Conviction Kitchen (Australian TV series)
| Conviction Kitchen | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | Reality |
| Starring | Ian Curley (chef) Lisa Parker (manager) |
| Country of origin | Australia |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 8 |
| Production | |
| Executive producer | Elizabeth Egan |
| Original release | |
| Network | Seven Network |
| Release | 22 February – 12 April 2011 |
Conviction Kitchen (Australia) is a reality television series based on a Canadian series of the same name. The series follows a group of convicted criminals as they train in either back or front of house restaurant operations.
The show was produced by the Seven Network and began on 22 February 2011. The series includes the Melbourne-based chef Ian Curley and the restaurant manager Lisa Parker as mentors.[1]
Curley initially turned down the chance to star in the series as he felt there were already more than enough TV chefs. He later relented as he felt he could relate to the contestants. As a teenager, Curley himself had been convicted of aggravated assault for gang fighting and spent six months in a juvenile detention centre in his native England.[2][3]
The series saw the ex-inmates complete two weeks of training and six weeks working in a fully operational restaurant, Bistro Three, at the Emporium centre in Brisbane's Fortitude Valley.[2] Some were chosen to work front of house with the others training as kitchen staff. They earned the minimum hourly wage, plus tips.[4]
At the end of the series, two contestants, Anastasia from the kitchen staff and Silene from the front of house, were chosen to work with Curley at the European. Kristy and Troy also gained further employment from Curley.
Contestants[edit]
| Name | Age | Time spent in jail | Reason for conviction | Selected | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adrian | 27 | 12 months | break and enter | yes | front of house |
| Anastasia[5] | 19 | 6 months | theft | yes | kitchen |
| Anthony | 18 | 18 months probation | break and enter | yes | kitchen |
| Belinda | 35 | 18 month probation | fraud | yes | front of house |
| Craig | break and enter | no | |||
| David | 22 | 4 months | driving offences | yes | front of house |
| James | no | ||||
| Jared | 27 | 5 years | break and enter | yes | kitchen |
| Josh | 25 | 5 years | burglary | yes | kitchen |
| Kristy | 25 | 6 months probation | fraud | yes | kitchen |
| Kylie | 34 | 1 year | dangerous driving | no | |
| Lisa | 27 | 9 months | fraud | yes | front of house |
| Mirjana | 45 | 8 years | trafficking | yes | front of house |
| Rebecca | yes | ||||
| Silene[6] | 37 | 1 year | drug offences | yes | front of house |
| Takuna | assault | no | |||
| Troy[7] | 39 | 8 years | yes | kitchen |
See also[edit]
- Conviction Kitchen (Canada)
References[edit]
- ^ Seven's blog. "Chef Ian Curley joins Seven's Conviction Kitchen". Retrieved 8 October 2011. [dead link]
- Paul Kalina (22 February 2011). "Conviction Kitchen, Tuesday February 22". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 8 October 2011.
- Debi Enker (11 April 2011). "Conviction Kitchen, Monday April 11". Brisbane Times. Retrieved 8 October 2011.
- Carrington, Nicole (28 February 2011). "Lisa plays her role with conviction". City News. Archived from the original on 6 April 2012. Retrieved 8 October 2011. - ^ a b Karl Quinn (25 August 2010). "TV cooking search for crims of the crop". The Age. Melbourne. Retrieved 8 October 2011.
- ^ "Conviction Kitchen Official Site". Yahoo. Archived from the original on 5 April 2012. Retrieved 8 October 2011.
- "Australia's own Gordon Ramsay?". TV Week. Archived from the original on 4 April 2012. Retrieved 8 October 2011. - ^ Kevin Quinn (10 March 2011). "Conviction Kitchen, where rejection is a way of life". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 8 October 2011.
- ^ Keeley Henderson. "Conviction Kitchen star Anastasia". That's Life. Archived from the original on 25 April 2012. Retrieved 8 October 2011.
- ^ Peter Foley (7 March 2011). "A chance for a new life". The Queensland Times. Retrieved 8 October 2011.
- ^ Lethlean, John (27 January 2011). "Cooking with conviction". The Australian. Archived from the original on 14 September 2012. Retrieved 8 October 2011.