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With Masterchef Australia hitting the 2 million viewer mark last night it is not wonder other TV networks want a piece of the action.

The Daily Telegraph are reporting that Channel Seven are very interested.

The article states:

Rival networks are chasing Australia’s most popular program, with Seven boss David Leckie said to be eyeing one or more of the show’s judges for a rival hit.

Industry sources yesterday claimed Leckie wanted either Matt Preston, George Calombaris or Gary Mehigan, with a plan to lure one from Ten in a bid to throw a spanner in the ratings juggernaut, which is attracting almost two million viewers every night.

It followed earlier speculation that Seven was looking to poach MasterChef, bringing it to the network once Freman- tleMedia loses the production rights to the show at the end of 2011.

But Leckie, who has form, having previously snaffled Thank God You’re Here out from under Ten’s nose, yesterday rejected claims he recently met with MasterChef’s three key stars.

I have never met this mob. They’re too cool for school and it’ll be interesting to see what they’ll be doing in a year’s time,” Leckie told The Daily Telegraph.

“MasterChef is not available to poach. We are busy with the next series of My Kitchen Rules, making it bigger and better,” head of programming Tim Worner said.

My Kitchen Rules Season 2 will be shown this year. So it will be a big end to the year for Seven with MKR and The $20 million The X Factor.

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Well you knew it had to be simmering but finally the lid has exploded off the pot (cooking euphemism fully intended) and Masterchef Australia and My Kitchen Rules are having a cat fight.

 An article in The Australian states the Ten Network is so infuriated by the similarity of Seven’s My Kitchen Rules to Ten’s MasterChef franchise that it is considering taking legal action against Seven to protect the integrity of the lucrative brand.

Also the article said:

MasterChef producers say privately that My Kitchen Rules has been slavish in its copying of the original, right down to the colour palette used on set, the theme music and the way the two judges interact and comment on the preparation while the action takes place behind them.

Ten’s chief programmer, David Mott,  fired off the first salvo saying:

 ”I take my hat off to Tim (Worner, Seven’s head of production and programming),” Mott told industry publication Mediaweek. “Normally Seven is a little bit more original than that. Success has many fathers and I think that Seven should thank us for the idea. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.

“When you look at My Kitchen Rules there is no question they have done a good job of it. When you look at their show and MasterChef , though, it’s like having a short stay at the Coogee Bay Backpackers and then moving into the Park Hyatt. People will soon realise that MasterChef is the real cooking show.”

Seven hit back saying:

“David Mott’s obsessed about Seven,” the spokesman said. “He’d love nothing more than most of our programs and our ratings — and not his own network’s.”

The article continues:

 My Kitchen Rules looked a lot like another cooking show, Britain’s Come Dine With Me, in which contestants hold dinner parties in their own homes and then vote for one another.

But then it surprised everyone by turning into a kind of MasterChef, complete with its own big kitchen “face-off” and its similar storytelling technique.

Something we have  been saying on this blog for some time (see previous post My Kitchen Rules A Hybrid Of Come Dine With Me and MasterChef Australia

Also eagle eyed commenters on www.realityravings  also picked up the similarity in vernacular, particularly noting the MKR judges used the Masterchef term “step away from the benches”

Masterchef Australia judge Gary Mehigan also waded in on the debate saying in news.com.au  ”It’s just that when George (Calombaris) and I are standing up there, instead of saying ‘please step away from your benches’ – because now they’re using it on MKR – we’ve got to come up with something else.”

MasterChef was a different show to MKR, he said.

Come Dine With Me appears to be staying out of it at this stage.

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It was no surprise who won tonight on My Kitchen Rules. The judges were always going to favour the nice married couple from Queensland over the young boys from Melbourne. Also there had been an article planted in TV Week last week on how Shadi and Veronica had struggled last year, and people had not paid him etc etc.  Also in tonight’s episode they were talking about how winning would be a life changing experience.

Having said all that I was barracking for the Qld team to win.

However I thought Clint and Noah’s menu was technically harder, and it was out of their comfort zone. Conversely I thought Veronica and Shadi were well within their comfort zone. It was a menu of flavoursome meditterarean food.

