Melissa Leong thanks stand-in at event after she was forced to cancel after Jock Zonfrillo’s death

Melissa Leong has thanked fellow celebrity chef Adam Liaw for filling in for her at an event at the Sydney Opera House after she was forced to pull out following the death of her MasterChef Australia co-host Jock Zonfrillo.

Leong, 41, was scheduled to hold a live Q&A with American cookbook author Alison Roman on Tuesday, but it was announced last Thursday that she would not be attending.

Leong was replaced by Liaw, the season two winner of MasterChef Australia and a popular presenter for SBS and the ABC.

Leong shared a photo of the event on Instagram, taken by an attendee, and thanked the audience while acknowledging her absence.

“To everyone who came to watch the incredible @alisonroman talk to the legendary @adamliaw at @sydneyoperahouse tonight, thank you for the love,” she captioned a photo of Liaw and Roman on stage.

‘I can feel it from here. Until next time,” she added.

Last week, a Sydney Opera House spokesperson sent an email to ticket holders saying that Leong had withdrawn from the Q&A.

“Following the sad news of the passing of her colleague and friend Jock Zonfrillo, Melissa Leong will no longer be able to speak to Alison Roman on Tuesday, May 9,” the statement read.

Zonfrillo was found dead by police at around 2am on Monday 1 May at a hotel in inner north Melbourne, the same day Channel Ten was set to premiere the fifteenth season of MasterChef Australia.

Leong, 41, was scheduled to hold a live Q&A with American cookbook author Alison Roman on Tuesday, but it was announced last Thursday that she would not be attending. She was replaced by MasterChef Australia season two winner and SBS presenter Adam Liaw

Last week, a Sydney Opera House spokesperson sent an email to ticket holders saying that Leong had withdrawn from the Q&A

In the wake of the tragic news, Leong and fellow MasterChef judge Andy Allen withdrew from all media appearances to promote the cooking show’s return.

The season premiere was moved to Sunday, May 7.

Last Tuesday, Leong shared a heartbreaking tribute to Zonfrillo, expressing her disbelief and grief at the tragic loss.

In her message Leong shared how much Zonfrillo had changed her life after the two, along with Andy Allen, replaced previous judges on the popular cooking show in 2019.

“Four years ago, the three of us stood on a precipice and jumped,” Leong wrote.

In the wake of the tragic news, Leong and fellow MasterChef judge Andy Allen withdrew from all media appearances to promote the cooking show’s return. Pictured (l-r): Gordon Ramsay, Andy Allen, Melissa Leong, and the late Jock Zonfrillo

“I never imagined how much of an impact your arrival would have in my life, or that we would say goodbye to you so soon. You were always supposed to be the bulletproof one that outlived us all,” she wrote.

She then paid tribute to her co-host who urged her to strive for excellence “both in the kitchen and beyond.”

“Thank you for challenging me daily, for making me better, my work buddy and friend, purveyor of excellent morning coffee, hater of pears, okra and nasturtiums,” she continued.

‘This all feels too raw to process, I suspect it will take a while. That is the impact of a life lived so grandly, with so much frivolity and completely on your own terms.

“My heart goes out to your family, which was and is your life. A little glass for you today and always.’

Zonfrillo was found dead by police in a hotel in Melbourne’s inner north at about 2am Monday, the same day Channel 10 was set to premiere the fifteenth season of MasterChef Australia.

On Tuesday afternoon, Leong shared a heartbreaking tribute to Zonfrillo, expressing her disbelief and grief over the tragic loss

Zonfrillo is survived by his third wife, Lauren Fried, and his four children: adult daughters Ava and Sophia, from his first two marriages, and six-year-old Alfie and two-year-old Isla, with Fried.

Zonfrillo is believed to have died of natural causes and nothing unusual or suspicious was discovered in the hotel room where he was found dead, Daily Mail Australia understands.

The MasterChef star was found dead by police at about 2 a.m. Monday at Melbourne’s Zagame’s House hotel, just yards from his former inner-city home in Carlton.

The Glasgow-born chef had left his family in Italy, where they had recently emigrated, to return to Australia for the launch of the new season of the popular cooking show.

Daily Mail Australia can reveal that when police entered the hotel room to conduct a welfare check, officers believed Zonfrillo had died of natural causes and found nothing to suggest otherwise.

No drug paraphernalia were found in the hotel room either, sources said.

It is now up to the coroner to determine the specific cause of the celebrity chef’s death.

Leong, Zonfrillo and Andy Allen had taken over as judges on the show in 2019 after former hosts, Matt Preston, George Calombaris and Gary Mehigan left