“It Rocked Me Really Hard”: Daniel Lamble Just Missed Out on the ‘MasterChef Australia’ Final

July 12, 2022

As the last ‘Fan’ remaining on MasterChef Australia, Daniel Lamble could hardly believe his luck. However, it wasn’t luck that kept his journey going, but rather the skills he acquired throughout his time in the competition.

His time came to end last night after a brutal service challenge saw him fall behind ‘Favourites’ Billie McKay and Sarah Todd.

“Watching the elimination back last night, I was a bit worried because I knew what was going to happen. But then I saw it, and the reflection of my performance was there on-screen, and I have absolutely no shame going down in a challenge like that against those two bloody amazing women,” Lamble told The Latch.

“After the challenge was over, I already kind of knew what the outcome would be, but I was in awe of the two of them because their experience and professionalism really showed during that challenge, and I thought, ‘Wow, you two really deserve to go through’.”

The feeling of coming third place is bittersweet for Lamble, who didn’t expect to make it this far in the first place. Going up against three former winners and past contestants is no easy feat, but the feeling of missing out on the final will always stay with him.

“I initially went into the competition thinking, ‘just don’t go home first’,” said Lamble. “Then there was a period where the Fans were being decimated, and about six-to-eight of us went home in succession, and morale was down because we thought these Favourites are just too good!

“But, even though I made it far, I absolutely feel it that I didn’t get to wear those bloody chef whites! How cool do they look!? Obviously, I would have loved to reach the finale, and I remember being up on the gantry [during the pre-filmed finale], and that’s when it hit me quite heavily because I was the closest to reaching it.

“You just think, God, I wish I could do that, and it rocked me really hard because I really wanted it,” he said. “But those two women really deserved to be there.”

Lamble is refreshingly honest and as sweet as he is, he doesn’t sugarcoat his words. His time on the show was unforgettable in the best way, but he does have several regrets. Thankfully, they’re ones he can laugh about now.

“There are several cooks which I regret, but I learnt something after every one of them,” he shared. “I also think I wouldn’t have made it to third place if I didn’t make those mistakes.”

Last night, Lamble made the mistake of placing his coconut sorbet in the blast chiller rather than the freezer. It’s a moment that will haunt him forever, and one he’s still kicking himself for.

The result was a dessert with a missing element, and while it was an easy error, at this point in the competition, every decision makes a huge difference.

“It’s so funny because watching the episode back, I was curious to see if they would show me putting the sorbet in the blast chiller because hand on my heart, I did not remember doing it,” said Lamble with a laugh.

“I was so taken back when I saw it in the blast chiller, I thought, ‘surely I didn’t put it in there!?’ I started thinking Sarah and Billie did a sneaky swap jokingly, of course.

“Then I watched it back, and my partner Catherine was like, ‘ah!’ and I realised, shit, I did do that!”

As for what’s next, Lamble has a lot of ideas that he hopes to execute in the near future, but the one he’s most passionate about involves YouTube.

“I want to go into content creation,” Lamble said. “I have this crazy dream of having an outback-style YouTube cooking show, where I find out from the Aboriginal community how they use their ingredients and how they like to cook, then having my turn to interpret it.

“I have no idea if it will take off, but that’s what I would love to do.”

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