The Listener

- Hey, guys! - Hey, are we late?

Oh, no, no.

- Leave your shoes on. - What did we miss?

- (Greetings) - You just missed the intros. No big deal.

Ty just started cooking, guys.

Marcel's gonna knock it out of the park tonight, I know it!

- No way, Mr. Oz. Raven all the way. - Raven?!

Ha-ha. You know what? Gabriella is my favourite,

although I do think she's starting to crack under the pressure.

- All love it. - Right?

- Yeah. - Now you too, huh? Come on.

- OK, it's on! - Everyone shut up, shut up!

Welcome back, everyone, to the nail-biting, live to air

semi-finals of Five Star Chef.

Each of our contestants was informed earlier today

that black truffle would be the surprise semi-final ingredient,

and now they are battling to complete their unique dish

on time. Gabriella Zimmer!

- Raven Masters! - (Cheers and applause)

- And Marcel Beaumont. - (Cheers and applause)

While they work away, let's check in with our head judge,

- Gustov Main. - Just get on with it, Desmond.

All right. And joining him today, we have two very special guest judges.

From Masterchef Canada: Claudio Aprile!

It's great to be here tonight.

- And of course, Alvin Leung. - Very exciting.

Ooh, I love Alvin Leung.

- I love him. - Mm-mm

Tough love all the way, that's what they need.

All right, gentlemen, what do you think of our three semi-finalists?

Where's your money tonight, Claudio?

Do you think Gabriella can make a comeback?

Raven is the true artist here.

Raven, OK, all right. Alvin?

- Marcel. He's hard to beat. - All right.

Do you agree with that, Gustov?

Look, only two contestants can make it to the finals tonight.

It isn't about winners, it's about losers.

Too hot in the kitchen? Get out.

The kitchen takes no prisoners, as I like to say, Alvin.

- No pressure on Marcel, huh? - What?

He can take it. He's a culinary god.

All right, Marcel, what do you have planned for tonight?

Black truffle, that should be right up your alley.

I'm preparing truffle-infused braised tenderloin

- with savoury black truffle meringue. - Hmm, sounds amazing.

Raven and Gabriella are gonna have a tough time topping that one.

No chance. Can't be done.

Well, we have our judges' take on things.

Let's check in with our other contestants.

Of course, we have Gabriella over here...

- What? - (Groaning)

Marcel! Are you OK?

Marcel! Marcel!

- What happened to Marcel? - He just collapsed.

- See that? - Um...

- Call 911! - Um...

Give him some air!

We're gonna take a break and we'll be right back after this commercial.

All right.

- What? - Come on, that's gotta be

a publicity stunt, right?

People are tweeting about it. They're freaking out.

There's a medic on set.

Hopefully the medic can stabilize him in time for EMS.

- Oh, geez. - What? What is it?

Someone just tweeted from the audience. I think Marcel's dead.

What?

Did you see that show Five Star, last night?

- Yeah, yeah. - There's buzz all over.

- That guy Marcel was poisoned. - Yes, I heard it on the way in.

Has anyone reached out to the coroner's office yet?

Yeah, they said they need to wait to analyze the stomach contents.

- Do you think the rumours could be true? - I think rumours are just rumours.

Until the coroner comes out with something definitive,

we need to treat this like a suspicious death.

Turns out the deceased has family in high places.

Yeah, Senator Peter Beaumont.

- Marcel was his nephew. - OK, so I'm guessing

the Senator made a few phone calls upstairs and...

We can't be caught flat-footed on this one.

If it turns out that Marcel really was poisoned, we need evidence

already gathered, witnesses already interviewed,

and possible motives across the board.

- Alex is already on the scene. - We'll head over now.

- I'll start gathering background. - Great, thank you.

Do you really think

that someone would murder someone on live television?

Gives a whole new level to reality TV.

I understand this is an inconvenience for you, Mr. Werther.

Everything must be returned in its original, pristine condition.

- This kitchen runs on precision. - OK, we will do our best.

- You will? - Yes, but this is still

a police investigation.

If you'll just excuse me for a minute?

