She is fast developing into a food and style icon, but the 39 year-old deliberately keeps her true self under wraps.Despite achieving fame via her role as a MasterChef judge, Leong insists on keeping many elements of her life private. She simply doesn’t see why the public should be privy to all of the ingredients that make up her intriguing personality.“I just do my job, I love doing what I get to do every day for work,’’ Leong says.“I said yes to this job because I knew how to articulate food and story and history and technique in a way that makes sense to me and thankfully makes sense to the audience and I’m confident in that ability.“I don’t really think about the broader implications so much. I am obviously aware that by being in this role it has contributed to a narrative on representation and diversity in the Australian print media and media in general, and that’s not to be sniffed at of course.“In terms of the trivial fluffier parts of being in a high profile job, none of that has ever appealed to me and I don’t think it will.“I do a job that’s public. I don’t understand the fascination with anything other than what I do for work. I don’t understand why people want to know more than that to be honest. “I live a very straight forward life and my job is public, my life isn’t. And that’s a very clear delineation I’ve made from the beginning and will always tread that line. So that’s it.”In real life Leong is true to her direct, affable and constructive direction and mannerisms that we see on the show.Channel 10 has finally announced the new judges for the 12th season of MasterChef.She was born in Sydney to parents who immigrated from Singapore in the 70s. She first studied accounting and economics and then worked in digital advertising, and still talks to her mum almost daily.To her it is gratifying being stopped in the street or told by the public that she is admired, but it’s clear she has boundaries. She isn’t willing to open up specifically about her marriage split which was announced in an Instagram post last December.She and husband Joe Jones had decided to separate and on a snap from their Californian wedding, she wrote that the time had come “for Joe and I to part ways and walk on, apart”.Leong and Jones, a bar owner, had met four years ago and married after just three months of dating. “The public do know some part of me, the way I am on TV is who I am,’’ she says. “Ask any of my friends or family, I’m no different there than I am in real life. “I talk about food probably just as much as when the cameras aren’t rolling. “They (the public) do know me on some level and that is deeply humbling to feel that there is a sense of connection and resonance with people because I think that when you’re real with yourself and you’re real with the world then automatically we feel a sense of connectedness to anyone who is like that. “I think that’s really awesome. I think that we all need to keep some sense of self for ourselves. Social media is one of those places where there’s a false sense of full disclosure. But really at the end of the day we’re all only choosing to project certain parts of who we are. I believe in being able to reserve things to yourself. That’s the way I was brought up.”Leong was a somewhat surprise choice to be a MasterChef judge alongside Andy Allen and Jock Zonfrillo in place of the longstanding ‘three musketeers’ Matt Preston, George Calombaris and Gary Mehigan.She was known as a food and travel writer and for appearing on SBS’s The Chef’s Line. But she couldn’t have imagined where the path would take her.“I never dreamed of doing this, this is an exercise in saying yes,’’ she says. “I’ve always had the desire to be effective at communicating and to be able to learn and to go through learning from other people and listening to other people’s stories. “In terms of a dream come true this is a dream job and something I’ve come to fall in love with every day in terms of the opportunities it affords us all and also the amazing connections we have with each other and the contestants. And all the wonderful chefs and food personalities we get to have on the show as well.“It was kind of like your first day back at school. It’s a new school year and everything feels very familiar but it’s also new and you know you’re about to meet new friends and learn new things and then there’s a fair amount of excitement involved in that and there’s a lovely comforting sense of familiarity as well because the studio has been our home for the last year and a bit. “It is a marathon and it is one of the biggest shows in terms of the episodes and you really do need to pace yourself in terms of everything you will encounter in filming the season.”Leong will bring her natural, humble and unique style to the screen again. And to her individuality is important.“I’ve always loved fashion, self expression in whatever form it will take,’’ she says. “I love make up, I love fashion and watching the way people choose to put together the way they present themselves to the world — I find it fascinating. “The wonderful thing about fashion and style in general is you’re able to say something about yourself before you even need to open your mouth. She adds: “Taste and style is a subjective proposition. A different sense of what they’re attracted to and what they think looks good and that’s the wonderful thing about being human. We all shouldn’t agree on the same things. There are certain fundamentals like fairness and diversity and equality and many, many other things. But when it comes to the subjectivity of life, it’s what gives us our uniqueness, it’s what gives us our sense of individuality. And I’m really glad that everyone has a different take on how they feel and what they feel is good in terms of style and expression.”While Leong is somewhat of a trendsetter, she also enjoys taking a back seat. She learned plenty during COVID — patience, resilience, a sense of identity and trust that things will work out.“I love to put on sweats and pour a glass of wine and all those funny cliches in that period of time about how we all coped,’’ she says.“Being lazy is not really a guilty pleasure, I think it’s really important to take time to myself and I’m deeply unapologetic about that.“Watch a cartoon or rewatch a whole season of Gilmore Girls or whatever it is. Just being in a position to do what you bloody hell want to do.”And while much has changed both privately and professionally, Leong’s strong values remain.“If it wasn’t for this incredible audience that have loved and supported the show over so many years I wouldn’t have this opportunity, I wouldn’t have the best job in the world so I’m very grateful,’’ she says.“But I am an introvert as well so there is a sense of, ‘who me?’“And I think I’ll always be that way because usually when I’m walking down the street I’m in my own little world.“It’s part of my job I guess (to be recognised) so you’re grateful. It’s a very over used word these days but the essence of its meaning, I feel it. This is a crazy life we’ve all been living in this world especially in the last 12 months so wherever any glimmer of positivity remains we need to hold onto it.”MasterChef premieres Monday April 19 at 7.30pm on Network 10.jackie.epstein@news.com.au
Powered by WPeMatico
