MasterChef Australia: the cooking show that changes lives, makes food dreams come true

The Cattle Pavilion at the Melbourne Showgrounds is alive with activity and buzzing with expectation.

There's a constant hum of excited chatter and regular eruptions of applause. It's showtime, but not of the customary agricultural kind. Today, this is the arena for 50 hopefuls to demonstrate their culinary skills in a quest to win one of the coveted aprons that signifies their acceptance into the final 24 contestants on the ninth season of MasterChef Australia. As the candidates use a pressure-packed hour to produce a signature dish, they're surrounded by family, friends and partners cheering them on.

There are many reasons why people might apply to appear on a reality-TV show: maybe they want to build a media profile or promote a business; maybe they just like the attention. But when it comes to MasterChef, the explanations of motivations frequently turns to declarations of a love of food, as well as talk of dreams and unfulfilled passions, to the point that it's become a cliche, although that doesn't make it any less real.

from
http://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/tv-radio/92594015/MasterChef-Australia-the-cooking-show-that-changes-lives-makes-food-dreams-come-true