| MasterChef | |
|---|---|
MasterChef logo |
|
| Also known as | MasterChef Goes Large (2005–2007, original title) |
| Genre | Cooking |
| Format | Game show |
| Created by | Franc Roddam |
| Written by | Franc Roddam |
| Directed by | Various |
| Presented by | Original series: Loyd Grossman (1990–2000) Gary Rhodes (2001) |
| Judges | MasterChef Goes Large / MasterChef: Gregg Wallace and John Torode MasterChef: The Professionals: Gregg Wallace and Michel Roux, Jr. Junior MasterChef: John Torode and Nadia Sawalha |
| Narrated by | India Fisher (2005–2011) Sean Pertwee (MasterChef: The Professionals, 2011) |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Language(s) | English |
| No. of series | MasterChef: 11 (Original) 7 (Revived) Junior MasterChef: 6 (Original) 1 (Revived) Celebrity MasterChef: 6 (aired to date) MasterChef: The Professionals 4 (aired to date) |
| No. of episodes | MasterChef: 146 (Original Series, inc. specials) 184 (Revived Series to date) Junior MasterChef: 65 (Original Series) 13 (Revived Series) Celebrity MasterChef: 133 (end of series 6) MasterChef: The Professionals 92 (inc. 2 specials to date) |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) | Franc Roddam Elisabeth Murdoch Gilly Hall |
| Producer(s) | David Ambler |
| Editor(s) | Various |
| Location(s) | 15 Bastwick Street[1] Islington, North London (MasterChef HQ) |
| Running time | 30–90 minutes |
| Production company(s) | Shine TV (2005–present) |
| Distributor | Ziji Productions |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | BBC One (1990–2000) BBC Two (2001 series and MasterChef: The Professionals) |
| Picture format | 4:3 (1990–2001) 16:9 (2005–present) |
| Original airing | Original series: 2 July 1990 – 3 July 2001 (11 years, 1 day) Revived series: 21 February 2005 – present (7 years, 5 days) |
| Chronology | |
| Related shows | Come Dine with Me Britain's Best Dish The Great British Bake Off |
| External links | |
| Website | |
| Production website | |
MasterChef is a BBC television cooking game show. It initially ran from 1990 to 2001 and was later revived in a different format known as MasterChef Goes Large from 2005 onwards. In 2008, the "Goes Large" part of the name was dropped, but the format remains identical. The revamped format was devised by Karen Ross and John Silver, who updated the original Franc Roddam format.
The series now appears in three versions: the main MasterChef series, MasterChef: The Professionals for working chefs, and Celebrity MasterChef. All three versions have been commissioned up to and including 2011. A further version, Junior MasterChef, for 10-to-12-year-olds, was also broadcast in May 2010.
Series 6 of Celebrity MasterChef began 12 September 2011 and finished on 22 October 2011, airing in a new daily daytime slot on BBC One at 2.15pm. Catch-up shows were aired on Fridays at 20:30 (30 minutes long) and early evenings on Saturdays (60 minutes long) during the series. The winner was announced on the final Saturday catch-up show.
Series 4 of MasterChef: The Professionals began 7 November 2011 on BBC Two and ended on 15 December 2011.
Contents |
In the original series, three amateur cooks took part in each episode, with nine heats leading up to three semifinals and a final, in which they competed for the title of MasterChef. Their task was to cook a gourmet, three-course meal in under two hours. Contestants could cook whatever they liked, though there was a price limit on ingredients. "Everyday" ingredients and equipment were provided for them, in addition to which they could bring in up to five "specialist" ingredients or utensils.
The first incarnation of the series was presented by Loyd Grossman, who was joined each week by two guest judges, one a professional chef, the other a celebrity. Grossman and the guest judges discussed the menus, wandered around talking to the contestants, and finally ate and judged the food at the end. Originally, the judges' "cogitations" took place off-camera, though later on edited highlights of the discussions were added between the tasting and the announcement of the winner.
In 1998, Grossman decided to take a one-series sabbatical. He returned to present the 1999 series, but left the programme in 2000.
MasterChef Live is an extension of the television programme. The show runs annually in November; it is hosted at London Olympia, co-located with The Wine Show. In 2010 the show took place on 12–14 November.
