An Olympic sporting hero, one of Australia's most irreverent fashion designers and a leading state Premier are today confirmed as some of the 18 personalities set to compete in Celebrity MasterChef.

The first 7 of 18 celebrities to be officially announced by Network Ten are: Olympic swimmer and world record breaker Eamon Sullivan, leading Australian fashion designer Alex Perry, acclaimed journalist and broadcaster Peter Fitzsimons, The Biggest Loser trainer and fitness expert Michelle Bridges, news anchor, journalist and activist Indira Naidoo, founding member of Australia's much loved children's group Hi-5 Kathleen de Leon, and of course the already confirmed Premier of QLD Anna Bligh.

Split into groups of three, each celebrity will compete in one heat. Pitted against two others and facing two classic MasterChef challenges, this is their one chance to prove their worth. Only one celebrity in each heat will be judged good enough to win a pass through to the semi-final.

The six celebrities who make it this far will face further culinary challenges to try and impress the judges and secure a spot in the Celebrity MasterChef grand finale. Returning to preside over Celebrity MasterChef is Australia's ultimate judging trio, Gary Mehigan, George Calombaris and Matt Preston. Honest, firm and fair, the judges won't be giving the celebrities any VIP treatment.

Matt Preston says: "We've got a line-up of celebrities that is both inspiring and intriguing. They're all competent cooks in their own kitchen but George, Gary and I are looking forward to seeing whether they're up to scratch in ours".

This hotly anticipated series follows Ten's runaway smash hit, MasterChef Australia, watched by over 4 million Australians. The nation is now ready to see how their high profile counterparts can cope in the heat of the kitchen.

The remaining eleven celebrity contestants will be revealed over the coming week.

Celebrity MasterChef is produced by FremantleMedia Australia, and will debut on TEN, Wednesday 30th September at 7:30pm.