The prize was $100,000. Now had we heard this in previous episodes, or was this the first time it was announced.

And it is an easier $100,000 to win on this show, then the three months and multiple challenges you are put through on Masterchef Australia.

I thought George Calombaris got it right when he told TV Week his view on My Kitchen Rules when he said “Why wear a fake rolex when you can have a real one?”

Yes My Kitchen Rules was a good filler, however did it have the excitement or pace of Masterchef Australia? No.

One thing I would have liked to have seen on the show was the teams having to a cook a menu not devised by them. Just so we could gauge how talented they are as cooks.

The final challenges was a three course meal prepped and cooked over five hours.

When Clint squwarked  “Have you spiced the duck?”, if I had been Noah I would have decked him. Noah had been frantically prepping the main course of Duck ala Orange with red cabbage, and Clint was just rolling out the pastry for the dessert of Hazelnut tart with raspberries. He must of spent at least 2 hours of the whole five hours cooking time for the meal with a rolling pin in his hand.

Lucky for them the judges thought the pastry was perfectly cooked.

Clint and Noah would have been stoked about being in the final just to get to work with that superb piece of tuna, which they turned into carpaccio served with a fennel salad with garlic crumbs. For me I like my carpaccio plain and simple so the quality of the produce sings, however I will give it the benefit of the doubt, as the judges were very complimentary about it. The only criticism was more oil was needed to be drizzled on it.

Veronica and Shadi’s squid with garlic aioli was thought to be perfect. Also I must say I was very impressed with the way Shadi was cooking the seafood. He cooked the squid perfectly, then he cooked the swordfish beautifully as well. Quite a feat considering he had to cook about 20 pieces.

Their main was swordfish served with anchovies and eggplant, which looked good. But I thought the duck ala orange looked sensational. I thought at one stage it was not going to be ready to be served in time. Also  very brave thing to serve a traditional french dish to a french man.

The duck was about the only drama in the whole episode there was no culinary disasters, and the judges were mainly positive about the food as can be seen by the high scores.

Pete thought the boys dessert was the best one he had tasted in the competition, and also he like the Qld team’s dessert of Orange Blossom Custard with Katarfi pastry,once he had tasted it with all its components.

The scores for Clint and Noah were:

• Karen Martini -8,
• Tobie Puttock – 8,
• Jacquie Gowan – 8, 
• Guy Grossi 9,
• Manu Feildel - 8, and
• Pete Evans - 9

For a grand total of 49.

Shadi and Veronica scored:

• Karen – 9, 
• Tobie – 8,
• Jacquie – 9,
• Guy – 9
• Pete – 9 and
• Manu - 9.

This gave them a total of 53 and they comfortably won.

Veronica was very happy, as she had expressed dissatisfaction with her current work place and implied that she would like to go into the food industry. She may want to buy her work mates a coffee tomorrow considering she called the workplace beige.

I did not get the feeling that Clint and Noah ever thought of cooking as more then a serious hobby.

I doubt Veronica and Shadi will get the endorsements, Masterchef Australia winner Julie Goodwin received, but then they did not have to do as much to win. Since we only got to see them cook four times we were not able to make the emotional connections we made with the Masterchef Australia contestants.

Will you be watch Season 2, which if I was a betting woman will be shown at the end of this year.

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Rikkie Proust who is the Executive Producer of My Kitchen Rules talks to TV WEEK about the second season, and he reveals…….nothing.

Here is the interview:

When will My Kitchen Rules return?

It’ll be in the foreseeable future. We’re still casting for applicants at www.mykitchenrules.com.au

Were you happy with Manu and Pete as judges?

Manu Feildel and Pete Evans were spectacular in their roles. They had great on-screen chemistry. Having worked together in a commercial kitchen, they were at ease with each other and that came across on TV.

Is there a chance that some of the season one contestants may return in some capacity?

If the right opportunity were to arise, yes, we may consider bringing them back in some fashion. the season one contestants were great and really made the show the success it’s been.

