Queanbeyan public servant Rishi Desai, who works for IP Australia in Canberra, is looking like a real contender in the MasterChef race.
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He’s in the top 10 and this week was labelled by judge Matt Preston as one to watch in the finals as he devoured Desai’s rabbit, vegetable and goat’s cheese dish.
![<i>MasterChef</i> contestant, Rishi Desai (on screen with purple shirt). Watching an episode from their home in Queanbeyan is Rishi's wife Mitra and six-year-old son Sharang. Photo: Graham Tidy <i>MasterChef</i> contestant, Rishi Desai (on screen with purple shirt). Watching an episode from their home in Queanbeyan is Rishi's wife Mitra and six-year-old son Sharang. Photo: Graham Tidy](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/silverstone-ct-migration/7a8f0c3e-891a-4398-a52f-948b092616de.jpg/r0_0_729_410_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
“It’s a really, really assured, professional dish. Rishi? Watch out!” Preston enthused on the show.
Desai’s biggest fans are his wife Mitra and their six-year-old son Sharang who have been watching him on television after he has been away filming since February, with only occasional, flying visits home for an afternoon here or there. He is able to call home once or twice a week for about 10 minutes.
![Lee Kernaghan. Photo: David Clemson Lee Kernaghan. Photo: David Clemson](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/silverstone-ct-migration/3fd3437d-8613-4941-bd87-0563cd919981.jpg/r0_0_353_514_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
“It is a bit [surreal],” Mitra said, of seeing him on TV. “Especially when you see him in the title track. That’s the only time he got emotional, too, when he saw himself in the opening track.”
Mitra said her husband had practiced hard before he got on to the show and the other contestants might have underestimated that his skills extended beyond Indian cuisine.
“We”ve watched MasterChef since it started all those years ago and he would sit there and say, ‘I can do that’ or ‘That’s easy’ or ‘I can cook better than him’ and I said, ‘Well, why don’t you? You need to stop talking and do it’,” she said, with a laugh.
“He loves cooking. It is honestly like his meditation. Whenever he’s had a rough day at work, he likes to cook and for that one hour he will get in the zone, get cooking and he’ll be all right.”
![Boy band What About Tonight: Luke Howell, Brock Jays, Tyrone Georgiadis and Wade Smith. Boy band What About Tonight: Luke Howell, Brock Jays, Tyrone Georgiadis and Wade Smith.](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/silverstone-ct-migration/2e63f8e0-6be6-415f-aa15-41533b383ff1.jpg/r0_0_353_460_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Mitra said both her husband’s workmates and her own at the Clean Energy Regulator had been following his progress closely.
“We have a fair few foodies so every morning when I walk into the work, someone will say, ‘Oh, he messed up last night’ or ‘That dish was a cracker, I need the recipe’,” she said.
![Jamie Wilson. Jamie Wilson.](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/silverstone-ct-migration/2bd4c028-1477-4f30-9bfc-683a381e45d9.jpg/r0_0_353_456_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
The couple will have their 12th wedding anniversary on August 6. Mitra says she will be surrounded by family so doesn’t mind if her husband is still in the competition, confident he can go all the way.
“Yes, he has the capability, as long as he maintains his focus,” she said.
![Ray Garnett from Adelaide and Geoff Wixon of Wanniassa. Ray Garnett from Adelaide and Geoff Wixon of Wanniassa.](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/silverstone-ct-migration/773b3db8-90dc-49c6-adaa-7c29b3dc8251.jpg/r0_0_353_262_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Sharang, who is in year one at St Peter and Paul Primary School in Garran, is looking forward to having dad’s egg curry again.
“The best!” he said.
![Natalie Forrest. Photo: Lyn Mills Natalie Forrest. Photo: Lyn Mills](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/silverstone-ct-migration/b594c6eb-32ef-4ad3-b4c2-e7f9a0c091d1.jpg/r0_0_353_474_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
The doctor is in for Lee
Australian War Memorial director Dr Brendan Nelson will show his good mate, country star Lee Kernaghan, around the hallowed halls of the institution on Saturday before rocking out to Kernaghan’s show at the Theatre Royal later in the evening.
