It's been one year since George, Matt and Gary left MasterChef. Here's what they're doing now.

It's been one year since Network 10 announced the departure of longtime MasterChef Australia judges Matt Preston, George Calombaris, and Gary Mehigan.

At the time, the news of the judges' sudden exit came as a shock. After all, the three men had appeared on screens in Australian living rooms for 11 highly successful seasons.

Now, Matt Preston is lifting the lid on why exactly they left – revealing that despite the widespread rumours and reports that they left due to disagreements over money, it was actually over the terms and conditions of their contracts. 

The men wanted the freedom to explore creative pursuits outside of the show, Preston told Stellar in a new interview. 

"We always said that we would stay together or go together," he said. "On the show we always lined up together: Gary, George and myself. If one of us wasn’t there, we would refuse to narrow the gap or stand in someone else’s place. Because it didn’t feel right."

"There were definite dark moments when I sat there and said to myself, 'What have I done? Have I made the right decision? Should I have taken the money and the safe option and stayed?'"

Watch: Things we all say when watching MasterChef. Post continues below.

Now, Preston and Mehigan will host Channel Seven's new food show, Plate Of Origin, alongside former My Kitchen Rules judge Manu Feildel.

So how did Matt Preston, George Calombaris and Gary Mehigan become some of the biggest names in television and what are they doing now?

The Spill is Mamamia’s daily entertainment podcast that catches you up on everything you need to know in the entertainment world. On this episode, why the MasterChef judges really left. Post continues after audio.

Matt Preston

Matt Preston was born in London to British Naval historian and journalist Antony Preston.

During his time growing up in London, Preston was a DJ and punk musician before he began writing for City Limits and IPC Magazines.

In 1993, Preston moved to Australia, where he started writing for IPC Magazines as their Australian TV correspondent. After several years with the company, he began writing reviews for magazine Inside Melbourne before moving on to write food reviews for The Age in 2000.

In the years that followed, Preston grew a strong reputation as a food critic, writing for several publications including the Herald Sun, Taste, The Daily Telegraph, Time Out, The Guardian and Delicious.

After being picked to judge MasterChef Australia alongside Calombaris and Mehigan, Preston became well known for his colourful suits and cravats. He has since launched a number of books, become a senior editor for Delicious and Taste magazines, and made countless appearances on a number of TV shows.

Besides MasterChef Australia, the 57-year-old was also a judge on Celebrity MasterChef in 2009, Junior MasterChef in 2010 and MasterChef All Stars in 2012 alongside his fellow judges before going it alone in 2013 when he hosted MasterChef Australia: The Professionals with Marco Pierre White.

 

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A post shared by Matt Preston (@mattscravat) on Jul 22, 2019 at 7:36pm PDT

Preston has admitted that he didn't watch the last season of MasterChef, featuring new judges Melissa Leong, Andy Allen and Jock Zonfrillo, which was one of the most popular seasons to date.

"You know when you split up with your long-term partner, there is no joy in looking at their Instagram feed?" he told Stellar.

In the new interview, Preston also said that losing his judging gig on MasterChef was was cause for self-reflection.

"I asked myself a really simple question: 'Is this the worst thing that could happen career wise?' And the answer was no. I loved working on the show... But the worst thing that could have happened was if I lost the writing gigs. That’s who I am. I always defined myself as a food writer."

It's also been reported that under new production company GaryGeorge&Matt (GGM), formed in February 2019, the three men are developing a concept for another new show aimed at a global audience, and have been in talks with Netflix and Amazon, reports news.com.au.

 

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Thank you so very much for supporting @masterchefau over the last 11 years. We have loved every single moment. It is however with a heavy heart that I can confirm that season 11 was our last. We were really keen to continue but we were unable to agree to all terms for the new contract. We have enjoyed 11 wonderful years on Masterchef Australia with Network Ten, and I want to take this opportunity to thank Ten for this amazing opportunity and for Network Ten’s backing of this very special show. We have met some beautiful people, discovered and guided some of the brightest up-and-comers in the Australian food scene, worked with the best chefs in the world in front of the camera, and with the TV industry’s finest professionals behind the scenes. And of course, we three judges have formed a lifelong friendship that will live on far beyond the show. I want to take this opportunity to thank you and everyone who has shared our amazing journey with us – especially all those fantastic contestants. I look forward to sharing many more adventures with you in the future. And finally I wish the new judges all the best with the show that we love so much. Thank you all. I don’t want to take any gloss off tonight’s well deserved winner so I will not be making any further comment. Love Matt.

A post shared by  Matt Preston (@mattscravat) on Jul 23, 2019 at 2:10am PDT

George Calombaris

After finishing high school, George Calombaris enrolled in culinary studies at TAFE in Melbourne.

While building up his skills, the young chef went on to work as an apprentice at the Sofitel Hotel in Melbourne before he earned the opportunity to work at Sofitel’s Le Restaurant. It was here that Calombaris met sous chef and fellow MasterChef judge Gary Mehigan, launching a friendship for years to come.

