The Contestants

Find out more about the chefs competing in the first ever MasterChef Australia: The Professionals.

of 16

Akuc Isaac Chol

Age: 27

Born in Sudan, Akuc is the eldest girl of 11 children and speaks five different languages.

Akuc is working on her own range of hot chilli sauces and dreams of opening a home-style African restaurant where her mum, aunties and sisters would work and where people would feel happy as soon as they walked in. She said, ?I want to stay connected to the cooking traditions from Africa".
Anthony Bantoft

Age: 33

Private chef to the rich and famous, Anthony has cooked for the likes of Penelope Cruz, Sean Connery, Tommy Lee Jones and Andre Agassi during his work on super yachts around the world.

It was Anthony's maternal grandmother who sparked his love affair with food and he still cites her food as the tastiest he has ever eaten. ?The perfect roast. My grandmother aced it every time. Her passion definitely rubbed off on me?.
Bonny Porter

Age: 23

Bonny found out she was deaf in one ear at age three and lost the hearing in her other ear a year later, but she hasn't let that hold her back.

Her cooking hero is Maggie Beer and she dreams of one day opening a restaurant on a vineyard using only local produce and lots of wine, but right now, all she wants is to learn as much as possible from the top chefs around the world.
Cameron Bailey

Age: 26

Cameron began his apprenticeship at Est restaurant in Sydney under the guidance of Peter Doyle. He says, ?It was only my second week on the pastry section and an order for Hugh Jackman's table came in - four passionfruit soufflés. To my credit they were perfect, though every second waiting for them to come out of the oven felt like hours?.

He has an undeniable passion for fine dining and dreams of one day having his own restaurant that makes the San Pellegrino top 50 list, with hats or Michelin stars.
Cassie Delves

Age: 19

From the age of three, Cassie was in the kitchen, banging pots and pans at the feet of her mother and mimicking her making dinner. ?I told my mother at age 5 that I wanted to be a chef and she always thought it was just a phase?.

Her real appreciation for food grew when she began to travel with her family, with her first round-the-wold trip at just eight. ?Visiting everywhere from Egypt to New York, I began a journey with food I didn't know existed. The connection between food, culture and experience inspired me?.
Chrissie Flanagan

Age: 33

Chrissie has been out of the kitchen, since the birth of her two daughters.

While she dreams of one day opening a small restaurant, everything she does comes back to a single purpose. ?I want to show my girls when good opportunities come your way in life to make the most of it?.
Coop Woodstone

Age: 37

Father of four, Coop, has a six-year-old daughter with rare brain tumour, but it was her who inspired him to audition for the show.

?I am looking forward to hitting the ground running for the next chapter of my food journey. I want to reach the top three, lift my profile and do my kids proud. This is my shot, my chance to provide for my family what they deserve?.
Kiah Blanco

Age: 27

Kiah has always sourced food locally, from picking fruit in mango trees in his backyard, to climbing trees for purple passionfruit and sourcing the rare ingredient king coconut heart.

He dreams of one day owning a big property with a bed and breakfast and filled with organic produce, where he would serve modern Australian and indigenous cuisine. It would have a sister restaurant in a bigger city and all the food would be supplied from the property.
Kylie McAllester

Age: 27

Kylie was running her own restaurant with her fiancé at just 25, but they have since moved to Melbourne, where she now works for a catering company and studies nutrition.

She's currently developing her wholesale foods business, working to combine all her food experience with real food, real cooking and non-calorie counting nutrition. "Holistic eating that is accessible to all.?
Luke Southwood

Age: 43

Luke was born in Papua New Guinea, moved to London aged eight and then moved to Spain with his mother at 14.

At 16, he began work as a cook in a small restaurant in Barcelona and quickly worked his way up through the ranks, later owning his own catering company and restaurant in Australia. However, in 2012, he was in a car accident which forced him to quit his job. He still suffers physical and emotional trauma from the accident, but sees this competition as an opportunity to get back into the kitchen.
Matty McKenzie

Age: 25

As a teenager, Matty was caught in a circle of addiction, crime and abuse, which saw him living on the streets and eating out of bins at just 15.

However, he began to turn his life around when he was accepted into Jamie Oliver's first international restaurant, Fifteen Melbourne. After successfully graduating from there at the age of 21, he landed huge-profile chef roles in Australia and then Japan.

Matty's dream is to work with the best chefs in the world, to have his own restaurant chain called Outback Matty's Bush Kitchen and to set up youth school centres around Australia.
Michael Demagistris

Age: 31

With an Italian and Ukrainian background, Michael's earliest memories of food are making sausages and salami with the family in the backyard.

Now, if Michael could work for any chef in the world, it would be Grant Achatz at Alinea in Chicago, where he spent some time. ?I love to use modern science to make the food I serve fun and different?.

His dream is to own and operate his own restaurant using innovative molecular gastronomy.
Nathan Brindle

Age: 23

An artist, competition fisherman and skateboarder, Nathan began his apprenticeship at 15 in Sydney and is now head chef at Blancmange restaurant.

Nathan's dream is to have his own restaurant or eatery with installation art in the dining room that explains the cooking process. Nathan always draws his dishes before creating them and he wants the public to understand the process.
Nick Whitehouse

Age: 41

After two years study to become a chef, Nick started work in a restaurant in Torquay, England and then moved to London.

Nick cooked for the Red Hot Chili Peppers on their UK tour and had to do most of the work from a van or from the side of stage.

Nick lives with his partner, Angela Sharpe, and daughter Emma (2) and says his greatest achievement is becoming a father.
Rhett Willis

Age: 33

As a less than model student at school, it was Rhett's home economics teacher who pushed him down this career path. ?I was given the confidence I needed and the inspiration to pursue a professional career as a chef?.

Rhett lives with his fiancé Gemma and cites his biggest fears as disappointing his mum or being eaten by a shark (he would prefer the shark).
Rhys Badcock

Age: 29

Rhys? earliest memories of food are his mum's epic feasts and Christmas lunches at his grandparent's camping spot in Byron Bay. ?Beer for the oldies and swimming and surfing for the grommets, fellowed by a big seafood lunch; prawns, fish, spanner crabs and pavlova. Classic Aussie food?.

People think Rhys is the most laid-back person they've ever met and often employers can't work out how he gets the work done. His mantra is: ?Don't stress out. You're useless when you're stressed so just don't do it?.