- OK. - Thank you.

Jessie Werther, the show's culinary manager.

He's in charge of everything in the kitchen,

and "control freak" doesn't cover it.

- OK, so what do we have? - I'm taking the food

and equipment back to the lab and testing it

for toxic substances, see what I can find ahead of the report.

You know, maybe we should grab the footage from last night's show.

Maybe there's some shots they didn't air.

Already on it. I'm going to use it to track

everything that Marcel touched or ate.

- What about the contestants? - Everyone including the judges

gave statements to uniforms last night and were sent home.

OK, well, we'll set up interviews with anyone

who had contact with Marcel

or access to the kitchen. Do we have anyone else?

Gustov, the head judge, is supposed to be

around here somewhere, and

over there, you will find Desmond Mansfield

speaking to yet again another reporter.

I haven't been able to get a word in naturals...

Excuse me!

Each item must be individually wrapped to avoid damage.

Culinary equipment can only work

at its best if flawless.

Did I mention that guy's a bit OCD?

- Thanks, Alex. - Yeah, no problem.

So, Five Star Chef fan,

what do you know about Desmond Mansfield?

Well, he's not just the host,

he's also the creator and producer,

and also an accomplished chef in his own right.

Marcel Beaumont died doing what he loved to do.

The world was robbed of a great talent.

Mr. Mansfield? We're IIB.

We'd like to ask you a few questions, if that's OK.

Of course, but I have to admit, these rumours of poisoning...

I find them pretty hard to believe.

Surely Marcel's death was just a terrible tragedy.

Well, we're still just gathering facts at this point.

All I know is what you must have seen on TV:

Marcel was fine one moment,

and then he just... Collapsed.

Huge relief. Just glad it's over.

How was your relationship with him?

Can't say I knew him that well.

Some contestants you... connect with quicker than others.

Backstabbing bloodsucker.

There were no personal issues?

Every season has its prima donna, but it's nothing new.

Mr. Mansfield, the network's on the line for you.

I really need to take this. The live finale is tonight

and I have an extremely concerned broadcaster on my hands.

You're going through with the finale tonight?

Marcel's death was horrible,

but I see no reason why Raven and Gabriella's dreams

have to die with him.

Ratings through the roof. Huge for my career.

Do you know where we can find the judge, Gustov Main?

In his dressing room, probably.

Oh, but I have to warn you, he took Marcel's death pretty hard.

You might find him a little... Less than sober.

Gustov took Marcel's death pretty hard.

I couldn't say the same thing for Desmond, though.

He thought he was a backstabber and he was glad it was over.

So Desmond may have had something to do with Marcel's death?

Yeah. But he's pretty happy with the ratings.

Gustov Main... Let's see what less than sober means.

Enter!

Do you know I specifically asked not to be disturbed?

We're with the IIB, Mr. Main.

We'd like to ask you a few questions if that's OK.

Oh, police. How unappetizing.

Excuse... My current state.

Ghastly business, watching a man die.

I understand this must be very difficult for you.

When I say the kitchen takes no prisoners,

I don't mean it literally.

You don't suspect foul play, do you?

Right now we're just collecting statements

and gathering evidence.

We heard there was some bad blood between Marcel and Desmond.

You know anything about that?

Of that I have no idea.

I loathe Desmond, almost as much as I loathe brutality.

We communicate as little as possible.

What about Raven or Gabriella?

Do you think either of them had any reason to want Marcel dead?

I wouldn't wish to speculate.

Only Raven can win now.

Some people believe that Raven's the new front-runner.

Do you think she felt threatened by Marcel,

that maybe she couldn't beat him?

Raven is a great artist,

but hasn't the drive to want something so badly.

Marcel, now, he was the one with the real killer instinct.

I truly mourn his death.

Terrible thing. Shocking.

Only food can heal such wounds.

Ah (throat clearing).

- I shouldn't. I'm on duty, I... - Eat.

Or I will invoke my right to remain silent now and forever.

That is amazing.

High praise from an officer of the law.

It's a little dish I picked up in Thailand.