Australian TV chef Peter Russell-Clarke dies at 89, remembered for ‘Come and Get It' and his creativity
The pioneering TV chef, artist and illustrator passed away peacefully on Friday, July 3, surrounded by his beloved wife Jan, his partner of 65 years, and his two children, Peter and Wendy, following complications from a stroke.
Russell-Clarke was best known for his five-minute ABC series Come and Get It, which aired in the 1980s and cemented his place as one of the first true celebrity chefs in Australia.
Across more than 900 episodes, his expressive catchphrases, neckerchiefs, and twinkling sense of humour became part of the national lexicon.
While many remember him for that signature callout, 'Come and get it!', Russell-Clarke's career spanned far more than television.
He was a political cartoonist, a commercial illustrator, a creative director in one of Australia's top advertising agencies of the 1970s, a restaurateur decades before 'pop-up dining' was a trend, and the author of nearly 40 cookbooks.
He even appeared alongside Derryn Hinch in the cult 1983 comedy At Last... Bullamakanka: The Motion Picture, and was later appointed a food ambassador to the United Nations.
Born in 1935 in Ballarat, Russell-Clarke's early life was marked by instability.
The son of a former Anglican minister and a dressmaker, he spent time in foster care and even experienced periods of homelessness, once scavenging behind Florentino in Melbourne and half-joking that this is where his appreciation for 'fine food' was born.
A stint living with a Chinese family in his youth introduced him to banquet-style cooking and Asian flavours, elements he would return to throughout his culinary career.
'Whether you're cooking or painting, follow your imagination,' he once said, tying together his dual passions.
While Come and Get It eventually left the ABC, Russell-Clarke's popularity endured, thanks in part to a beloved advertising campaign for the Australian Dairy Corporation that had him bounding across paddocks shouting, 'Where's the cheese?'
Decades later, the question still followed him.
His fans remember not just the recipes, but the warmth, mischief and generosity of spirit he brought to the kitchen — and the screen.
'Adieu, Peter Russell-Clarke,' his family said in a statement.
'The lovable, larrikin artist and gentleman of the art of relaxed cooking. 'Til we all meet again.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Perth Now
an hour ago
- Perth Now
Kyle MacLachlan would consider 'fun' Desperate Housewives return
Kyle MacLachlan is open to a Desperate Housewives return. The 66-year-old actor portrayed the character of Orson Hodge in the ABC series between 2006 and 2012 and revealed that he would consider taking a role in the revival of the hit show that is in development. Kyle told People: "That'd be fun. I mean, Wisteria Lane still exists on the Universal back lot. It's part of the tour!" The Blue Velvet star explained that he would consider a potential role as a brand new opportunity in his career. He said: "If for Desperate Housewives, if that were to come back - and if they would even want me to come back - I'd have to look at the role and kind of get a sense of what they're thinking about for the character. "So I would approach it like if it were something completely new and weigh how I feel about the role, and the character, and the process of everything, you know? I would treat it like it were, you know something else (new) that had come to me and make my judgement on that." Kyle explained that he was faced with a similar choice when he decided to return as Special Agent Dale Cooper in the late David Lynch's cult series Twin Peaks - which aired for two seasons in the early 1990s before being revived in 2017. He said: "The thing about returning to Twin Peaks was that David decided not to really pick it up from where we left off and to create a completely different journey for the character. "And I got to do a couple (of) different characters in the reboot." Although Kyle is enthusiastic about the prospect, Eva Longoria is unsure if a Desperate Housewives reboot would be successful. The 50-year-old star found fame as Gabrielle 'Gaby' Solis on the show but isn't sure what bosses could do with her alter ego in terms of storylines if she did return. Eva told Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen in April: "I can't sleep with any more people on that street. I have slept with every person on the street, as did Nicolette Sheridan (who played Edie Britt)." The For Greater Glory actress explained that creator Marc Cherry would require "the most convincing" to join the reboot as he felt the programme had run its course when it ended in 2012. Longoria said: "He feels like we've exhausted the characters."
