started working as a cook at Sydney restaurant Three Blue Ducks.
In 2016, he jumped on board as a co-owner when the Three Blue Ducks opened a new restaurant in Rosebery. Two years later, it was awarded an SMH Good Food Guide chef's hat.
Andy dipped his toe into the television presenting world, working on Andy and Ben Eat Australia, Andy and Ben Eat The World, Farm To Fork and Three Blue Ducks for Network 10.
In 2020, in what was a first for the series worldwide, Andy returned to the MasterChef kitchen as a judge. He's currently on our television screens as a judge on MasterChef Australia: Back To Win alongside Sofia Levin, Poh Ling Yeow and Jean-Christophe Novelli.
He's in Melbourne when Weekender calls, having recently bought a house with wife Alexandra (the couple married in 2022) for $3.85 million in Northcote.
I know how much he paid because the finer details of the sale were shared widely by the media in April.
"I was pretty shocked at that ... it must have been a slow news day," Andy quips.
"Alex and I had been toying around with the idea of buying a place down here for a while. I'm loving it - I have jobs to do, mow the lawn, all that stuff. I'm finding myself turning into my old man, which is a little bit scary. I now understand why he would just potter around the house on a Saturday morning."
Any electrical work that needed to be done?
"No, we got a place that was fully ready to go," he replies, laughing.
"It's the first home we've purchased together, so it's nice to feel a sense of accomplishment for something we've worked really hard for."
He describes his first season as a judge, alongside Jock Zonfrillo and Melissa Leong, as "bizarre".
"Matt [Preston], Gary [Mehigan] and George [Calombaris] had done their thing for such a long time. It wasn't so much nerves, I was more wondering how this was going to go," Andy says.
"It was so weird, as soon as I got that first critique out, I realised that they respected my opinion, they respected what I'd done in the industry, they just wanted to get better, and they knew that this was a huge learning process.
"It was a huge weight off my shoulders.
"Doing Back To Win again, I feel like I'm part of the furniture now at the studio."
MasterChef is produced in more than 50 countries and airs in 200 territories. I ask why it is that MasterChef Australia continues to rate the highest among international audiences.
"You know, I have thought about it, and I reckon it's so popular because we treat it as a cooking competition," Andy says.
"I mean, I was a sparky in Newcastle before I filled out that application form and went on the craziest ride of my life.
"When all you're trying to do is get the best out of people in such a positive environment, they realise that they can grab onto this opportunity with both hands and see what they can do with it. They know it can change their lives."
There are so many former MasterChef Australia contestants working in the food industry, in the media, and writing books. It's proof that this is a competition with a reward that extends beyond the $250,000 prize money.
"We film for five-and-a-half months a year, contestants leave their friends, their family, their careers. There's so much on the line for the contestants," Andy says.
"It's an experience for people to walk into that kitchen, let their guard down, lap it up and see what they can get out of it.
"The MasterChef kitchen is the ultimate leveller. It doesn't matter how much experience you've got, the challenges are just so random, and you can't be good at everything."
Scottish-born Jock died unexpectedly in April 2023, the day before season 15 of MasterChef Australia was due to premiere. The outpouring of grief from the 46-year-old's industry peers, family, friends and fans has been well-documented.
Andy and Jock shared a strong bond and were great mates. Was it difficult to carry on as a judge in a space that Jock filled with his personality and presence?
"Oh, it was rough at the start. It was rough," Andy says.
"I'm kind of lucky, I guess, because I've never had someone really close to me pass away, especially so suddenly. This was a full crash course in grieving.
"On last year's series, the first shot was just me in the kitchen with a light shining on me, 20-odd new contestants running through the doors, and I just remember feeling it was sink or swim at that point.
"There was one part of me going 'This is going to be really hard' and another part going 'What would Jock do?' And I know he would just get in there and do the best job that he possibly could.
"That's been my mission for a couple of seasons now; to really make sure that what we created lives on in the best possible way.