Highlights of the event include live cookery demonstrations in the Chefs’ Theatre, celebrity chefs, critics, and MasterChef cook-offs.
Based on the MasterChef format, Junior MasterChef was for cooks up to the age of 16. Presented by Loyd Grossman from 1994, it used the same set and format. The show was revived in 2010, when it aired on CBBC with John Torode and Nadia Sawalha as judges.
In 2001, the series underwent a makeover. It was moved from its traditional Sunday afternoon slot on BBC One to a new weeknight slot on BBC Two. The "celebrity" judge was dropped, and chef Gary Rhodes took over as presenter. This new version of the series asked contestants to cook two courses in just 90 minutes. It was much criticised (notably by former host Loyd Grossman). It lasted just one series.
In 2005, executive producers Karen Ross and John Silver radically overhauled the format, and a new series was introduced, initially under the name MasterChef Goes Large. The name returned to MasterChef in 2008.[2] In the new version, there are two permanent judges, John Torode and Gregg Wallace, though neither addresses the viewer directly; instead narrative information is conveyed in a voiceover by India Fisher. The show proved very popular and became one of BBC Two's more successful early-evening programmes, leading to an announcement by the BBC in 2009 that it would be moved back to BBC One.[3]
In the new format, each series airs five nights a week for eight weeks, consisting of six weeks of heats and quarter-finals, with six contestants emerging to compete against one another over the final two weeks to select a winner.
In each of the first six weeks, there are four heats and a quarter-final. Six contestants enter each heat, with one quarter-finalist emerging from each of the four heats, and these four quarter-finalists compete for a semi-final place, so that over the first six weeks, six semi-finalists emerge. In 2010, the judges were given more flexibility, allowing them to promote more than one contestant to the quarter-finals, or in one instance, none at all.
Heats
The heats follow a three-round format:
Quarter-Finals
The quarter-finals follow a different structure with different challenges. Up until 2010, the format was:
In 2010, the quarter-final format was changed to:
Comeback Week
The sixth week is called "Comeback Week" and features contestants from the previous series of MasterChef who did not advance past the heats or quarter-finals. The format is different for this week:
Celebrity MasterChef was devised as a celebrity version of MasterChef Goes Large, to be screened on BBC One. Originally a total of 24 celebrities took part in each series, with three contestants per episode following the full MasterChef Goes Large test.[4] In 2011, the show was moved to a daily daytime slot with 30 episodes screened over 6 weeks and featuring only 16 celebrities.
In 2006, rugby player Matt Dawson beat Arabella Weir, Charlie Dimmock, David Grant, Fred MacAulay, Graeme Le Saux, Hardeep Singh Kohli, Helen Lederer, Ian McCaskill, Jilly Goolden, Kristian Digby, Lady Isabella Hervey, Linda Barker, Marie Helvin, Paul Young, Richard Arnold, Roger Black, Rowland Rivron, Sarah Cawood, Sheila Ferguson, Simon Grant, Sue Perkins, Tony Hadley and Toyah Willcox
In 2007, Nadia Sawalha beat Midge Ure, Craig Revel Horwood, Jeremy Edwards, Chris Bisson, Martin Hancock, Sunetra Sarker, Gemma Atkinson, Sherrie Hewson, Pauline Quirke, Rani Price, Chris Hollins, Matthew Wright, Angela Rippon, Sue Cook, Lorne Spicer, Emma Forbes, Jeff Green, Darren Bennett, Sally Gunnell, Mark Foster, Matt James, Robbie Earle and Phil Tufnell.
In 2008, Liz McClarnon beat Linda Robson, Louis Emerick, Wendi Peters, Debra Stephenson, Chris Parker, Joe McGann, Steven Pinder, Mark Moraghan, Vicki Michelle, Sean Wilson, Clare Grogan, Hywel Simons, DJ Spoony, Claire Richards, Denise Lewis, Noel Whelan, Andi Peters, Andrew Castle, Michael Buerk, Kaye Adams, Julia Bradbury, Josie D'Arby and Ninia Benjamin.