Nelson and Kernaghan have a firm friendship, forged over a shared love of Slim Dusty and V8s but also their involvement in youth leadership and the welfare of country people.
Nelson, who plays the guitar, says he has also visited Kernaghan in the studio when he has been recording.
He recently met up with Kernaghan who told him he’d just read the diaries of World War Two hero Sir Edward “weary” Dunlop and wanted to read more about the experiences of POWs.
Kernaghan’s trip to Canberra for his show meant he could visit the war memorial with The Wolfe Brothers, who are keen to trace their relatives’ own tours of duty.
Boys head to Tuggers
Aussie boy band What About Tonight will be performing at the Tuggeranong Hyperdome at 4pm on Thursday, promoting their single Time of Our Lives.
The band was formed from the 2012 series of X Factor, under the guidance of Ronan Keating, but has had a shake-up in recent times with the addition of Wade Smith, grandson of legendary entertainer Barry Crocker.
The oldest of the group, 20-year-old Brock Jays, told us they had no concerns about distinguishing themselves from other boy bands.
“We’re really down-to-earth Aussie guys and we love what we’re doing. We’re just ourselves,” he said.
And they’re aiming high.
“I think the ultimate would be to have our music and ourselves recognised all over the globe,” Brock said, adding they all played musical instruments and were not just some “Auto-Tune pop band”.
“We love our music,” he said.
Agency’s Broncos deal
Canberra advertising and marketing agency Coordinate in New Acton has secured the account for one of Australia’s biggest sporting brands, the Brisbane Broncos.
Coordinate was one of four agencies invited to pitch for the Bronco’s 2014 membership campaign.
Coordinate founder and director Jamie Wilson said the Broncos were initially attracted to the agency because of its work with other sporting teams including the Canberra Raiders, GWS Giants, Canberra Cavalry and AFL Europe.
“We went up and met with them and presented them with three to four options and they liked all of them,” said Wilson, not giving away any secrets about the campaign just yet.
“I think the good thing is a Canberra agency could secure business outside the usual marketplace.”
But despite the coup, Wilson did not go so far as to back the victorious Queensland side in the rugby league State of Origin decider on Wednesday night.
“From the days of proudly wearing the NSW jumper in my backyard with Laurie Daley’s No. 6 on the back, I have never deviated from the Blues, even after eight painful years,” Wilson said.
Chance to catch up with an old mate
We stumbled upon Adelaide tourists Ray and Margaret Garnett this week asking them about parking in the Parliamentary Triangle but they had another interesting tale to tell.
For starters, Margaret is the cousin of cartoonist and painter Bill Leak (their fathers were brothers) and was thrilled to view in person his portrait of Bob Hawke at Parliament House.
And Ray (pictured left) met up with his old mate Geoff Wixon, a sub-contractor from Wanniassa. The men went to school at Highfield High School in Blackpool, England. They had met up once before, in Canberra 25 years ago but before then had last been together at the school 52 years ago in 1961, when Ray left for Australia (Geoff followed in 1970).
“We were neighbours, we lived three houses apart, and used to walk to school together,” Ray said. “It’s great catching up, talking about who we used to know.”
No departure for our Natalie
After the departure of WIN News’ Danielle Post, there were fears on Friday Prime newsreader Natalie Forrest might also be leaving.
Forrest tweeted: “Big cheerio to our #Border, #SWSlopes, #Riverina and #CentralWest viewers, my last day in the chair”.
But, fear not, Prime tells us Forrest was just filling in reading those bulletins while Daniel Gibson was on leave.
What’s on
The new version of The Wiggles will be performing at Westfield Woden at 2pm on Saturday.
Twins Alisa and Lysandra from The Block (pictured) will be appearing with the show’s host Scott Cam at the Ern Smith Mitre 10 in Sheppard Street, Hume from 11am to 1pm on Sunday.
It’s German Sunday at the ice rink at Garema Place on Sunday from 11.30am to 4pm