Matt Preston makes candid admission about TV fame
One of TV’s most loveable personalities has recalled how fame made him “a bit of a d***head”.
Matt Preston has been a loveable character on Australian television for about 14 years, but the former MasterChef judge has recalled how fame made him “a bit of a d***head”.
In a candid interview on the Stellar podcast ‘Something To Talk About’, the food writer turned reality TV star – and now Dancing With The Stars contestant – said he did not deal with his first taste of fame well.
“I had done a show for [Channel] Seven called My Restaurant Rules [in 2004]. I had that thing of going from hardworking writer and then suddenly you fly to the country and the guys scanning the bags know you and the passport control guy knows you,” Preston said.
“I don’t think I dealt with it very well. I became a bit of a d***head, but it was very, very instructive.”
He took that initial experience into filming MasterChef years later which, when it launched in 2009, made Preston and fellow judges, chefs George Calombaris and Gary Mehigan into household names.
But, this time, Preston said even with the meteoric success of the reality TV cooking competition, working with Calombaris and Mehigan and coming back to the “people who know you” kept him grounded.
“With MasterChef, two things happened. One, I knew the other two judges really well, so there was nowhere to hide. If you acted like a d***head, the other two would tell you you’re acting like a d***head. That kept all three of us honest,” he said.
“I think the other thing that happened is that it took off so quickly and we had no idea what was happening. Suddenly it’s the number-one show in the history of reality television. And then next year it eclipses that. When something like that happens, in your immediate world nothing changes. Your friends, the people who know you, that doesn’t change. But the whole world moves a metre to the right.
“So other people you don’t know treat you differently. But that’s why core friends and family are so important because they go, ‘Yeah, we remember when you tried to dye mashed potatoes blue. It was disgusting.’”
In July 2019, Network 10 confirmed the original judging trio would not return to MasterChef in an announcement aired just hours before the season 11 finale.
In a statement at the time, chief executive officer Paul Anderson said the network had not been able to reach a commercial agreement “that was satisfactory” with the trio after months of negotiation.
Initial reports in the media claimed negotiations broke down because the three judges demanded a 40 per cent pay rise, guaranteeing them $1.5 million each for season 12 of the show.
Preston confirmed on Instagram they were “really keen to continue but we were unable to agree to all terms for the new contract”.
But the axed host later revealed on ABC Melbourne breakfast radio that he found out he had been dumped when he was en route to do an interview to spruik the 2019 finale and saw on social media he had been given the flick.
“It would probably have felt worse if I was by myself, but the fact I was with one of the publicists with Ten who had no idea and who was just aghast by the situation, especially about to go and do a national radio show, it was a bit of a shock,” he said on ABC radio.
Preston denied their pay-rise request was the cause for the breakdown, saying Network Ten had agreed on money and one more season, saying “it was the other terms that fell down”.
The decision not to renew the judges’ contracts for season 12 also came less than a week after it was revealed George Calombaris had been slapped with a $200,000 fine after admitting to underpaying staff at his Melbourne restaurants $7.83 million.
But Preston said on radio the controversy had no bearing on Ten’s decision to look for new judges, saying “there’s a much bigger picture at play”.
He also said he did was eternally grateful for the 11 years he had on the astronomically successful reality show.
“It’s weird when you come to the … end of a show like MasterChef,” he said.
“It’s a ridiculous thing to say but you kind of go through denial and anger, but pretty quickly I’ve transitioned to the point where I look back on 11 years of being on a show, that is an incredible run for any show.”
In the years since, Preston has dabbled in a number of food and media projects – including a return to reality cooking shows with one-season of the Seven Network competition Plate of Originin 2020, and a run on The Masked Singer.
In 2022, the food critic was hosting a live segment during TikTok’s For You Fest when he was caught dropping some “iconic” colourful language in a hot mic moment.
In a video posted to TikTok by creator “alright.hey”, Preston can be heard on a snippet of audio dropping the C-bomb in reference to the gig.
The creator said while hosting the segment, Preston “seemed to be over it” and voiced his disapproval when he went off stage.
“And then when he went offstage, I don’t think he realised his microphone was still on and he said this, “What a c**t of a job”,” the creator said.
“Probably the most iconic thing to happen all night.”
But Preston saw the funny side of the incident, posting beneath the video from his verified TikTok account, “Oopsie daisy! Well, I had a very fun night.”
But it all seems to be water off the cravat-wearing duck’s back, with Preston still a popular figure in the food and television industries – so much so that he has once again returned to reality TV, only this time as a contestant.
At 60, Preston has slid on his dancing shoes for Seven Network competition Dancing With The Stars, something well out of his comfort zone.
“An opportunity like Dancing comes along and you go, ‘I don’t need to do it.’ And then you go, ‘Well, let’s have a crack.’,” he said on ‘Something To Talk About’.
“There’s one word that I keep hearing a lot from certain people of a certain age who’ve achieved a lot, and that’s the fear of ‘humiliation’. I think this is a really debilitating idea, this idea that your children are going to think less of you or your friends are going to joke about you.
“Humiliation is just an anxiety that really has no place in the modern world.”
Matt Preston is on Dancing With The Stars at 7pm on Sundays on the Seven Network.
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