"And there's still many times when I get that wave of grief that sweeps me up ... and that's one of the things I've learned about grief, it will hit you any time, it will hit you over the most insignificant thing, and you just have to accept that and continue to move forward."
Andy reckons he's "getting there" when it comes to dealing with his grief.
"Last year it was a lot about missing Jock and wishing he was around. This year, I still miss him every single day, don't get me wrong, but for me it's now more about celebrating him and trying to move forward," he says.
"Sometimes this wave comes over me, it will be one small, minute thing and it just gets you, it cripples you, and there have been times on set when I just go white for no reason and the producers are, like, 'Are you OK?'
"But you have to just process it and move forward. When you love someone dearly and they're not there any more, that's what happens."
Outside of the MasterChef kitchen, Andy enjoys spending time in his own. He creates and shares cooking videos on social media and says he is inspired by the contestants he judges week in and week out.
"Cooking is still an outlet for me. I still enjoy it," he says.
"I'll come home after a 12-hour day and cook Alex dinner. That's my switch-off time, I can just focus on what's for dinner. It sounds so cringe but it's also so real: when there's a lot of other stuff going on in your life, you can process it while you're cooking a bowl of pasta.
"I get to spend six months of my life being inspired by what contestants can do with food when they're put under pressure. If you're not inspired in that kind of situation, it's probably time to give it up, you know?"
He had been training for a half marathon, however, says he "did a hamstring seven weeks out".
"I'm still not 100 per cent better. But my wife got there, and she ran another one last week. She's got the bug," he says.
In 2022, Andy co-founded new mid-strength beer Travla with Australian actor Travis Fimmel (Vikings, Warcraft, Raised By Wolves, Dune: Prophecy, Black Snow, Boy Swallows Universe), so that is also keeping him busy.
"He's a funny, unique man who will not quit until it's a success. He's the best business partner I could ever ask for," Andy says.
"Travla has started to go really, really well. It's starting to kick some goals as a beer brand that celebrates country living and country values.
"Travis is a country boy. He grew up just outside of Echuca, at Lockington, and it doesn't matter where he goes or what he does, he'll always be that guy from Lockington.
"He's got this total juxtaposition of what he's exposed to through what he does in Hollywood and around he world, but at heart he's a guy who just wants to be on the farm."
So, does he ever miss his sparky days?
"My tool kit is still at Mum and Dad's," he says.
"I'll go home to visit and sometimes there will be a box of downlights or a couple of ceiling fans in front of the door, and Mum gives me the eye.
"I can't really say no, can I?"
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After the death of their father, Andy (Billy Barratt) and his sight-impaired younger stepsister Piper (Sora Wong) are going to be separated in foster care: Andy's troubled past makes him hard to place. But he pleads with their caseworker Wendy (Sally-Anne Upton) not to split them up as he turns 18 in three months and will take on Piper's guardianship then. He gets his way, but had he known what was in store he might have reconsidered. British actress Sally Hawkins plays Laura, their foster mother. While casting a foreign performer in an Australian movie often feels like a bid for international appeal, Hawkins is brilliant in the role. Among other roles, she played Mrs Brown in the first two Paddington movies but she's a very different kind of mother here. It doesn't take long to feel there is something a bit off about Laura, who lives in a house out of town. While at first glance she seems cheerful and slightly eccentric, it doesn't take long before cracks appear in the veneer, revealing something more than unpleasant underneath. Laura fusses and fawns over Piper but treats Andy in a far more perfunctory way. She's aggressively nosy, not just politely curious, and some of her behaviour is worse than inappropriate. It's creepily fascinating and more than a little uncomfortable to watch. And who is that strange, bald little boy with the haunting eyes who's standing in the middle of the unfilled pool in the backyard? Oh, that's Oliver (Jonah Wren Phillips), Laura explains, another of her kids. He's selectively mute. Oh, and he's not allowed out, so he's locked in his room when nobody else is home. Nothing to worry about. The film could just about have forgone the supernatural elements - which aren't explained in exhaustive detail - and worked