Latest news with #JockZonfrillo
Daily Mail
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Heartbreaking moment MasterChef Australia judges break down as contestant Laura Sharrad feels Jock Zonfrillo's 'spirit' on set
MasterChef Australia judge Andy Allen has become tearful during an emotional moment on Wednesday's episode of the Back To Win season. Contestant Laura Sharrad, who was good friends with late judge Jock Zonfrillo, had viewers and the cast alike in tears after presenting a seafood pasta dish. Laura became emotional as Andy, who was also deeply close to Jock, tasted the dish, with co-host Poh Ling Yeow realising that the pair were remembering their beloved mate, who died in 2023. 'I can feel this little electric current running from you to the dish to Andy. And it's Jock. I can really feel it,' Poh said. Upon making the statement, Poh watched as Andy and Laura became tearful, and Laura was handed a napkin to dab her eyes. From A-list scandals and red carpet mishaps to exclusive pictures and viral moments, subscribe to the DailyMail's new showbiz newsletter to stay in the loop. 'I'm completely right, aren't I? I can actually feel it,' Poh said, referring to Jock's spirit. Both Laura and Andy quietly agreed that something special had happened on set, with the dish Laura created reminding them of Jock. 'This dish is so clever because it's such a demonstration of you working smarter, not harder,' Poh complimented Laura. Earlier this year, Andy shared a heartfelt tribute to his late co-star on the second anniversary of his death. The celebrity chef, 37, who co-hosted the popular Channel Ten cooking competition alongside Jock from 2020 - 2023, shared a throwback photo to social media of them together and captioned it with some bittersweet words. 'Two years since we lost the great man, Jock Zonfrillo. I miss him more than ever,' Andy wrote. The precious picture captured the pair beaming together as they proudly held up a string of sausages to the camera. Many of Andy's celebrity friends took to the comment section to share their support. Laura became emotional as Andy, who was also deeply close to Jock, tasted the dish, with co-host Poh Ling Yeow realising that the pair were remembering their beloved mate Jock's widow Lauren posted a love heart emoji, as did celebrity chef Darren Robertson. Beloved celebrity chef Jock was tragically found dead in a hotel in Carlton, near Melbourne's CBD, on April 30, 2023 - which was also Andy's 35th birthday. Andy previously revealed the death of his close friend and co-star was the 'hardest time' of his life. Last year, he opened up about losing Jock and told how it was 'really difficult' grieving in the public eye. The TV personality candidly revealed it was the first time he had dealt with such a personal tragedy. 'It was the hardest time of my life, I had never had tragedy like that hit me so close, it was very uncharted waters and multiply that by it being in the public eye; it was really difficult,' he told the Herald Sun. Andy said he didn't give himself a chance to grieve because he wanted to be there for Jock's family - his wife Lauren and their kids Alfie, eight, and Isla, four, as well as his adult daughters Ava and Sophia from past relationships. He detailed his heavy emotional toll and told how he spent a 'full day crying' after travelling to Sicily to mark Jock's birthday. 'I spent a full day just crying, in a couple of hour-long increments, just having a good old cry, then I would be quiet... then I would go again,' he shared. Andy said his grief only really hit him twice while shooting the latest series of MasterChef, which was also his first without his close friend Jock. Andy previously admitted he almost didn't appear on the 2024 season of the cooking contest, but is 'so glad' he decided to push through the grief. 'It was tough. I didn't know if I was going to do it. I'm so glad that I did, but it was hard,' he told The Project. Network 10 dedicated the fifteenth season to Jock and his family as they aired his scenes posthumously, acknowledging his 'sudden and tragic passing'. At the time, his wife Lauren was in Italy with their two children and had phoned Victoria Police to request a welfare check because he stopped answering her calls. Jock's death came just one day before the 2023 season of MasterChef was due to premiere, and it was delayed in arriving on air for a week 'out of respect'.
