Embark on a culinary adventure to Australia with Rick Stein’s new BBC Two series Embark on a culinary adventure to Australia with Rick Stein’s new BBC Two series

Rick Stein’s new TV series, based on the celebrity chef’s culinary travels around Sydney and New South Wales, premieres on BBC Two tonight.

The six-part series will explore six distinct regions of the state that has long inspired Stein – from the yum cha traditions of Sydney’s Chinatown to paddock-to-plate dining in Byron Bay.

Airing at 7pm, the first episode plunges into the vibrant food scene of multicultural Sydney, where restaurant Rick Stein at Coogee Beach opened in December 2025.

Long before Stein built his mini-empire of renowned seafood restaurants in the Cornish fishing town of Padstow, the chef travelled to Australia as a young man to recover from a family tragedy.

This personal connection to Australia’s most populous state promises to vividly bring the foodie experiences and local characters to life.

With a similar culinary travelogue format to Rick Stein’s India (2013) and Rick Stein’s Spain (2011), the six one-hour episodes will take Stein to the following beloved destinations and under-the-radar discoveries.

The episodes will show at the times listed below, subsequently repeating on BBC Two and appearing on BBC iPlayer.

Episode 1: Sydney’s coastal paradise

7pm, 6 January on BBC Two

Check out the glamorous state capital’s dynamic coastal cuisine, from the fish butchery innovation of Josh Niland’s restaurants to First Nations dishes based on native ingredients.

Episode 2: Central Coast and Hawkesbury River’s surf and seafood

7pm, 13 January on BBC Two

Stein heads up the coast to taste oysters straight from the water on a Sydney Oyster Farm Tour, browse Woy Woy’s farmers’ markets and enjoy fresh produce on Lake Macquarie.

Episode 3: sustainable living on the North Coast

8am, 21 January on BBC Two (England and HD only)

Featuring farm-to-fork cuisine at Byron Bay’s Three Blue Ducks, Sikh dishes in Woolgoolga, Glenreagh Bakery’s legendary pies and tropical fruit in Ballina and Coffs Harbour.

Episode 4: ancient heritage in the Outback

Stein kicks up red dust as he visits the 40,000-year-old Brewarrina Fish Traps, Moree mineral pools, fruit farms amid the vast plains and laid-back Bourke on the Darling River.

Episode 5: the Riverina’s Italian history

Immigration has shaped this fertile area, home to Griffith’s Italianate streets, De Bortoli wines, Gundagai’s Art Deco Niagara Café and Wagga Wagga’s sustainable emu farming.

Episode 6: the Sapphire Coast’s cuisine and culture

Stein stops at Nimmitabel’s heritage-listed Federal Hotel and seaside Eden’s family-run Fish Shack, finishing the journey with a kayak across Pambula Lake with a First Nations guide.

Find out more: Rick Steins Australia