as a dark thriller about obsession and loss and the extremes to which people will go when devastated. But the spooky elements, not overexplained, add their own frissons and we get more than enough to know that something is very, very wrong. The kids are not there out of the goodness of Laura's heart. Barratt and Wong make you care about the step-siblings and their relationship and you don't want anything bad to happen to them. But given this is a horror movie, the chances are high that something will. Wren Phillips is a haunting and disturbing presence and he and his character undergo a lot. The production design and cinematography are excellent, as are the sometimes gross visual and practical effects (consider yourself warned). Flaws? Well, there's a big information dump towards the end of the movie and a couple of credibility gaps: a mobile phone that's always open so anyone can access the contents (and an owner who takes no security measures) and characters who put up with far more than seems credible before taking any action. Others won't be as fussed as I was about much of this and, regardless, the film is definitely worth seeing. It will be interesting to see what the Philippous come up with next. Bring Her Back MA15+, 104 minutes 3 stars The Australian Philippou twins - Michael and Danny - burst onto the horror scene with Talk to Me (2022). It was a well-made and vivid movie, by no means just a gory frightfest, in which dealing with death and grief played a big part. This movie - like the first, written by Danny Philippou with Bill Hinzman - has some similar themes but the story is quite different. The horror is far from being just supernatural and all the more unnerving for it. Bring Her Back is aiming to run emotionally deeper than its predecessor did and, while I had some reservations, it's an impressive achievement. There's a prologue in which some kind of bizarre, possibly occult, ritual is being undertaken. There will be more about that later. Then we move into a seemingly more mundane, if tragic, situation. After the death of their father, Andy (Billy Barratt) and his sight-impaired younger stepsister Piper (Sora Wong) are going to be separated in foster care: Andy's troubled past makes him hard to place. But he pleads with their caseworker Wendy (Sally-Anne Upton) not to split them up as he turns 18 in three months and will take on Piper's guardianship then. He gets his way, but had he known what was in store he might have reconsidered. British actress Sally Hawkins plays Laura, their foster mother. While casting a foreign performer in an Australian movie often feels like a bid for international appeal, Hawkins is brilliant in the role. Among other roles, she played Mrs Brown in the first two Paddington movies but she's a very different kind of mother here. It doesn't take long to feel there is something a bit off about Laura, who lives in a house out of town. While at first glance she seems cheerful and slightly eccentric, it doesn't take long before cracks appear in the veneer, revealing something more than unpleasant underneath. Laura fusses and fawns over Piper but treats Andy in a far more perfunctory way. She's aggressively nosy, not just politely curious, and some of her behaviour is worse than inappropriate. It's creepily fascinating and more than a little uncomfortable to watch. And who is that strange, bald little boy with the haunting eyes who's standing in the middle of the unfilled pool in the backyard? Oh, that's Oliver (Jonah Wren Phillips), Laura explains, another of her kids. He's selectively mute. Oh, and he's not allowed out, so he's locked in his room when nobody else is home. Nothing to worry about. The film could just about have forgone the supernatural elements - which aren't explained in exhaustive detail - and worked as a dark thriller about obsession and loss and the extremes to which people will go when devastated. But the spooky elements, not overexplained, add their own frissons and we get more than enough to know that something is very, very wrong. The kids are not there out of the goodness of Laura's heart. Barratt and Wong make you care about the step-siblings and their relationship and you don't want anything bad to happen to them. But given this is a horror movie, the chances are high that something will. Wren Phillips is a haunting and disturbing presence and he and his character undergo a lot. The production design and cinematography are excellent, as are the sometimes gross visual and practical effects (consider yourself warned). Flaws? Well, there's a big information dump towards the end of the movie and a couple of credibility gaps: a mobile phone that's always open so anyone can access the contents (and an owner who takes no security measures) and characters who put up with far more than