BBC One's Celebrity Masterchef serves up series 12

Fire up the cookers, BBC One’s Celebrity MasterChef 2017 invites stars from the world of sport, show business, music and drama to chop, slice and sizzle their way to the trophy. 

Seasoned judges, John Torode and Gregg Wallace have their taste buds challenged, whilst they whittle down the twenty celebrity contestants; comparing their culinary skills in their hunt to single out one champion.

From identifying mystery ingredients and cooking in top class restaurant kitchens to catering for huge numbers and creating world class pastry, Celebrity MasterChef yet again puts the contestants through a plethora of culinary challenges. They’ll cook for critics and past winners in their quest to reach the ultimate challenge of cooking with Michelin-starred chef, Jason Atherton, and of course serving up their ultimate three-course menu for John Torode and Gregg Wallace.

Experiencing the heat of the MasterChef kitchen are:

  • Opera star, Lesley Garrett
  • Seven times World Snooker champion, Stephen Hendry
  • Comedian, actor and presenter, Jim Moir (better known as Vic Reeves)
  • Actor and director, Nick Moran
  • Popstar, Rachel Stevens
  • Popstar, Jaymi Hensley
  • Actor, Brian Bovell
  • French tennis legend, Henri Leconte
  • Actor and comedian, Abdullah Afzal
  • Broadcaster, Dev Griffin
  • TV presenter, Angellica Bell
  • Double Olympic gold medallist, Becky Adlington
  • Presenter, Julia Somerville
  • TV personality and presenter, Debbie McGee
  • Actor and presenter, Tyger Drew-Honey
  • Children’s TV presenter, Barney Harwood
  • Writer and TV presenter, Ulrika Jonsson
  • Radio and TV journalist, Aasmah Mir
  • Singer, actress and life skills expert, Patti Boulaye, OBE
  • Presenter and parish priest, Reverend Kate Bottley


BBC Commissioning Editor, Carla-Maria Lawson, says: “Celebrity MasterChef is an astonishing test of culinary ability from people who are not recognised for their talents in the kitchen. Every year we are blown away by celebrity’s gastronomic prowess and this year doesn’t disappoint. The line-up is one of the strongest we have ever seen and we hope it will entertain and tantalise viewers in equal measure.”

Over six weeks and twelve programmes, the first four weeks whittle the celebrities down to the semi-finalists before graduating through to the finals week.

The first, 60-minute episode of each heat week sees five new celebrities face the infamous Mystery Box Challenge before being thrown in at the deep end - heading to a professional restaurant kitchen and preparing dishes for paying customers. The hopeful stars need to keep their wits about them as they cook under the watch of acclaimed chefs with high standards, in their tightly run kitchens. The five celebrities then head back to the MasterChef kitchen to prepare a two-course menu of their own design for John and Gregg - after which one contestant is sent home.

The four remaining celebrity contenders return the following night for an exciting 90-minute episode facing three more culinary challenges. First they face the Skills and Knowledge Test – they are asked to identify ingredients and cook a dish under the close scrutiny of John and Gregg, it’s a challenge requiring knowhow and nerve.

Next up, it’s the mammoth Mass Catering Challenge where the celebrities are let loose on hordes of hungry people at a range of pressured and busy venues, from the iconic Oval Cricket Ground, Kings College Dental Institute, Brooklands’ - Mercedes Benz World, and The Francis Crick Institute. The battle for a coveted place in the semi-final reaches its climax as the four return to MasterChef headquarters to cook a faultless two course meal for John, Gregg and their guest critics - past Celebrity MasterChef champions and finalists, including 2015 winner Kimberley Wyatt; 2013 winner Ade Edmondson; 2010 winner Lisa Faulkner; 2014 winner Sophie Thompson, 2015 finalists Rylan Clark-Neal, Louise Minchin and Sam Nixon, as well as reigning champion Alexis Conran.

The successful contestants from the heats will then go through to semi-final week where they face nerve-racking but enthralling challenges; including cooking a five- course high tea to the exact and particular standards of world-class pastry chef, Cherish Finden, at the spectacular Stowe House. They must also produce a feast fit for heroes at the RNLI Headquarters.

The sixth and final week sees the remaining, and now impressive cooks, draw on all the skills they have learnt during their MasterChef journey when they face not only John Torode’s unnerving Palate Test, but also the notorious restaurant critics in the terrifying Critic’s Round.

This year’s 90-minute final is a double-whammy as the three best celebrity cooks must first have to face the daunting Chef’s Tables; led by Michelin-starred Jason Atherton, cooking for some of the country’s most respected and revered chefs including Marcus Wareing. After this they must return to MasterChef HQ for one last time and cook their best three-course meal for John and Gregg. It’s up to the respected judges to decide which celebrity contestant is worthy of lifting the Celebrity MasterChef 2017 trophy.

The winner will follow in the footsteps of previous winners Alexis Conran, Kimberly Wyatt, Sophie Thompson, Ade Edmondson, Emma Kennedy, Phil Vickery, Lisa Faulkner, Jayne Middlemiss, Liz McClarnon, Nadia Sawalha and Matt Dawson.

Executive Producer for Shine TV, David Ambler, says: “The challenges we set for MasterChef are designed to test and expand contestant’s cooking skills and knowledge. This year is no exception and the development that we see from our celebrities is truly inspiring. It’s no mean feat to cook to restaurant standard, to take instruction from Michelin-starred chefs, to face respected food critics and to continually deliver exceptional food for John and Gregg. This is a must-see series.”

June 26, 2017 4:55am ET by BBC One  

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