After his time working at Sofitel and a brief stint in France, the then 24-year-old was named Young Chef of the Year while working as the head chef at Reserve Restaurant in Melbourne.

Calombaris eventually decided to go out on his own, launching his own restaurant called The Press Club in 2006.

After starting his own restaurant, Calombaris became a celebrity chef in his own right when he was named among the 40 best chefs in the world, but it wasn’t until a stint on daytime television that the chef was scouted for MasterChef Australia.

Calombaris was offered a role to judge the competition after appearing on a slew of episodes of Ready, Steady, Cook, where the chef teamed up with ordinary people to produce inventive dishes.

 

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Early days of @thepressclub and yes. Lots of hair. GC ???? xxx

A post shared by  George Calombaris (@gcalombaris) on Jun 17, 2019 at 9:37pm PDT

In the debut season of MasterChef in 2009, Calombaris and his fellow judges quickly rose to stardom, as the cooking competition unexpectedly became one of the most watched shows in Australia.

Following on from the show’s success, Calombaris’ businesses boomed as he launched several cookbooks and became a regular brand ambassador over the years.

But in 2017, the tide began to turn when it was revealed in April that year that the reality star had underpaid 200 hospitality staff by $2.6 million.

Just months later, Calombaris pleaded guilty to common assault after striking a 19-year-old Sydney FC fan at the A-League grand final.

Once the incident settled down, however, Calombaris’ underpayment of staff entered the spotlight once again.

In 2019, it was reported that the 40-year-old had incorrectly paid more than 500 employees by $7.8 million.

 

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A post shared by George Calombaris (@gcalombaris) on Jul 15, 2019 at 9:43pm PDT

The revelations led to calls for Calombaris to be sacked by Network 10. Although the program initially supported him, just days later, all three judges left the show.

Earlier this year, Calombaris' hospitality business Made Establishment was placed into administration. He also won't be joining Preston and Mehigan in their new television show, State of Origin. 

It’s unclear what Calombaris will pursue next.

Gary Mehigan

Before appearing on MasterChef Australia, Gary Mehigan trained in London at a number of restaurants including The Connaught Hotel and Le Souffle at The InterContinental.

After relocating to Melbourne in 1991, Mehigan worked at some of Melbourne’s most prominent restaurants, including Browns Restaurant and Hotel Sofitel.

In 2000, Mehigan opened up his own restaurant, Fenix, which he later sold in 2013. He also co-owns The Boathouse in Melbourne’s Moonee Ponds.

Besides his appearances on MasterChef, Mehigan also co-hosts Good Chef, Bad Chef and Boy’s Weekend on Foxtel’s LifeStyle Food channel. The 52-year-old has also released several best-selling cook books.

Speaking to PopSugar in 2013, Mehigan admitted that he would stay on MasterChef  “for as long as I love and enjoy it”.

 

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To all of our fans ‘thank you’ To the team that makes MasterChef ‘thank you’ and to all of the contestants that we know and love, we are all part of a very exclusive club and what a journey what an experience. To explain: ‘It was time to move on, have more free time to explore our own creativity’ It was never about the money and never will be about the money. We couldn’t agree on the term of the new contract for 2020 and season 12. Something we felt very strongly about. The opportunity to work with Matt and George has been a blessing and something I cherish. Working together will continue to be the most important thing for us…..the three musketeers…….???? @mattscravat @gcalombaris @masterchefau #masterchefau #foodies #foodiesofinstagram #homecooks #homecooking #masterchef

A post shared by  Gary Mehigan (@garymehigan) on Jul 23, 2019 at 2:11am PDT

"Doing television is remarkable and interesting and amazing – there is nothing like television, and it’s kind of irreplaceable. I do love it. And what I love the most is that as a chef, you can ostracise yourself, you can isolate yourself in your own restaurant, and what I find with this show is that it exposes and inspires me with all these other people – my peers and colleagues, the contestants on the show — it’s like my other workplace, and I find that really, really inspiring at the moment," he said at the time.

In a statement to his Facebook page after the news of his departure from MasterChef was announced, Mehigan wrote: “It was never about the money and never will be about the money.”

“We couldn’t agree on the term of the new contract for 2020 and season 12. Something we felt very strongly about.”

Recently, Mehigan opened up about the more specific reasons behind their departure. 

"We were running into our 12th year and we were really begging them for change," he told The Herald Sun in July. 

"We wanted to work a shorter schedule in the year, we wanted them to think more creatively about how they use us as judges.

"We (thought we) can’t do this for another 10 years. We want to do something else. From our perspective, and certainly mine, I felt it was time to look for something new.

"I got asked recently have I watched any of the new series and I genuinely haven’t," he said.

Feature Image: Channel 10.

You can read Matt Preston's full interview with Stellar here.

This article was originally published on July 28, 2019, and was updated on August 9, 2020. 

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