Yahoo
01-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
MasterChef's Andy Allen reveals secret pact after Jock Zonfrillo's death
Australian TV fans were left in shock in May 2023 when it was revealed that fan favourite MasterChef judge Jock Zonfrillo had tragically died. The celebrity chef's passing came right as the series was to start airing it's 15th season, marking Jock's third year at the helm of the show. During his time on the series, he became extremely close friends with fellow judge Andy Allen, leaving the former MasterChef winner shattered by his untimely death. Andy has since revealed that he was one of the first people Jock's wife, Lauren Zonfrillo, called and leaned on after she received the devastating news. Jock's body was discovered in Zagame's House, a hotel in Melbourne, by police after conducting a welfare check. Lauren and the two children she shares with Jock, Alfie and Isla, were in Rome at the time of his death waiting for him to catch a flight the following day to begin their dream of splitting their time between Australia and Italy. Andy has now shared the moment he received the phone call from Lauren about Jock's tragic passing during an appearance on A Life of Greatness with Sarah Grynberg. The MasterChef judge described Jock's death as "the hardest thing I've ever been through", adding that Jock "was like the older brother that I never had," and that he learned so much from him and not just about cooking and food. RELATED: MasterChef's Andy Allen shares heartbreaking message to Jock Zonfrillo MasterChef fans 'heartbroken' after surprising tribute to Jock Zonfrillo: 'Wasn't expecting that' MasterChef's Andy Allen wasn't sure he'd return to show after Jock: 'Felt so wrong' "I just learned tonnes, and so, for him to pass away, it was shocking – A) that's my birthday, the 30th of April," he said. "B) I was with him the day before, I was the last person to see him, I had lunch [with him]. And then C) for it to play out in the public eye, it was crazy. The first 24 hours was something that I would never want to relive in my life." He added, "I remember Loz calling me from Rome, because the last bit of publicity that Jock had to do was on the launch day... and then Jock was on a plane to go and live in Rome for six months with the kids, and this was their dream to set up six [months] in Australia, six [months] in Rome... They'd been working on that for such a long time. "And I get a call at about 4:30 in the morning from Lauren in hysterics, and telling me what had happened. That Jock had passed away," Andy recalled. "I was then like, and I suppose this is my coping mechanism, but I was like, 'OK, what do you need?' And she was like, 'I just don't know what to do, because he's got a lot of press to do this morning, and I had a bit of press to do as well, and I was like, 'OK, I'll go do his press.' Because she didn't want to go to [Channel] Ten and [say] this has happened, like, she needed to kind of get a plan together and deal with it." Andy continued, saying that knowing Jock had died while doing his press was incredibly difficult. He explained that he was living in Carlton at the time and when he was on his way to do press that day, of all the ways his Uber driver could go, he passed Zagame's House where Jock had died. "I was trying so hard to get in the zone and get done what I needed to do, and somehow did this press until nine o'clock and obviously hadn't told anyone, and that was like step one, get that done, then start the grieving process," he explained. Andy explained that he did everything he could to be there for Lauren and Jock's children that it "prolonged my grieving process". He shared that there was a moment where he and his wife were in Europe together and it was Jock's birthday and a few other big moments had just happened, and he "just lost it". "I just broke down," he said. "And I think from then on, I wasn't okay, I realised I wasn't a great husband, I wasn't good to the people that are around me. And I just think it was because of that first period of just, like, looking out for everyone else, making sure that they're okay, I realised that I hadn't really grieved myself. And then it was like, yeah, I needed to work on myself, because I wasn't an amazing person." Andy also shared that he was asked by Lauren to stand beside Jock's daughter Ava while she gave her eulogy on the day of his funeral. He said, "Jock's funeral was another tough one, but I'm proud of the part that I could play – for Loz to go, 'Stand next to Ava, if she needs you to take over, take over,' and the absolute legend crushed it, she didn't need me." View this post on Instagram A post shared by Lauren Zonfrillo (@laurenzonfrillo) Andy also added that it feels "really special" to know that he has had a positive impact on Jock's children and that he always tries to stay involved in their lives. He finished by saying he is "in awe of how Lauren's handled the whole situation." SHOP: 🍅 Aussie mates' business idea to take on big supermarkets: '44% cheaper than Coles' 🧽 Aussie mum's $6 solution to most hated household chore: 'It smells incredible' 🩲 'Favourite' Aussie brand slashes prices by 30 per cent: 'Available in XS to 2XL' Lauren, meanwhile, has praised Andy for the "safety and care" he brings to her and her children in a poem she shared on Instagram. She wrote, "You are strong and unknowingly wise, you have done anything I ask, all unreasonable on reflection, but you turn up for us, every time."
