Get ready for the sizzling new season of MKR as we reveal the second group and catch up with the judges
GET READY FOR A SIZZLING NEW SEASON
Knives and forks at the ready, fanatical foodies Manu Feildel, Pete Evans and Colin Fassnidge can’t wait for the start of the hot new season of My Kitchen Rules, which will see some exciting changes to Australia’s favourite cooking show.
‘Ooh la la! We can’t say too much,’ teases Frenchman Manu, keeping the mystery under wraps. ‘But we’re pushing contestants a little bit harder this year and there are a few more rivalries.’
‘They’re all lambs to the slaughter,’ jokes Irish-born ‘challenge king’ Colin, who thinks MKR season nine is sharper than ever. ‘If you put that many people in a room, not even on a TV show, some will like each other and some just don’t. There’s always going to be rows and tension, and that plays a huge part.’
The judges, on the other hand, blend harmoniously like a smoothly balanced sauce.
Grilled about reported rivalries, family, food and future plans on the eve of the show’s premiere, Manu, Pete and Colin gave New Idea the good oil...
MANU FEILDEL, engaged to Clarissa Weerasena, father to son Jonti, 13, and daughter Charlee, two
Is there any rivalry between you and your fellow judges?
It’s all made up, to be honest. It’s laughable, actually, because we are really friends. We hang out together, we go out together, we eat together.
You and Clarissa are in no rush to get married?
The wedding has been postponed a few times. Both our parents really want us to get married because that’s the thing that happens if we are in love, apparently. We are very much in love and the wedding is something we will do, but when is the question? Even though it means a lot, it’s not going to change the way we feel about each other. We’re planning to go away for the wedding. It’s something special to celebrate, so let’s do it well. They say: ‘Do it nice or do it twice.’ And I don’t want to do it twice!
Would you like to have more children?
I don’t think so. We are just too busy. It would be selfish just to have a kid for the purpose of having a kid. Being a parent is hard work, it’s a job on its own. The older you get, the harder it is to deal with it. We have two children, a boy and a girl, and we are happy with that.
What are your ambitions for the future?
I haven’t even thought about it! What I would really like to do is travel around the world and discover new food. There’s always something new to learn. I will probably end up really fat and have to buy two seats on the plane!
Who does the cooking at home?
Clarissa is such a great cook –
she keeps surprising me. But I do my share. Jonti went through a two-year phase where he had an issue with meat, although he always ate his greens. If he became a vegetarian, I would have had to kick him out of the house [laughs]. But he’s back now!
You’re so cheerful, yet you had a tough battle with depression a while back?
Yes, about three years ago when my beautiful restaurant in Melbourne got shut down. It was just after the little one, Charlee, was born and everything got a bit too much. It was a tough time for four or five months and it took a while to find my confidence again. But now I’m running a new fast food project – Duck In Duck Out, which is all confit duck – so I’m happy, I’m back on track.
And we heard you also have a movie role coming up!
Yes, in a comedy movie called The BBQ, due out on February 22, with Shane Jacobson and Magda Szubanski. Guess what? I play an arrogant French chef – that’s the cherry on the cake! When they called me about it, I told them I had never acted before, but they told me: ‘Don’t worry, you will make it!’ It’s nice, something new, and hopefully it will be funny.
PETE EVANS, married to Nicola Robinson, father to Chilli, 12, and Indii, 11 You seem about as contented as a man can be...
Life on earth is pretty idyllic, I’ll tell you that right now. My family is beautiful. Being a dad and a husband is the greatest gift and it’s pretty cool having a role on one of Australia’s number one shows as well. I’m grateful for every day I get to be part of it. I don’t really have much time for anything else, outside work and family.
Do you spend a lot of time on your farm, when you’re not working?
Yes, it’s a pretty special spot on the Far North Coast of NSW. We’ve got 25 acres with horses, chickens, a dog, cats and bees. We’ve planted a whole lot of native trees to hopefully create a koala sanctuary with other locals. We want to restore the ecosystem as it once was and bring back more native wildlife, more birds, more bugs. Instead of take, take, take, it’s nice to give back to the land.
You describe your wife Nicola as your soulmate?
We make a great team, a wonderful team, actually. We are also powerful individuals. I think that’s the ideal for any relationship, that you grow as a couple but as individuals as well. It’s the only way a relationship can work.
How did you meet?
We just met organically about six or seven years ago. I believe in the present moment and at that
particular time, that present moment was exactly as it was meant to be. We both realise the magic of that moment, and of every moment since.
Would you like to have a child together?
If it eventuates, it would be a wonderful gift – and if it doesn’t, that would also be a wonderful gift. I don’t think there is anything negative that can be placed upon it either way. We are just living in the moment.
Will you come back for another season of MKR?
Oh s***, yeah! I still love it. It’s a wonderful opportunity for me to grow, as well as the contestants. If I wasn’t growing through MKR and learning things about myself, I wouldn’t keep doing it. But it’s an ongoing examination of self in relation to others. It really helps me to understand myself a lot better. It’s a great mirror for me.
What are your favourite moments on the show?
When people come in and they don’t have that self-confidence to start with, but you see them standing there on grand final day, with a chance to win it. That dream for those people really hits home, and whether they win or not doesn’t really matter, because they have made it. The wonderful thing about the competition is that it changes everyone who enters.
Does it upset you that some doctors have criticised The Paleo Way program?
Not at all. I can only speak the truth and maybe they can one day too. I will continue to speak the truth because I’m helping so many people. I have shared thousands of stories to prove it. More than 50,000 people have done my online program and not one of them would say that it’s in any way dangerous or hasn’t been helpful.
COLIN FASSNIDGE, married to Jane Fassnidge, father to Lily, eight, and Maeve, six Do you still love MKR?
I wouldn’t do it if I hated it. I don’t take myself too seriously, but I have a great passion for what I do. I still have a hand in the kitchen, I still have my restaurant, which makes for long days, but it’s not hard if you have a laugh with the guys.
So you three really do like each other?
That’s what gets me. Every year there’s a story about how much we hate each other, but you can see how wrong it is if you follow my Instagram. We are all in the same car going to work, laughing. I spent Christmas at Manu’s and he had New Year at mine. That’s how much we hate each other!
How do you cope with your sex symbol status?
It’s weird. I was always the nerd as a kid, goofy teeth and stiff Lego hair, never got a date. Suddenly in my 40s, I’m a sex symbol. I take it with a big pinch of salt.
What does your family think about it?
My kids think I’m an idiot, just an embarrassment. They laugh at my accent and criticise the way I judge. Then they show me how to do it properly at home. When I cook for them, they mark me and try to put on this stupid Irish accent.
Would you like any more children?
I want a son! There’s too many women in the house and I’m at the bottom. I used to be top. It can only get worse as my daughters grow up. When puberty kicks in I’m getting a shed, or I’ll just go down and live with Manu.