Will any other celebrity chefs make guest appearances?

The guest judges were a really great surprise addition for both the audience and the contestants, so we’d love to include them again.

Will it still be state versus state?

More than likely. It’s been great to see people get behind their home teams and play on the already intense emotions between some states.

Do you hope Tasmania, ACT and the Northern Territory will be represented next time?

As in season one, applications are open to the whole of Australia. The final selection comes down to the right mix of cast. Location isn’t important – we’re a passion, inspiration and delicious menu.

Will there still be two groups next season, given that this would no longer be a surprise?

There will definitely be more surprises! You won’t be disappointed….

What about any new twists?

We want to keep the audience entertained with this format, so you can continue to expect the unexpected!

Are you going to up the stakes with tougher challenges and a bigger prize?

Time will tell. Watch this space!

Oh and props to George Calombaris who managed to take a swipe at My Kitchen Rules saying ” Why wear a fake rolex when you can have a real one?”

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My Kitchen Rules, Mossy, Applied For Masterchef Australia, But Did Not Get A Look In

Mossy applied for Season 1 of Masterchef Australia but never heard back says TV Tonight. He also said he would like his own cooking show.

Rhys Uhlich Has Allegedly Busted Up With His Girlfriend

The Laundry Basket xoxo blog has an article which states Make Me A Supermodel winner Rhys Uhlich has broken up with his girlfriend. The blog is also suggests his ex-girlfriend may be pregnant.

Dicko Will Appear On Hey Hey It’s Saturday

Dicko appears to have found a new gig post Australian Idol, according to TV Tonight he will appear on Hey Hey It’s Saturday Night. He will replace Molly Meldrum who is contracted to Seven/Foxtel.

Nigel Lythgoe Hints At Big Changes On So You Think You Can Dance

The  producers of the SYTYCDA may want to take notes, as Nigel Lythgoe in an interview here which states there will be major changes to the show in the US. This could mean that Mary Murphy is not longer on the judging panel.

And The Most Stupid Story Of The Day – Simon Cowell To Convert To Islam

According to this blog Simon Cowell will shame the family of his fiance Megzhan Hussainy’s family if he does not convert to Islam before he marries her. I doubt Simon will be converting.

He also wants Elton John as his wedding singer. Now this may be true.

Ryan Seacrest Posted A Spoiler  On Twitter On Who Was Eliminated on American Idol

EW indicates that American Idol host Ryan Seacrest tweeted who had been eliminated prior to it being screened on the West Coast of the US. Lacey Brown was eliminated.

Does Being On A Reality TV Show Screw Up Children?

Or are the Gosselin’s and Duggars stuffing up their kids by allowing them to be filmed for reality TV. An article on Fox News suggests the affirmative.

Girl Racers Has  A Premiere Date In April

If you like racing, hot girls and reality TV this could be the show for you according to TV Tonight

French Reality TV Show Has Contestants Giving Each Other Electric Shocks

The ABC states a French reality TV program  called The Game of Death, contestants are asked to deliver near-fatal electric shocks to their opponents.

 I can barely believe it is true, but it must be as the ABC are reporting on it.

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No I am not talking about the cooking temperature, I am talking about celeb chef and TV hottie Matt Moran appearing as a guest judge on the show.

He will be taking over for a bit of a stint while Gary Mehigan recovers from a knee and leg injury after slipping over on the set. No news whether the injury happened because he slipped over the saliva left after George Calombaris drooling over the hot female contestants. Your guess is as good as mine. Knowing Gary he was probably in a rush to get to the deep fried section of the catering truck.

The Daily Telegraph  article says:

Mehigan will miss some of the late series cooking challenges, and Matt Moran has been drafted to fill in for him.

The article also queries whether the viewing audience will be sick of cooking shows because My Kitchen Rules will have just finished.

My view is that My Kitchen Rules is like an appetizer you would have at your local chinese, and Masterchef Australia is the main you would get at Aria.