News.com.au
01-07-2025
- Entertainment
- News.com.au
MasterChef's Andy Allen recalls 4:30am call from Jock Zonfrillo's widow after his death: ‘In hysterics'
MasterChef Australia judge Andy Allen has recalled the heartbreaking phone call he received from Jock Zonfrillo's wife, alerting him of the beloved chef's death. Speaking on the A Life of Greatness with Sarah Grynberg podcast, Allen detailed the early morning call he got from Italy with Lauren Zonfrillo on the other end delivering the sad news. In the distressing long-distance call from two years ago, Lauren also asked Allen for a favour to bide her some time to grieve privately before she told Network Ten about her husband's death – and Allen, who was also Jock's best friend, did all he could to support her. 'I get a call at about 4.30 in the morning from Lauren in hysterics and telling me what had happened, that Jock had passed away,' Allen shared on the podcast episode, which aired Tuesday. 'I was then like, 'What do you need?' And she was like, 'Well, he's got a lot of press to do this morning.' And I had a bit of press to do as well. I was like, 'OK, I'll go do his press' because she didn't want to go to Ten … she needed to get a plan together.' Reflecting on what transpired, Allen says he doesn't know how he soldiered on in the promotional trail, which fell on the eve of the show's season premiere in April 2023. 'That was the hardest thing,' Allen recalled. 'Crazy how it all works because I remember I was living in Carlton at the time and there are so many ways to get to Carlton from here. It was actually here in this [Melbourne] building that I had to come to do press.' 'And of all ways, the driver took me past the hotel where Jock had passed away. Talk about just being rattled again. I was trying so hard just to kind of be in the zone and get done what I needed to do.' Allen said no one else knew of Jock's passing at the time and he continued to do press interviews pretending that everything was OK, despite Jock being found unresponsive in Zagame's House hotel on Lygon Street. His cause of death has never been publicly disclosed. 'Obviously, I hadn't told anyone,' Allen remembered. 'That was like, step one: get out – done. Then start the grieving process. For me the grieving process has been such a journey.' Allen said in the six months after Jock's death, he tried to be there for other people, but it only put off his need to work through his own grief. 'I always wanted to be there for Loz and the family and do whatever I needed to do. But I think that prolonged my grieving process,' he said. 'I remember being in Europe with my wife and there was like three things that happened in a very short space of time. [The death,] it was Jock's birthday and I think we won another Logie or something. That were three really big things that happened and I just lost it. I just broke down.' The MasterChef judge and food critic says he wasn't OK and realised he was neglecting himself and his marriage, while looking out for everyone else. So he took time to really work on himself, with therapy helping significantly. 'I still miss Jock every day, but I've learnt [there's] so much more to celebrate,' he said on the podcast. 'Sure, there's days where I have really bad days. But life is short, and [Jock] had a life and was so amazing at that life, and I want to celebrate that.'
Daily Mail
01-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
MasterChef judge Andy Allen reveals the chilling thing he had to do for Jock Zonfrillo's wife when she called him at 4.30am to tell him he had died
Andy Allen has revealed the chilling moment he learned of co-star Jock Zonfrillo 's death - and the favour he had to do for his friend's wife just moments later. Jock, who was found dead aged 46 in a Melbourne hotel room in 2023, co-judged alongside Andy on MasterChef Australia from 2020 up until his death. On Tuesday, Andy shared on LiSTNR's A Life of Greatness with Sarah Grynberg that Jock's widow Lauren Fried called him 'in hysterics' just hours after his death and asked the food critic, 37, to cover Jock's press interviews. 'I get a call at about 4.30 in the morning from Lauren in hysterics and telling me what had happened, that Jock had passed away,' Andy recounted. 'And I was then like…what do you need? And she was like, "I don't know what to do. He's got a lot of press to do this morning."' From A-list scandals and red carpet mishaps to exclusive pictures and viral moments, subscribe to the DailyMail's new showbiz newsletter to stay in the loop. 'And I had a bit of press to do as well,' Andy continued. 'I was like, okay, I'll go do his press because she didn't want to go to ten… she needed to get a plan together and deal with it.' In another cruel twist of fate, Andy, whose birthday also falls on April 30 when Jock died, was forced to see the hotel Jock died in just hours earlier. Living in Carlton, the suburb Jock passed away in, Andy ordered a car to take him to his first interview, and the driver happened to go past the very hotel Jock's body was discovered in. 