Grief-stricken celebrity chef Colin Fassnidge says the sudden death of his friend and fellow chef Jock Zonfrillo is shocking given he was ‘on top of the world’ during their final conversation.
MasterChef host and award-winning chef Zonfrillo died suddenly at 46 on Sunday, his family confirmed in a statement issued by Network Ten and production company Endemol Shine.
Zonfrillo’s body was found by police at an address on Lygon St, Carlton, about 2am on Monday, following a welfare check, a Victoria Police spokeswoman said. Zonfrillo’s death is not being treated as suspicious.
Fassnidge, who appeared on My Kitchen Rules and Kitchen Nightmares, has been friends with Zonfrillo for 20 years. He told Daily Mail Australia that he and the ‘entire community’ is struggling to process the tragic news.
MasterChef Australia judge Jock Zonfrillo died in Melbourne on Sunday at the age of 46, his family has confirmed
Colin Fassnidge said fellow chefs are struggling to come to terms with the sudden death of his friend and fellow chef Jock Zonfrillo
Fassnidge said: ‘It’s so shocking. I’m sitting on a rock right now trying to take it in, I don’t know what to say. I’m floored.
‘I’ve had to call my wife straight away when I heard.’
Fassnidge said there was no indication anything was wrong for Zonfrillo, and the news was a complete surprise.
The pair speak regularly, but their last in-depth conversation was six months ago.
‘He was flying, he was doing a great job, he had a great show, he was on top of the world.
‘Jock was normal, he was healthy and he was living a good life.
‘I just feel so sorry for his other half.’
Fassnidge said Zonfrillo’s passing has rocked the hospitality industry.
‘We all battle each other in the ratings, but we’re all one big family in hospitality,’ he said.
‘At a certain level, all the chefs know each other.
Fassnidge (pictured at centre) recently starred in Kitchen Nightmares, in which he helped struggling restaurant and cafe owners to get real about their businesses
Zonfrillo (left), Melissa Leong and Andy Allen shared the 2021 AACTA award for Best Reality Program for their work together on Masterchef
‘Everyone is ringing. Everyone knows the entire community is in shock.’
Irish-Australian Fassnidge said he and Zonfrillo, a Scot, became close friends because of their shared Celtic heritage and because they were alike.
‘He’s another version of me. He likes a joke. He liked the whisky in the old days, he’s just a great TV host and a great cook.
‘I don’t know what I think yet, we were rivals, and we were friends.’
Fassnidge said he will remember Zonfrillo as ‘a great chef, with a great sense of humour’.
‘We used to joke about Scottish and Irish people wearing the same clothes. But I told him he stole the idea to wear a waistcoat on TV from me on My Kitchen Rules.’
MasterChef star Jock Zonfrillo dies at 46 leaving a wife and four children on the eve of the show’s new season: His body was found at a property on Melbourne’s iconic Lygon St at 2am after a concern for welfare call
MasterChef Australia judge Jock Zonfrillo died in Melbourne on Sunday at the age of 46, his family has confirmed.
The Scottish-Australian chef and restaurateur became a host of the popular Channel 10 cooking show in 2019 alongside Andy Allen and Melissa Leong.
Zonfrillo is survived by his third wife, Lauren Fried, and his four children: Ava and Sophia, from his first two marriages, and Alfie and Isla, with Fried.
His death comes as MasterChef’s fifteenth season, featuring Jamie Oliver as a guest judge, was due to premiere on Ten on Monday night. The show will not be airing this week in light of Zonfrillo’s passing.
No cause of death has been disclosed, but police say his death is not being treated as suspicious.
A Victoria Police spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia they found Zonfrillo’s body at about 2am on Monday after they were called to an address on Lygon Street in Carlton for a welfare check.
A report will be prepared for the coroner.
MasterChef Australia judge Jock Zonfrillo died in Melbourne on Sunday at the age of 46, his family has confirmed
‘With completely shattered hearts and without knowing how we can possibly move through life without him, we are devastated to share that Jock passed away yesterday,’ his family said
His death comes as MasterChef’s fifteenth season was due to premiere on Monday. The show will not be airing this week in light of Zonfrillo’s passing. (Pictured: Zonfrillo with fellow MasterChef judges Andy Allen and Melissa Leong at the AACTA Awards on December 7)
‘With completely shattered hearts and without knowing how we can possibly move through life without him, we are devastated to share that Jock passed away yesterday,’ his family said in a statement on Monday.
‘So many words can describe him, so many stories can be told, but at this time we’re too overwhelmed to put them into words.
‘For those who crossed his path, became his mate, or were lucky enough to be his family, keep this proud Scot in your hearts when you have your next whisky.’
They continued: ‘We implore you to please let us grieve privately as we find a way to navigate through this, and find space on the other side to celebrate our irreplaceable husband, father, brother, son and friend.’
