When MasterChef Australia contestant Annabel Lloyd set out to become a theatre nurse, she was determined to carve her own path – one separate from her successful parents, Pippa, her ICU nurse mum, and Greg, her doctor dad.
But, in a cheeky twist of fate, the 30-year-old ended up exactly where she thought she never would.
“I’ve tried so hard to avoid going down the exact same route – I wanted to tread my own way,” Annabel tells TV WEEK. “Then I somehow ended up working in the very same intensive care unit where they met. The patients were so interesting and everything was so complex. I thought: ‘I need to be in ICU.’ It was a full-circle moment.”
Outside the operating theatre, however, Annabel discovered another passion. During the Covid pandemic, cooking became an escape from the emotional toll of working in healthcare.
“It was a really anxiety-inducing time,” she recalls. “I’d come home from work and turn on MasterChef, and it would give me so much joy during a tough time.”
Her parents supported whichever path she chose, as do her siblings, Jack and Rosie, with whom she lives in Bondi.
“They’re my biggest fans, but also my harshest critics,” she laughs. “We cook a lot together, which is really nice. My bond with my siblings is one of my most cherished things in my whole life. It is so special and I’m so grateful for it.”
And, thanks to MasterChef, Annabel’s relationship with her family has not only grown closer, but her inner circle has grown bigger.
“The best part of this experience is the friends and connections you make,” she explains. “Initially, I wanted to be a private chef, but the further into the competition you go, it changes. Now I would love to cook alongside Vinnie and Casper – they are like my best friends.
Any time we do a good dish together, we look at each other and say: ‘That’s going on the pop-up menu!’”
MasterChef Australia airs Monday to Wednesday at 7.30pm and Sunday at 7pm on Network Ten and 10Play.
Related stories
Native ad body.
Native ad body.
Native ad body.
