Darrsh Clarke, 31 – Management Consultant, WA
Darrsh’s love for food and his culinary journey were inspired by his late father, who was a chef at an Indian restaurant.
Darrsh has represented Western Australia on the basketball and volleyball courts, which he hopes will give him an edge in the MasterChef kitchen as he plans to pursue his dreams of opening a fusion bar and restaurant.
Gillian Dinh, 31 – Lettering artist, New South Wales
Gill’s cooking has been influenced by her mother Doreen and her beloved Nonna Lina, as well as her late father Tommy, who taught her to trust her palate.
Inspired by great chefs such as Luke Nguyen, Josh Niland and Dan Hong, Gill hopes to bring great flavors to MasterChef.
James Holmes, 38 – Elementary school teacher, WA
Having grown up in England, James’ love of cooking has long been inspired by his travels around the world.
He is father to Benji, seven, and Goldie, three, and is determined to show his children how to take on a new challenge.
Josh Clarke, 27 – Coffee roaster, QLD
Josh, who grew up in New York, credits his Irish mother Caroline and Jamaican father Jason for inspiring his love of cooking.
After backpacking around the world, Josh tried food from all over the world and also met his now wife Laura in Byron Bay during his travels.
Inspired by Roy Choi, Andy Hearnden and Matty Matheson, Josh hopes to impress with his Spanish-influenced food.
Juan De La Cruz Torales Villarreal, 39 – Board game designer, New South Wales
Born in Argentina, Juan hopes to impress the judges with his Latin American flavors.
Juan, an admirer of Argentine chef Francis Mallmann, will bring his signature energy to the show.
Lachlan Whittle, 34 – Landscape gardener, VIC
A doting father, Lachlan is hoping to make his mark on the competition for his two-year-old daughter Lily.
Sadly, Lachlan lost his mother Jan to cancer late last year and recently discovered that he has the genetic inheritance, degenerative brain disease, Huntington’s disease, and is determined to live life to the fullest.
Lourdes Leschen, 22 years old – Marketing Coordinator, VIC
With her mother Laly and Yiayia Ana María hailing from Catalonia, Lourdes has strong Spanish influences in her cuisine.
She’s always exploring new cookbooks and hopes her broad palate will be an asset on the show.
Nat Thaipun, 28 – Barista, Vic
Nat, an Australian-born Thai, grew up around food while her mother Nutsiree ran a Thai restaurant in Melbourne.
She has worked as a barista in Switzerland, Japan and New Zealand for the past seven years and is now ready for a new challenge.
Snezana Calic, 40 – Financial services, VIC
Snezana was born in Croatia and moved to Serbia as a child and is influenced by Mediterranean and Serbian flavors.
Hoping to change her career path with the program, Snezana dreams of owning her own home-style country cafe.
Stephen Dennis, 62 – Tour guide, QLD
Stephen has dreamed of joining MasterChef for 16 years and is the oldest contender in the 2024 series.
A self-taught chef, Stephen’s favorite cuisines are Japanese and French and he hopes to impress in the MasterChef kitchen.
Sumeet Saigal, 46 – New South Wales
Growing up in Bangalore, India, Sumeet has fond memories of watching his parents host dinner parties for their friends.
His biggest influence was his paternal grandfather, Darji, and he hopes to show how versatile Indian food can be on MasterChef.
