Age: 38

State: Western Australia

Occupation: Primary School Teacher

Growing up in Kingston Upon Thames, England, James Holmes’ love of food has long been inspired by his travels. With Europe on the doorstep, family holidays as a child were to the small Greek island of Lemnos, where core food memories were made.

Instead of material possessions, James’ parents would treat James, his sister and his twin brother to meals out at restaurants as they grew up, broadening their palettes and horizons.

Fast forward many years, and James and his Australian-born wife, Paris, travelled the world together for 11 months, including to South America, Europe, Southeast Asia and, of course, Australia, sampling and understanding new cuisines and gaining inspiration in every port.

Having forged a successful career as a teacher over many years, family man James is a father to son Benji, aged seven, and daughter Goldie, three. Becoming a parent has changed his perspective and James says his kids remind him to always find the joy in life. James is determined to lead by example and show his own kids, along with those he teaches, that you can go against the grain and embrace a challenge with nothing to lose.

Moving to Paris’ hometown of Perth in 2019, after a few challenging years caring for family, James feels ready to try his luck in the MasterChef Australia kitchen and recalls a lightbulb moment when a friend commented on how calm and “in flow” he was in the kitchen, despite many guests to feed and many elements on the go. From then he has dared to dream that perhaps his passion could become more than a hobby.

Inspired by chefs like Rick Stein, David Chang and Mat Lindsay, James will bring hearty and welcoming food with a twist to the competition. With a love of seafood, James is keen to further explore native ingredients and is always willing to experiment in pursuit of flavour.

With his eye on a waterside café in South Yunderup, an idyllic riverside town south of Perth, James’ dream is to breathe life into the place, creating a foodie destination featuring great local produce.