Rumour has it that it will premier at the end of April on Channel Ten

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God it was a tsunami of tears tonight on My Kitchen Rules, the winners were crying, the loser’s were crying and even Pete Evans teared up. Obviously the producers were trying to tell the viewer just how much this competition means to the competitor now we are at the pointy end.

Um by the way what is the prize? On Masterchef Australia, they pimped it every night telling us about that cookbook, but Channel Seven have been strangely quiet about it. Is it $100,000? Or did they say previously that it was something amazing but they just had not announced it? Anyway we will find out next week. Maybe it will be a Mastermind trophy. By the way when is a TV channel going to bring back that show, I am sure they could coerce Huw Evans out of retirement.

I thought the food in the semi final, between Gen and Tanja, and Shadi and Veronica rocked, and is perhaps the first time apart from the Victorian boys meals, where I would have been happy to eat all of the dishes. Except maybe next time Shadi could wear a tennis headband so his sweat would not drip into the food.

Shadi and Veronica kept their menu firmly entrenched in the Italian comfort zone. I was a bit sceptical about the eggplant parmigana as I always find that a bit oily but the judges raved about it. Also I thought it was a ballsy move to make their own sausage. And yes I did notice the way Manu Feildel pronounced saus – sage.

 The producers appear to try and create drama over nothing – they were showing the girls stressing over the  undercooked pastry cases of the leek and gruyere tart, but they had plenty of time. The limencello chicken also looked delicious. It must have been a tough call for the judges.

Lucky for guest judge Karen Martini she does not live in New York as she would be pretty upset at the legislation that a politician has introduced saying restaurants that use salt should be fined. Most of her criticisms surrounded seasoning of dishes. For those foodies thinking of cancelling their trip to New York,  I doubt the legislation will be passed. Or  maybe you could just stick to desserts and hope they are past the salted caramel fad.

I really like how both teams, the players interact with each other, it is all very respectful. And I thought both teams plating up enhanced their food.

Shadi and Veronica pipped Gen and Tanja with Jacquie Gowan giving a low score of 6 to the Qld girls.

Then after the married couple made it through to the top three, they did not get to rest for long, as they were told only two were making it through to the finals. Clint and Noah were given a spot because they were the highest scorers in the semi’s. And then it was a cook off, where the teams had to cook their favourite dish for the judges.

Mossy and Gabe cooked Poisson De Coeur (Meaning fish from the heart for the three readers who have not be brushing up on their french, just in case Manu asked them out on a date)  – Ocean Trout confit, served with chive oil, and green vegetables. I have to confess I have never thought of marinating salmon with cointreau, but I am not adverse to it.

Shadi and Veronica bravely took on the MKR curse of making fresh pasta, serving this with a pancetta, silverbeet, ricotta and goats cheese sauce.

Both team came a bit unstuck, with Mossy cooking the fish on too high a temperature. Whilst Veronica was trying to get the pasta to the right texture.

In the end the pasta won out. The fish was thought to be overcooked, and the hollandaise sauce was not plated up as it had split, so Shadi and Veronica made it into the final.

So both teams in the final will have only cooked four times to have gotten there. Not bad, similar to the Masterchef show in England perhaps?

Then Mossy was in tears, and Gabby had to tell us how unlike Mossy that was, just to amp it up a bit more.  Did I tear up? No.

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What is it with South Australian’s and strawberries? Andre from Masterchef Australia cooked that appalling Strawberry Risotto, and tonight Mel and Paul cooked Kangaroo and Strawberry Sauce. I know the SA couple think fruit and game go together. But personally I don’t think strawberries should be anywhere but on a dessert, and definitely not slopped on kangaroo.

Props to Paul and Mel for taking risks with their menu of Beetroot Gnocchi with blue cheese, sage and macadamia nuts, but again it was a disaster for them with not enough time with some weird prep techniques. I don’t think I have ever seen potato put into a blender then a mixer.

Conversely I thought the Victorian’s boy’s entree was a tad predictable with the combination of scallops with cauliflower. But they did it well and it looked delicious. It must have been near perfect if judge Pete Evans was bitching about some of the nearly overdone leeks.