In 2009, Jayne Middlemiss beat Colin Murray, Simon Shepherd, Janet Ellis, Deena Payne, Iwan Thomas, Rav Wilding, Pete Waterman, Stephen K. Amos, Gemma Bissix, Shirley Robertson, Ian Bleasdale, Paul Martin, Tracy-Ann Oberman, Brian Moore, Saira Khan, Rosie Boycott, Michael Obiora, Joel Ross, Shobna Gulati, Dennis Taylor, Sian Lloyd, Jan Leeming and Joe Swift.
There was also a week of Comeback contestants featuring Joe McGann, Marie Helvin, Linda Barker, Claire Richards, Rowland Rivron, Ninia Benjamin, Steven Pinder, Wendi Peters, Helen Lederer, Tony Hadley, Martin Hancock and Jeff Green, from which Wendi Peters reached the series final.
In 2010, Lisa Faulkner beat Neil Stuke, Richard Farleigh, Nihal Arthanayake, Alex Fletcher, Tessa Sanderson, Jenny Powell, Colin Jackson, Tricia Penrose, Martin Roberts, Christine Hamilton, Chris Walker, Dick Strawbridge, Danielle Lloyd, Marcus Patric, Dean Macey, Mark Chapman, Jennie Bond, Mark Little and Kym Mazelle.
In 2011, former rugby player, Phil Vickery[5] beat Kirsty Wark, Nick Pickard, Darren Campbell, Linda Lusardi, Michelle Mone, Ruth Goodman, Aggie MacKenzie, Ricky Groves, Margi Clarke, Colin McAllister, Justin Ryan, Shobu Kapoor, Sharon Maughan, Tim Lovejoy and Danny Goffey.[6]
MasterChef: The Professionals, a version for professional chefs, was introduced in 2008. Gregg Wallace and India Fisher reprise their roles as co-judge and voiceover. Judge John Torode is replaced by Michel Roux, Jr., a two-Michelin-star chef, assisted, from 2009, by his sous-chef Monica Galetti.
Derek Johnstone won the first series on 19 September 2008, and went on to take a job with Michel Roux Jr at Le Gavroche restaurant in London.
The second series began on 14 September 2009 at 8:30pm on BBC2 and was won by Steve Groves on 22 October 2009.[7] On 6 June 2010 the series was awarded a BAFTA in the Features category, fending off competition from The Choir, James May's Toy Stories and Heston's Feasts.
The third series began on Monday 20 September 2010, the eventual winner being 30 year old Claire Lara from Liverpool.[8] She was pregnant at the time.[9]
The fourth series began on 7 November 2011, with India Fisher's voiceover replaced with Sean Pertwee. The series concluded on 15 December 2011, with finalists Steve Barringer[10] and Claire Hutchings[11] being beaten by winner Ash Mair.[12][13][14] Mair, 34, who comes from from Tasmania, cooked a final three-course menu comprising a starter of roasted monkfish tail with lentils and Basque piperade; roast rump of lamb with braised lamb neck potato croquette; and a dessert of Spanish bread and butter pudding with vanilla parfait.
Junior MasterChef, a version for children aged 10 and up, began on 10 May 2010 as part of the children's programming block on BBC One. India Fisher provided the voiceover as usual, while the judges were John Torode and former Celebrity MasterChef champion Nadia Sawalha. Georgia, aged 13 was the 2010 winner.[15]
| Year | Winner |
|---|---|
| 1990 | Joan Bunting |
| 1991 | Sue Lawrence |
| 1992 | Vanessa Binns |
| 1993 | Derek Johns |
| 1994 | Gerry Goldwyre |
| 1995 | Marion Macfarlane |
| 1996 | Neil Haidar |
| 1997 | Julie Friend |
| 1999 | Lloyd Burgess |
| 2000 | Marjorie Lang |
| 2001 | Rosa Baden-Powell |
Note: The original MasterChef series did not air in 1998.
