Celebrity chef Peter Russell-Clarke has passed away peacefully in Melbourne at the age of 89, following complications from a stroke.
He died on Friday with his wife Jan and their two children by his side.
Russell-Clarke was a beloved figure in Australia, known as a cook, artist, writer, and television icon.
He gained national fame in the 1980s for hosting Come and Get It, a five-minute ABC cooking show that ran for nine years with 900 episodes.
Known for his signature catchphrases like “g’day”, “rippers”, “you beauts”, and “Where’s the cheese?”, he became a household name.
In addition to cooking, he worked as a political cartoonist for The Melbourne Herald and appeared in the 1983 film At Last … Bullamakanka.
He authored nearly 40 recipe books, operated a pop-up restaurant in Carlton, and served as a presenter for the Australian Dairy Corporation.
Russell-Clarke was even named a food ambassador for the United Nations.
In his later years, he focused on painting at his home on the outskirts of Melbourne.
Tributes have poured in from friends, including Beverley Pinder, who described him as “a loveable larrikin artist and gentleman,” and Derryn Hinch, who called him “talented and a bit of a rogue.”