I thought their main of Trevally with harissa crust, tabouli, and tahini looked delicious, and was original. Also I thought the Victorian boy’s menu was more thematic and went together better with a Middle Eastern flavoured theme. Their dessert of cigar fingers, with figs and cardamon ice cream looked fantastic. I know the judges loved the gold decoration, personally I did not think it was required, and was a bit of an affectation.

Well what can you say about Mel and Paul’s dessert? The sticky date pudding was missing the stickiness, and looked dried out and were there strawberries on the plate as well? I would hope by this stage they were drinking the left over Rose’ from their main fiasco.

Clint and Noah were scored as follows:

Karen Martini scored – 8, Tobie Puttock – 8, Jacquie Gowan – 8, and Guy Grossi – 8. Manu Feidel and Pete Evans scored gave them eights. For a total score of 48 out of 60.

Karen Martini thought Mel and Paul was to far left field and gave them a three. Tobie also hit them with a  three, whereas Jacquie, and Guy were more generous with fours. Manu gave them a four, and Pete a three. With a total of 21.

So the competition front runners Mel and Paul were eliminated. I have mixed feelings about it, but they have no one to blame but themselves.

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 (Photo courtesy of :Who Mag)

The contestants from My Kitchen Rules were not shy in an article in the latest edition of  TV Week on  whether the show is fixed – Rowan and Sophia believed the judges showed preferential treatment.

Here is the article:

While everything looks fair on TV workmates Rowan and Sophia from Victoria believed there has been some preferential treatment on the part of judges Manu Feidel, and Pete Evans.

“I think the judges decided who they wanted to win beforehand. In my eyes, it’s a bit fixed,” Rowan claims. “I feel that the judges have bonded with group one more than they have with us and they’ve definitely marked our lot more harshly.”

“I’ve certainly seen preferential treatment of some couples,” Sophia weighs in. “Tan and Gen and Holly and Grace – the all-female teams – get a bit of favouritism, particularly from Manu.”

WA’s Grace refutes these claims. “We’ve never thought there was any preferential treatment coming anyone’s way,” she says. “Manu and Pete have been professional the whole time.”

Also Rowan and Sophia did not care for Pete Evans they told TV Week:

“Pete is colder than Manu,” Rowan says. “I don’t think he has much time for teaching at all. Manu is a lot more eager to talk about his experiences whereas Pete is more like, ‘That was wrong!’”

“He definitely has on-and off-camera personas,” Sophia says. “He isn’t consistent. Rowan and I haven’t warmed to him.”

But not all the foodies feel the same way.

“I don’t find him cold,” Grace says.  “Off camera, he’s just a normal, down-to-earth Aussie bloke.”

“I love both the judges,” NSW’s Gabe agrees. “They are both fantastic and down-to-earth.”

Also Rowan and Sophia talk about the other contestants to TV Week:

While most of the contestants get on like a house on fire, there isn’t any love lost between some.  For starters, Queensland sisters Tanja and Gen have rubbed a few people up the wrong way.

“The only team I don’t like is Tanja and Gen,” Rowan says.  “They keep saying that they’re just mums who cook, and it’s a bit fake. It’s like they’re playing down how good they are, then they throw something amazing at you.They’re definitely playing the game.”

SA’s Paul adds that he wasn’t keen on the siblings to start with. “I didn’t like Tanja and Gen at the beginning – Mel and I were both put off by them as it seemed like they were looking for attention,” he says. “Wehn we got to know them, however, we realised how cool they are and we’re now firm friends.”

For Paul’s partner Mel, however, it’s Rowan and Sophia who have made the least impression.

“Rowan and Sophia really keep their distance,” she reveals. “Everyone else makes the effort apart from those two. They don’t seem to be bothered even trying.”

Meanwhile group two’s Melissa admits she isn’t keen on group one’s Mossy. “Everyone loves Mossy, but I find him to be a pain in the arse, personally,” she reveals. “He seems really miffed that there was a second group,” adds her ex-hubby, Matt.

On a nicer note here is an article about My Kitchen Rules judges Manu Feidel talking about his life as a father in Who Mag.

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