MasterChef fans 'disappointed' after noticing major format change: 'Why'

MasterChef Australia viewers have pointed out a surprising format change in this year’s season of the popular reality show.

Taking to a Facebook group on Tuesday, one fan said they were “disappointed” season 15 no longer features ‘MasterClass’ episodes where celebrity chefs come into the kitchen and prepare a dish to help educate the contestants.

“I love MasterChef and have been a devoted viewer for many years,” they wrote. “My only disappointment with this season is we haven't had any MasterClasses with the judges.

“I loved watching them in past seasons, especially with Jock [Zonfrillo] & Andy [Allen]. I wonder why this is?”

Along with Mystery Box challenges and Pressure Tests, MasterClasses have been a staple of the cooking competition since season one but have been dropped this year for the very first time.

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Fans quickly took to the comments to share their thoughts on the omission, with one person speculating the show dropped the MasterClasses because they “didn’t rate”.

“Recent years have focused on tightening things up so they avoid mid-season audience drop off as occurred almost every year,” they added.

“Since the MasterClasses are really for the cooks, maybe they just decided to cut some costs by not televising them,” another suggested, while a third wrote, “Things change but not sure whether for the better this season”.

However, one viewer said they were really enjoying how this season was going “back to basics”.

“There are no amazing cooks just all home cooks who make mistakes, a bit more like all us viewers,” they shared. “Great seeing how they are improving their skills as the show goes on. They are all way better than me so hats off to you all I am enjoying the show.”

Missing theme song

The MasterClasses aren’t the only element missing from season 15, with the show’s iconic theme song Hot n Cold by Katy Perry also being dropped.

Fans have complained on social media that the lack of an intro has made it difficult to remember the contestants, and questioned whether the pop star “upped her prices”.

A source tells Yahoo Lifestyle that Channel 10 decided to drop the theme song this year because, as some viewers had speculated, the licensing fees became too expensive after using it for 14 years.

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