'Talk about just being rattled again. I was trying so hard to get in the zone and get done what I needed to do,' he said. It comes after Andy praised Lauren for candidly opening up about life after Jock's passing in her recently released book Till Death Do Us Part. Andy took to Instagram in May with a picture of himself holding the book up as he offered a simple six word review. 'In awe of you @laurenzonfrillo,' Andy wrote, while urging his 385,000 followers to pick up a copy of the memoir. Andy had also previously opened up about his final meeting with Jock, revealing he saw the late celebrity chef just a couple of hours before he died. In a sit-down interview with 7NEWS Spotlight in May, Andy recalled how he met Jock for lunch the day before his body was discovered. 'I've got hairs standing up already,' he told Liz Hayes as he looked back on his and Jock's final meal together, a moment he reflects back on a lot. Andy went on to reveal he had no idea there was anything amiss during his last meeting with the celebrity chef. 'That's the thing that hurts the most, because it was so sudden,' he told Liz with tears in his eyes. Elsewhere in the heartbreaking interview, Andy recounted the moment he was given the news of Jock's passing by Lauren. The chef admitted the grief of losing his close friend hit him 'straight away', a feeling that made him instantly ill. 'As soon as I got off the phone, I ran straight to the bathroom and I vomited everywhere,' he said. Andy also shared how he still grieves his friend daily. 'I always think of him. And I miss him, I miss him so much. It's crazy that that never goes,' he said. 'That being reminded of him wherever I go and no matter what I do, it is still as strong as the day that he passed two years ago.' Jock was found dead at the Zagame's House hotel in Carlton, near Melbourne's CBD, at around 2am on May 1, 2023. At the time, his wife Lauren was in Italy with their two children and had phoned Victoria Police to request a welfare check because he stopped answering her calls. Jock's death came just one day before the 2023 season of MasterChef was due to premiere, and it was delayed in arriving on air for a week 'out of respect'.
Daily Mail
22-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
MasterChef star Andy Allen shares baby news with wife Alex - and reveals a secret detail on his wedding band
MasterChef star Andy Allen has revealed plans to have children with his glamorous wife Alex. The Australian cook, 37, told The Daily Telegraph, his wife and family are the most important people in his life. 'My family and my wife [are very important]. I'm hoping one day I'll have a family of my own with Alex, which will be nice,' he said. Andy also revealed a secret detail on his wedding band while discussing one fact no one knows about him. 'People would never know I wear a clip-on wedding ring,' he revealed. From A-list scandals and red carpet mishaps to exclusive pictures and viral moments, subscribe to the DailyMail's new showbiz newsletter to stay in the loop. Andy and Alex tied the knot in October 2022. The lovebirds said their vows in front of all their celebrity friends as they got married in a glamorous tent outside the Terrara House. Some guests included Magdalena Roze and husband Darren Robertson, Melissa Leong and former Bachelor alum Cat Henesey-Smith. It comes after Andy recently opened up about his final meeting with Jock Zonfrillo, revealing that he saw the late celebrity chef just a couple of hours before he died. Jock, who was found dead aged 46 in a Melbourne hotel room in 2023, co-judged alongside Andy on hit cooking show MasterChef Australia from 2020 up until his death. In a sit-down interview with 7NEWS Spotlight last month, Andy got candid about the last time he saw his friend, revealing he met Jock for lunch the day before his body was discovered. 'I've got hairs standing up already,' he told Liz Hayes as he looked back on his and Jock's final meal together, a moment he reflects back on a lot. Andy went on to reveal that he had no idea that there was anything amiss during his last meeting with the celebrity chef. 'That's the thing that hurts the most,' he told Liz with tears in his eyes, 'because it was so sudden.' Elsewhere in the heartbreaking interview, Andy recounted the moment he was given the news of Jock's passing by his wife Lauren Zonfrillo. The chef admitted that the grief of losing his close friend hit him 'straight away', a feeling that made him instantly ill. 'As soon as I got off the phone, I ran straight to the bathroom and I vomited everywhere,' he said. Andy also shared how he still grieves his friend daily. 'I always think of him. And I miss him, I miss him so much. It's crazy that that never goes' he said. 'That being reminded of him wherever I go and no matter what I do, it is still as strong as the day that he passed two years ago.'