seems credible before taking any action. Others won't be as fussed as I was about much of this and, regardless, the film is definitely worth seeing. It will be interesting to see what the Philippous come up with next. Bring Her Back MA15+, 104 minutes 3 stars The Australian Philippou twins - Michael and Danny - burst onto the horror scene with Talk to Me (2022). It was a well-made and vivid movie, by no means just a gory frightfest, in which dealing with death and grief played a big part. This movie - like the first, written by Danny Philippou with Bill Hinzman - has some similar themes but the story is quite different. The horror is far from being just supernatural and all the more unnerving for it. Bring Her Back is aiming to run emotionally deeper than its predecessor did and, while I had some reservations, it's an impressive achievement. There's a prologue in which some kind of bizarre, possibly occult, ritual is being undertaken. There will be more about that later. Then we move into a seemingly more mundane, if tragic, situation. After the death of their father, Andy (Billy Barratt) and his sight-impaired younger stepsister Piper (Sora Wong) are going to be separated in foster care: Andy's troubled past makes him hard to place. But he pleads with their caseworker Wendy (Sally-Anne Upton) not to split them up as he turns 18 in three months and will take on Piper's guardianship then. He gets his way, but had he known what was in store he might have reconsidered. British actress Sally Hawkins plays Laura, their foster mother. While casting a foreign performer in an Australian movie often feels like a bid for international appeal, Hawkins is brilliant in the role. Among other roles, she played Mrs Brown in the first two Paddington movies but she's a very different kind of mother here. It doesn't take long to feel there is something a bit off about Laura, who lives in a house out of town. While at first glance she seems cheerful and slightly eccentric, it doesn't take long before cracks appear in the veneer, revealing something more than unpleasant underneath. Laura fusses and fawns over Piper but treats Andy in a far more perfunctory way. She's aggressively nosy, not just politely curious, and some of her behaviour is worse than inappropriate. It's creepily fascinating and more than a little uncomfortable to watch. And who is that strange, bald little boy with the haunting eyes who's standing in the middle of the unfilled pool in the backyard? Oh, that's Oliver (Jonah Wren Phillips), Laura explains, another of her kids. He's selectively mute. Oh, and he's not allowed out, so he's locked in his room when nobody else is home. Nothing to worry about. The film could just about have forgone the supernatural elements - which aren't explained in exhaustive detail - and worked as a dark thriller about obsession and loss and the extremes to which people will go when devastated. But the spooky elements, not overexplained, add their own frissons and we get more than enough to know that something is very, very wrong. The kids are not there out of the goodness of Laura's heart. Barratt and Wong make you care about the step-siblings and their relationship and you don't want anything bad to happen to them. But given this is a horror movie, the chances are high that something will. Wren Phillips is a haunting and disturbing presence and he and his character undergo a lot. The production design and cinematography are excellent, as are the sometimes gross visual and practical effects (consider yourself warned). Flaws? Well, there's a big information dump towards the end of the movie and a couple of credibility gaps: a mobile phone that's always open so anyone can access the contents (and an owner who takes no security measures) and characters who put up with far more than seems credible before taking any action. Others won't be as fussed as I was about much of this and, regardless, the film is definitely worth seeing. It will be interesting to see what the Philippous come up with next. Bring Her Back MA15+, 104 minutes 3 stars The Australian Philippou twins - Michael and Danny - burst onto the horror scene with Talk to Me (2022). It was a well-made and vivid movie, by no means just a gory frightfest, in which dealing with death and grief played a big part. This movie - like the first, written by Danny Philippou with Bill Hinzman - has some similar themes but the story is quite different. The horror is far from being just supernatural and all the more unnerving for it. Bring Her Back is aiming to run emotionally deeper than its predecessor did and, while I had some reservations, it's an impressive achievement. There's a prologue in which some kind of bizarre, possibly occult, ritual is being undertaken. There will be more about that later. Then we move into a seemingly