Matt and Emma’s love story has an interesting beginning. The British food critic met his wife when he first moved to Australia from London in 1993 with his former partner, who is actually one of Emma’s closest friends.
The pair got to know each other as friends first, before Matt split with his ex and their connection deepened into something more.
“I thought he was probably gay,” Emma dryly told The Australian Women’s Weekly in 2009 of her first impression of the 59-year-old.
“I used to pour out my heart to him about being single,” she said.
Added Matt: “And I used to sit there listening to this thinking, ‘That’s amazing. She’s such an incredible, beautiful woman’.”
But Emma says she soon realised that Matt was indeed very straight.
“Then I met his English friends, who are all married and they were the same – they all love their clothes and are pedantic and fussy about their food," she explained.
“But Matt is probably more feminine than most blokes. Not many men will go out and pick flowers for the spare bedroom if guests are coming to stay. But Matt loves women and women love Matt. All Mum’s friends, all my friends, just adore him.”
“And I love female company,” Matt added.
“Nothing makes me happier than having a long discussion with women about shoes and dating.”
After his time on MasterChef ended as part of the show's popular judge trio, alongside George Calombaris and Gary Mehigan, Matt signed on with rival network Channel Seven as co-host of Plate of Origin with Gary and former MKR judge Manu.
With MKR axed by Seven earlier this year, there was an opening in the mix for a new reality cooking show, and thus Plate of Origin was born.
The show will feature several teams or "countries" fighting against each other in the "World Cup of cooking", for a chance to nab the winner's title and $100,000 in prize money.
Matt is currently in lockdown in Melbourne with his family, but he has kept his followers entertained (and well-fed) with his new Instagram account Lockdown Kitchen.
Matt has recruited many of his high profile chef and foodie friends, including Maggie Beer and Julie Goodwin, into sharing delicious home cooking recipes that are easy enough to whip up in your kitchen at home.
For all the details, visit @lockdownkitchen.com.au.