Boys hang up aprons
He may have been shown the exit door in last night's elimination but My Kitchen Rules' lovable larrikin Harry Curtis has had much bigger things on his plate since leaving the hit TV cooking competition.
The 25-year-old Melburnian, whose MKR journey alongside lifelong friend Christo Gibson, 26, came to an end in a sudden-death cook-off against sassy twins and fellow Victorians Vikki and Helena Moursellas last night, suffered serious spinal injuries in a beach diving accident in January.
Still undergoing an extensive rehabilitation program that includes active therapy, spinal therapy and physiotherapy, Curtis told AAA the experience had put life in perspective for him.
"I shattered my neck from my C2 down to my C4 (vertebrae), so it's been a tough eight weeks but I'm happy to be here, walking and alive," he said.
"Every day is a new day and everything excites me now, and it's great."
Curtis and Gibson became instant fan favourites with their boyish antics and charm with the femal contestants.
"That's us to a tee," Curtis said of the pair's on-screen portrayal.
"Chris and I just love having fun together - we love having a laugh and not taking ourselves too seriously but there were times when we knuckled down and tried our best. And at the same time we'd always step back and realise we were having a great time and to enjoy it while it lasted.
"I think we surpassed by a long shot where we thought we would end up."
Curtis said he remained in touch with several others from the show, including fellow Melburnians Josh Geard and Danielle Najda (the couple visited him in hospital and at home), NSW newlyweds Uel and Shannelle Lim, young Tasmanian lasses Thalia Papadakis and Bianca Johnston, and WA "villains" Chloe James and Kelly Ramsay.
"I didn't see them at all that way," Curtis said of the Perth pair.
"They were so lovely to Christo and I. We were the underdogs the whole way through, so everyone is always a helping hand, but Chloe and Kelly were great to us."
As for life beyond MKR, Curtis, who previously worked as a commercial real estate agent, revealed plans were afoot for a hospitality venture - without Gibson - to open later this year off Chapel Street in the Prahran area of Melbourne.
"It would have been fantastic if Christo and I did this together, but this is in the interest of not only food but my love of music, so it's a combination of cafe plus hotspot for music."