more mundane, if tragic, situation. After the death of their father, Andy (Billy Barratt) and his sight-impaired younger stepsister Piper (Sora Wong) are going to be separated in foster care: Andy's troubled past makes him hard to place. But he pleads with their caseworker Wendy (Sally-Anne Upton) not to split them up as he turns 18 in three months and will take on Piper's guardianship then. He gets his way, but had he known what was in store he might have reconsidered. British actress Sally Hawkins plays Laura, their foster mother. While casting a foreign performer in an Australian movie often feels like a bid for international appeal, Hawkins is brilliant in the role. Among other roles, she played Mrs Brown in the first two Paddington movies but she's a very different kind of mother here. It doesn't take long to feel there is something a bit off about Laura, who lives in a house out of town. While at first glance she seems cheerful and slightly eccentric, it doesn't take long before cracks appear in the veneer, revealing something more than unpleasant underneath. Laura fusses and fawns over Piper but treats Andy in a far more perfunctory way. She's aggressively nosy, not just politely curious, and some of her behaviour is worse than inappropriate. It's creepily fascinating and more than a little uncomfortable to watch. And who is that strange, bald little boy with the haunting eyes who's standing in the middle of the unfilled pool in the backyard? Oh, that's Oliver (Jonah Wren Phillips), Laura explains, another of her kids. He's selectively mute. Oh, and he's not allowed out, so he's locked in his room when nobody else is home. Nothing to worry about. The film could just about have forgone the supernatural elements - which aren't explained in exhaustive detail - and worked as a dark thriller about obsession and loss and the extremes to which people will go when devastated. But the spooky elements, not overexplained, add their own frissons and we get more than enough to know that something is very, very wrong. The kids are not there out of the goodness of Laura's heart. Barratt and Wong make you care about the step-siblings and their relationship and you don't want anything bad to happen to them. But given this is a horror movie, the chances are high that something will. Wren Phillips is a haunting and disturbing presence and he and his character undergo a lot. The production design and cinematography are excellent, as are the sometimes gross visual and practical effects (consider yourself warned). Flaws? Well, there's a big information dump towards the end of the movie and a couple of credibility gaps: a mobile phone that's always open so anyone can access the contents (and an owner who takes no security measures) and characters who put up with far more than seems credible before taking any action. Others won't be as fussed as I was about much of this and, regardless, the film is definitely worth seeing. It will be interesting to see what the Philippous come up with next.
News.com.au
5 days ago
- News.com.au
ABC in talks of new show with original MasterChef judges
MasterChef Australia's three original judges – Matt Preston, Gary Mehigan and George Calombaris – are in talks to reunite for a mystery television project. Six years after Preston, Mehigan and Calombaris last collaborated, executives at the ABC are hoping the three can be brought together to recreate the MasterChef magic in a new culinary program on the public broadcaster. Industry sources last week said the trio hoped the yet-to-be-greenlit program would relaunch their prime time television careers. Flamboyant food critic Preston and restaurateur/chefs Calombaris and Mehigan enjoyed 11 seasons as presenters and judges on MasterChef before the three made a pact in 2019 to jointly walk away from the Ten Network reality series if they couldn't extract a better deal. Industry claims, reported by your scribe at the time, had it the men had each demanded a million dollar contract from Ten. This was 18 months after the financially embattled network had been acquired by American media company CBS (later rebranded Paramount) after entering into voluntary administration in 2017. Despite the program's consistently high ratings, Ten refused the trio's demands and the presenters left the program. The following year Preston and Mehigan were signed to Seven's short-lived cooking show, Plate of Origin, alongside chef Manu Feildel. The program lasted just four weeks and was cancelled due to poor ratings however both would be invited to appear on the 2022 season of Seven's My Kitchen Rules. The two have remained regular collaborators and this year have joined forces to conduct food adventure tours in Hong Kong and Taiwan as well as a tour of India. Meanwhile prior to and after his departure from