by Thinus Ferreira
Saturday evening's 5th season premiere of MasterChef South Africa on SABC3 ended with the unexpected axing of five contestants who all returned home after just one episode's cooking in the kitchen.
The rugby recruiter and coach Lucas (33) from Worcester, the Johannesburg video producer Andrew (42), the Boksburg content creator Lesego (26), the law firm manager Robyn (28) from Midrand, as well as the environmentalist Ella (39) from Johannesburg were all eliminated after their checked dishes were the lowest-rated out of the 20 contestants.
"It breaks my heart to say this, but your MasterChef SA journey ends here," MasterChef SA judge Katlego Mlambo told the five contestants.
"I'm a very competitive person, so this was pretty serious to me but you've got to be humble in victory and defeat," Lucas said. "It's reignited something in me. It's given me belief and hope. I'll always keep cooking."
Andrew said that he feels "disappointed". "I didn't expect it to be this short. But we are in the MasterChef kitchen and I didn't perform to the standards".
Lesego said "I'm devastated to leave this early in the competition because I don't think I was able to really show myself. But this is not the end, this is just the start of something different".
Robyn who's lucky charm broke during the cooking challenge said she doesn't believe it had an impact. "I don't feel that my necklace breaking had any effect on the outcome. I choose to carry on in a positive way."
Ella who kept the apron of her dad who had passed away, on underneath her new white MasterChef SA apron, said "I'm quite happy not to have taken my one off. This one belonged to my dad. My dad had the biggest heart. His light shines through and that is the best gift you can give someone - share a bit of light. So I wear it with pride and I know I've done my family proud."
Fifteen contestants from across South Africa are left for the remaining 19 episodes of the Banijay format cooking competition reality show filmed by Homebrew Films at Atlantic Studios and done by Primedia Studios for SABC3.
"knew from the start that this season would only have 15 contestants, but in the pre-auditions, we found 20 really worthy candidates - it was just so difficult to choose only 15," Paul Venter, executive producer, tells TVwithThinus as he explained why the 5th season decided to axe five of them at the end of the first episode.
"We decided to give them all the privilege to come to the kitchen and cook for one episode in the MasterChef SA kitchen - a dream come true for many - but that would then be the last round of auditions, and what great jeopardy to have 5 people going home already in the first episode - drama from scene one, episode one and guaranteed for the whole series!"
According to Paul Venter, the biggest enemy in the MasterChef SA kitchen is and remains time.
"We hear screams and see tears when some candidates fail to make the final adjustments in the final minutes and then we will also have the curious case of the 'stolen pickles' ... which is eventually solved. But will karma send the pickle thief home? Viewers will have to wait and see!"
In Saturday's 5th season debut episode, one contestant told judge Justine Drake that she grew up watching her on the show, while another contestant watched her sister compete on the show in a previous season of the series that has over time become a South African television institution.
Kaye Anne Williams, vice president of content at Primedia Studios, tells TVwithThinus that MasterChef South Africa has become an institution because of two components: food and people.
"For those two reasons, it is not hard to find something that you can relate to and, therefore, incorporate in your own life. Our goal in driving awareness for the new season was to ensure that the average viewer understood that this show was for them and is about them, their food and their stories."
Paul Venter says the latest season of MasterChef SA has "contestants from all four corners of our country, from all walks of life and from as young as 20 and as 'young' as 65".
"Some contestants have roots deeper into the African continent, as far as Congo and as close as Zimbabwe, and some even as far as Taiwan. But one thing that equalises the playing field is the big food dream to win the coveted MasterChef SA title".