ABC News
an hour ago
- ABC News
Six Indigenous Australian shows to stream anywhere this NAIDOC Week
NAIDOC Week is the perfect time to celebrate Blak excellence in storytelling, wherever you are in the world. This curated watchlist shines a spotlight on Indigenous Australian voices, culture, humour and history. From laugh-out-loud comedies to moving documentaries, here are six shows that put First Nations storytelling front and centre that you can watch from anywhere in the world. 1. That Blackfella Show Ernie Dingo, Bridget Brennan and Isaac Compton are joined in studio by your favourite Blackfellas. ( Supplied: ABC TV ) Get ready to kick off NAIDOC Week with music, sketch comedy and big laughs. Ernie Dingo, Bridget Brennan and Isaac Compton welcome your favourite Blackfellas into the studio for 60 minutes of unfiltered fun. Where to watch: ABC iview 2. WINHANGANHA In this film Jazz Money is renewing Australia's audiovisual history, and centralising dance, performance, gathering and protest. ( Supplied by the NFSA ) For something powerful and reflective, join Wiradjuri artist Jazz Money on a journey through archival footage, sound and poetry. WINHANGANHA explores how the legacy of collecting has shaped First Nations people and wider Australia in moving, thought-provoking ways. Where to watch: ABC Australia, Sunday 13 July 3. One Plus One — The Elders Gail Mabo is one of many prominent Elders featured in this series. ( ABC News: Brant Cumming ) If you want to learn from the wisdom of those who hold culture, storylines and songlines, this is a must-watch. Journalist Dan Bourchier travels across Australia to share conversations with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Elders, whose knowledge offers profound insights into country and culture. Where to watch: ABC iview 4. Many Lands, Many Seasons Find out how unique knowledge from six Aboriginal seasonal calendars helps the traditional owners hunt, fish and collect bush tucker. ( Supplied: ABC TV ) Australia isn't just one land with four seasons. This fascinating series dives into six different Aboriginal seasonal calendars, revealing how they guide the best times for hunting, fishing and gathering bush tucker. It's a beautiful way to see Country through traditional knowledge. Where to watch: ABC iview 5. 8MMM An Indigenous crew from a remote radio station air the day-to-day shenanigans of Alice Springs and its surrounds. ( Supplied: ABC TV ) For those who love a bit of irreverence, 8MMM delivers. This comedy follows the Indigenous crew of a remote radio station as they broadcast the daily dramas of Alice Springs—covering everything from education and culture to money and reconciliation, all with a good dose of humour. Where to watch: ABC iview 6. Redfern Now A still from Redfern Now (2012) featuring Shari Sebbens and Tessa Rose ( Supplied: ABC TV ) If you're after drama that hits hard, don't miss this acclaimed series. Each episode tells the story of a single decision that changes everything for a family in Redfern. It's a gripping, deeply human look at Indigenous life in one of Australia's most storied suburbs. Where to watch: ABC iview
The Age
3 hours ago
- The Age
How body piercing, mutilation, self-harm made this Aussie a rock star
Richard Moore claims, half-jokingly, that his film about performance artist Stelarc has been more than 40 years in the making. But that doesn't mean Suspending Disbelief – co-directed with John Doggett Williams – is the definitive work about the man, born Stelios Arcadiou in Cyprus 79 years ago, who became globally famous in the 1980s and '90s for 'suspensions' in which he dangled from ropes attached to metal hooks pierced through his skin. 'We're not trying to do a piece that examines how important he is,' demurs Moore, a former director of the Melbourne International Film Festival. 'We're doing a homage to his career, to his spirit of exploration and curiosity, to his longevity in the Australian art scene – to the fact that here is a guy who's grown up in the western suburbs of Melbourne and gone on to become one of the better-known performing artists on the international circuit. It's a salute to him and his personality and his cultural output over a very long time.' Moore first encountered a Stelarc performance in 1982, when the artist was suspended, naked (as was his wont) from the limbs of a massive gum tree in Canberra. For Moore, who was then working in theatre, the sight of Stelarc's body twitching as his limbs froze up was instantly fascinating. 'It was the ritual element of it, the theatrical side of it. These are images that will burn into your retina and never, ever leave you – and I'm grateful to Stelarc for that.' Decades later, Moore met Doggett Williams, whom he describes as 'an inveterate collector of footage', including of Stelarc's performances over the years. There was an archive at ACMI, too. And Stelarc had 'eight boxes [of footage] in his house, on all these formats known and unknown to man, stuff we've never seen before'. The seeds of a career-spanning filmic survey were in place. Suspending Disbelief doesn't offer much insight into Stelarc himself. It's far more focused on the work than the man. And, says Moore, that's a deliberate response to what has become standard practice in the endangered realm of the arts documentary. 'We seem to be drifting towards the hagiography mode,' says Moore. 'I look in horror at a program like the ABC's Creative Types... all those personalities are wonderful, they're celebrities. But art is also dirty and painful, it hurts and it's messy and it's chaotic. And we wanted to make a counter to that style of reporting.' Arguably, no film about Stelarc could ever do differently. His career – which dates back to the late 1960s – has always revolved around the body. There were early experiments in tracking its internal functions, the famous suspensions – embraced by a generation of younger fans today as pioneering efforts in body modification and self-mutilation – and the later (and ongoing) efforts to transcend the limits of the corporeal form through integration of technology, robotics and AI into the physical shell. There's not a lot of hand-holding in the film, but there are a few signposts that serve as pointers for further research for the curious – the briefly glimpsed reference to the Fluxus art movement, for instance, and the emergence of the body itself as a medium for art. To that end, there's footage of fellow Australian Mike Parr's infamous performance at the Venice Biennale in 1977, in which he appeared to chop off his own arm (the severed limb was, in fact, a prosthesis packed with meat, and attached to the end of Parr's actual foreshortened arm, with which he was born). It is remarkable, and appalling, and arrives without warning – and Moore makes no apologies for its inclusion. 'It's incredible footage, and it illustrates a point for us about the European body-art movement,' he says. 'But how do you warn people about it? Do you warn people about it? Do you say, 'oh, the sequence that's going to happen now is actually artificial, it's not a real arm'? But John and I agreed, we wanted the shock value.' Loading Scenes like this are meant to be disturbing, both in the film and in the moments captured in it. 'They hark back to images of crucifixion or public hangings,' Moore says of Stelarc's suspensions, as well as the broader body-art movement. 'There's something deep down and slightly nasty and scary about them. It's blood and pain, something subterranean.' But, many people will ask, is it art? 'Of course it is,' he insists. 'If he'd done it in his bedroom and just kept it there, it probably wouldn't be. Because he's made it so public, shoved it in our faces and made us look at it, it becomes art. 'Whether you like it or not,' he adds, 'is a different question.'