MasterChef Calombaris was sunk in financial scandal after it emerged he had underpaid restaurant staff $7.83 million. Following the closure of his 21 restaurants his company went into voluntary administration. He eventually made his return to television in 2022 on Ten with a six-part docu-series entitled Hungry after working diligently to rehabilitate his career and reputation. All three men are said to be keen to re-establish the chemistry that made them household names from 2009 and to relaunch their on-screen partnership, even with the expected downsized ABC pay cuts. SEVEN'S POWER MOVE Departed Nine Network journalist Chris O'Keefe has received an approach from the Seven Network to return to television. Former Seven Perth news director Ray Kuka was only days into his new job as replacement for recently departed national news boss Anthony De Ceglie when Kuka started canvasing for an experienced hand to take the reins of his Sydney newsroom. The approach follows this column's revelation Seven's Sydney news director Sean Power, promoted under De Ceglie to move across from executive producer of Sunrise to run Seven's Sydney newsroom, is headed home to Melbourne. We hear the well-regarded Power is currently without a job to go to in Melbourne but is hopeful Kuka will find him a role. It's news that has to be unsettling for the network's appointed-under-De-Ceglie Melbourne news director Chris Salter. Power's impending departure would be less of a problem for Kuka were he now permanently relocated to Sydney. With his family remaining in Perth – and Kuka apparently in no hurry to quit Perth for Sydney – he's under pressure to appoint a strong and loyal 'number two' to helm his newsroom in the nation's news capital. O'Keefe, who was a reporter for Nine for over a decade before trying his hand at talk radio on Nine-owned Sydney station 2GB, quit the media, and Nine, at the end of last year. After announcing he was to start his own political advocacy business he surprised former colleagues by joining the Clean Energy Council as its national spokesman. According to our Seven sources, O'Keefe didn't hesitate in declining Kuka's offer leaving the Perth news veteran, another chairman's pick by Kerry Stokes or so we hear, to go hunting for a new contender. JULIE'S ANGUISH CONTINUES Julie Martin's heartbreaking statement to a coronial inquest has confirmed claims the mother-of-three has become a virtual recluse in her eastern suburbs home since her daughter died in a random attack at Bondi Junction 13 months ago. Friends of the lawyer say she has been held up in her eastern suburbs home for over a year refusing to leave the house or take phone calls. Sources say the grieving mother has, since her 25-year-old's daughter's tragic death, stopped leaving the house to shop for food and provisions and now has groceries and supplies delivered to her home to help avoid public scrutiny or contact. A second statement tendered to the inquest this week also contradicted media reports the soon-to-be married Dawn had been at Westfield Bondi Junction to shop for make-up for her upcoming wedding. Friends of the deceased have previously informed this column Dawn was set to have her makeup done by a professional on her wedding day, and had no need of wedding-day cosmetics. Having received a stern rebuke from Dawn's younger sister Daisy for granting an interview to 60 Minutes, Dawn's father John Singleton has taken a lower profile since the inquest began on April 28. PAY PARITY TAKES BACKWARD STEP AT NINE The last word for the week must surely go to a report in The Australian earlier this week that Sarah Abo is earning $800k-a-year as co-anchor of Nine's Today show. The figure is roughly a quarter (or 28.5 per cent based on the lowest end of his estimate) of the salary currently being paid to her co-host Karl Stefanovic whose salary has been put at between $2.8 million and $3 million. Now this injustice should stick in the craw of Nine's news boss Fiona Dear, the first woman ever installed to run Nine's TV news division. If Dear (and Nine CEO Matt Stanton) has crunched the numbers, as indeed we have, the gender pay gap between the two Today co-hosts has grown since former anchor Lisa Wilkinson lost her job at Nine in 2017 for fighting hard – some have claimed too hard which we reckon is nonsense – to achieve pay parity with Stefanovic. While comedian and radio host Dave Hughes will always be a hero in our eyes for taking a pay cut in 2017 to ensure his co-host Kate Langbroek, who was on 40 per cent less, was given an equitable salary bump and even Kyle Sandilands insisted early in his radio partnership with Jackie 'O' that his 2DAYFM increase her salary from $80k to an equitable arrangement, it seems sexism is still king in television or at least in Nine's light news division.