| Year | Winner |
|---|---|
| 1994 | Katie Targett-Adams |
| 1995 | Jenna Tinson |
| 1996 | Lucy Wright |
| 1997 | Serena Martin |
| 1998 | Curtis Jackson |
| 1999 | Dominique Fraser |
| 2010 | Georgia Bradford |
| Year | Winner |
|---|---|
| 2005 | Thomasina Miers |
| 2006 | Peter Bayless |
| 2007 | Steven Wallis |
| Year | Winner |
|---|---|
| 2008 | James Nathan |
| 2009 | Mat Follas[16] |
| 2010 | Dhruv Baker |
| 2011 | Tim Anderson |
| Year | Winner |
|---|---|
| 2006 | Matt Dawson |
| 2007 | Nadia Sawalha |
| 2008 | Liz McClarnon |
| 2009 | Jayne Middlemiss |
| 2010 | Lisa Faulkner |
| 2011 | Phil Vickery |
| Year | Winner |
|---|---|
| 2008 | Derek Johnstone |
| 2009 | Steve Groves |
| 2010 | Claire Lara |
| 2011 | Ash Mair |
| Year | Show | Winner |
|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Children in Need Junior MasterChef | Robin (surname not known) |
| 2010 | Sport Relief does MasterChef | Alan Hansen |
| 2011 | Comic Relief does MasterChef | Miranda Hart |
Presented by Loyd Grossman:
| Series | Start date | End date |
| 1 | 2 July 1990 | 24 September 1990 |
| 2 | 21 April 1991 | 14 July 1991 |
| 3 | 26 April 1992 | 19 July 1992 |
| 4 | 11 April 1993 | 4 July 1993 |
| 5 | 10 April 1994 | 3 July 1994 |
| 6 | 16 April 1995 | 9 July 1995 |
| 7 | 7 April 1996 | 30 June 1996 |
| 8 | 27 April 1997 | 3 August 1997 |
| 9 | 3 January 1999 | 28 March 1999 |
| 10 | 12 March 2000 | 4 June 2000 |
Presented by Gary Rhodes:
| Series | Start date | End date | Number of editions |
| 11 | 3 April 2001 | 3 July 2001 | 13 |
Presented by Lloyd Grossman:
| Series | Start date | End date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 14 August 1994 | 13 November 1994 |
| 2 | 16 July 1995 | 22 October 1995 |
| 3 | 4 August 1996 | 27 October 1996 |
| 4 | 11 March 1998 | 21 May 1998 |
| 5 | 18 April 1999 | 1 August 1999 |
Note: 13 editions for each series of MasterChef and Junior MasterChef.
| Series | Start date | End date | Number of editions |
| 1 | 21 February 2005 | 21 February 2005 | 29 |
| 2 | 23 January 2006 | 17 April 2006 | 45 |
| 3 | 22 January 2007 | 15 March 2007 | 40 |
| 4 | 7 January 2008 | 28 February 2008 | 32 |
| 5 | 5 January 2009 | 26 February 2009 | |
| 6 | 18 February 2010 | 7 April 2010 | 23 |
| 7 (Revamp) |
16 February 2011 | 27 April 2011 | 15 (inc. audition shows) |
Specials
Note: Series 7 of MasterChef featured 'talent show-type' audition shows (similar to The X Factor) in which hopeful chefs cooked in front of the judges to secure a place in the competition. More than 20,000 people applied to audition for the show.[17]
| Series | Start date | End date | Number of editions |
| 1 | 11 September 2006 | 29 September 2006 | 15 |
| 2 | 28 May 2007 | 15 June 2007 | |
| 3 | 2 July 2008 | 25 July 2008 | 12 |
| 4 | 10 June 2009 | 10 July 2009 | 15 |
| 5 | 21 July 2010 | 20 August 2010 | |
| 6 (Revamp) |
12 September 2011 | 22 October 2011 | 30 (daily shows) 13 (catch-up shows) |
Note: Series 6 of Celebrity MasterChef was aired weekdays on BBC One at 2:15pm.[18] Catch-up shows were also aired on Fridays at 20:30 (30 minutes long) and on Saturdays (60 minutes long).
| Series | Start date | End date | Number of editions |
| 1 | 25 August 2008 | 19 September 2008 | 20 |
| 2 | 14 September 2009 | 22 October 2009 | 29 |
| 3 | 27 September 2010 | 2 November 2010 | 17 |
| Special | 8 November 2010 (Michel's Classics) | 2 | |
| 4 | 7 November 2011 | 15 December 2011 | 24 |
| Series | Start date | End date | Number of editions |
| 1 | 10 May 2010 | 28 May 2010 | 13 (daily shows) |
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||