Just weeks after completing the comeback to end all comebacks on MasterChef Australia – he took out the grand prize of $250,000 after walking away from the competition in 2021 to focus on his mental health – Brent Draper reveals he’s capped off an amazing year with the arrival of his second child, a baby boy named Bowie!
“He’s amazing. We’re so happy,” Brent, 34, reveals exclusively to Woman’s Day.
Shonleigh and Brent are overjoyed with their second son.
(Credit: Phillip Castleton)“He’s the calmest, happiest baby. This kid just sleeps and eats. We’re like, ‘OK, when is the penny going to drop?'” Brent’s wife Shonleigh giggles.
“But he’s very happy, content and very calm.”
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Born on November 19 at 2.33pm, Bowie was delivered in an “incredible” homebirth by two endorsed midwives, who, much to Brent’s dismay, arrived with just minutes to spare.
“I had the towels and I was like, ‘Right, let’s do this,’ I was ready to deliver him!” he admits.
While Brent was sidelined for that delivery, he made sure he put himself to work, and instead delivered his own bun from the oven!
“I thought it’d be a good idea while things were a lot calmer to cook some sourdough,” he laughs.
“It’s tough, I always catch myself thinking of him.” Brent on his mentor Jock.
(Credit: Phillip Castleton)“If I ever had a baby, after pushing it out, I’d think a nice, fresh loaf of bread with butter is exactly what I’d want.”
“So I put the bread on, and next minute things went from zero to 100 and the baby was born, and all of a sudden my alarm went off for the bread. He was born before the sourdough was ready.
“It was so funny,” Shonleigh adds.
“So the next minute they put me back into the bed, and I’ve got Bowie on me, and Brent is just hand-feeding me fresh sourdough with butter in bed. I was like, this just could not get any better, seriously.”
“It was the best thing I’ve ever tasted. I’ve got a MasterChef for a husband, so I’ve eaten some good food, but that was the best.”
While everyone was ecstatic to finally meet Bowie, no one was quite as hyped as his older brother Alfie.
“He’s just in a love bubble,” says Shonleigh of their five-year-old.
Jock played a big part in Brent’s life.
(Credit: Phillip Castleton)“He was cuddling Bowie just this morning and when he got up he just went, ‘Oh, I just feel so loved.'”
“We originally thought he’s going to think here’s this kid coming into our life and taking all the attention away from me, but he’s been the opposite. He’s obsessed with him – he kisses him on the head, he’s getting bottles.”
“He just keeps telling us, ‘Mum, I can’t believe I’m a big brother’.”
Brent’s new arrival comes seven months after he lost his dear friend and mentor Jock Zonfrillo.
He admits that any major milestone now is tinged with sadness.
“It’s tough, I always catch myself thinking of him. He’s a big part of my life and a major part of why I changed careers – he’s a big part of my journey,” says Brent.
“But he’d be proud. I do a lot of things for mental health, and the first person there for donations and support was always Jock. So he’d be very proud of the way I just keep pushing that and becoming a dad again.”
Alfie loves being a big brother!
(Credit: Phillip Castleton)Brent adds that he’s kept in touch with Jock’s wife Lauren, and says it’s amazing to see her posting old videos of the chef on his Instagram account.
“It’s been so amazing to see. It’s just good to see him cooking and doing what he loved. His legacy stays alive and his kids get to see him on the screen.”
In memory of Jock, Brent and Shonleigh are determined to continue their hard work around mental health awareness, with the couple excited to announce that a second season of their hit podcast Behind The Drapes will return in January.
On top of that, Brent also has plans to release a cookbook, conduct some cooking classes and even teased a return to the forum that kickstarted it all.
“I’d go back to MasterChef as a guest judge, sure,” he admits. “There’s a little bit less pressure. You never know. I’m open to it.”
