Loosen your belt, fix yourself a cocktail and settle down for the brand new reality show with bite,
COME DINE WITH ME AUSTRALIA.

This exclusive local production of the hot international format will air on The LifeStyle Channel over four weeks, with everyday Australians battling it out for the title of the ultimate dinner party host. Television and radio presenter James Valentine is the narrator for the series, overseeing each episode with witty observations and his unique style of commentary.

“What I love about Come Dine With Me Australia is the simplicity. We all think we host a pretty good dinner party. So, go on prove it. But then like the best of this genre, it’s not about dinner or food as such, it’s about people,” said James. “The pressure of a week of dinner parties means we see who these people really are. The Australian series will take us into homes throughout the land and who doesn’t like the chance of a sticky beak in somebody else’s life.”

The unscripted show follows amateur chefs competing against each other in hosting a dinner party for the other contestants. Each week, over five nights, five total strangers take it in turns to cook up their idea of the perfect evening for the other four. Each believes they can cook up the perfect evening and hopes their unique style will clinch them the title of best host.

As well as cooking, there’s also a large helping of reality on the menu as the rival hosts snoop around each others’ houses and go to great lengths to win the competition. At the end of the evening, the host is judged by their guests and scored out of ten. The host with the most points at the end of the week wins a cash prize.

The diverse mix of competitors inspire, amuse and outrage with their attempts to outwine and out-dine each other. With gourmet guests judging every move, the culinary cracks start to show. Can the Aussie hosts rise to the challenge, or do they reach boiling point a little too quickly?

Meet the host
JAMES VALENTINE

James presents Afternoons on 702 ABC Sydney, a humorous news talk shift responding to current affairs and the social issues of the day.

He is a musician, playing saxophone and singing with his own band, The James Valentine Quartet. His CD, Debut is out now through ABC Music. He is the author of six books, including the popular JumpMan series for young readers.

James has worked on television as a commentator on Sunrise, as a judge on celebrity singing show It Takes Two, as a movie reviewer on Showtime; and those who were aged around eight in the mid 1980s remember him fondly as the host of ABC TV's The Afternoon Show.

James began his working life as a musician studying jazz in Melbourne before going out on tour with some of the leading Australian bands of the early 1980s, including Jo Camilleri, Kate Ceberano, The Models, Absent Friends and Wendy Matthews.

James is married to Joanne, a clinical psychologist, has two children Ruby and Roy, and lives in Sydney.