MasterChef (British TV series)


MasterChef is a competitive cooking show produced by Endemol Shine UK and Banijay and it broadcasts in 60 countries around the world. In the UK, it is produced by the BBC. The show initially ran from 1990 to 2001 and was revived in 2005 as MasterChef Goes Large. The revival featured a new format devised by Franc Roddam and John Silver, with Karen Ross producing. In 2008, the name was changed back to MasterChef but the format remained unchanged.
The series currently appears in four versions: the main MasterChef series; Celebrity MasterChef; , which features working chefs; and Junior MasterChef, which features children between the ages of nine and twelve. The format and style of the show have been reproduced around the world in various international versions.

Original series

In the original series, amateur cooks competed for the title of Master Chef. The show featured nine rounds leading up to three semifinals and a final. In each round, three contestants were tasked with preparing a gourmet three-course meal in under two hours. The contestants could choose the meal, although there was a price limit on ingredients. "Everyday" ingredients and equipment were provided, and contestants could also bring up to five "specialty" ingredients or utensils.
The first incarnation of the series was presented by Loyd Grossman, who was joined each week by a professional chef and a celebrity to act as judges. In each episode, Grossman and the guest judges discussed the menus, talked to the contestants, and finally ate and judged the food. The judges' "cogitations" originally took place off-camera, but later episodes included edited highlights of the discussions after the food had been tasted and before the winner was announced.
In 1998, Grossman decided to take a sabbatical and the series was placed on hiatus in his absence. He returned to present the 1999 series but left the show in 2000.

Grossman's departure and 2001 revamp

In 2001, the show underwent a makeover in response to declining ratings. It was moved from its traditional Sunday afternoon slot on BBC One to a Tuesday night slot on BBC Two and the format of the show was modified. The celebrity judge was no longer included and the contestants had to cook two courses in 90 minutes, which was extended to two-and-a-half hours for three courses in the final episode. As an additional requirement, each contestant had to use the same key ingredient in each course.
In October 2000, Grossman quit in anger over the proposed changes and was replaced by chef Gary Rhodes, who had previously presented MasterChef USA. Rhodes' advice to contestants was more critical than Grossman's and the show received acclaim for its more serious tone, which would later inspire the MasterChef Goes Large format and other cooking competitions like Hell's Kitchen. However, the new version of the show did not revive ratings as hoped and was cancelled by the BBC after the first series.

Revived series

In 2005, executive producers Franc Roddam and John Silver, along with series producer Karen Ross, radically overhauled the show's format and introduced a new series. It was initially titled MasterChef Goes Large, but the name reverted to MasterChef in 2008. The new series is judged by John Torode and Gregg Wallace, with voice-over narration provided 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 promoted to BBC One.

Format

Each series airs five nights a week for eight weeks. During the first six weeks, the first four episodes of each week are heats and the fifth episode is a quarter-final. Six contestants enter each heat and the winner becomes a quarter-finalist. At the end of each week, the four quarter-finalists compete and a semi-finalist is chosen. After six weeks, the six semi-finalists compete in the final two weeks.
In 2010, the judges were given more flexibility, allowing them to advance more than one contestant to the quarter-finals or, in one instance, none at all. Series 7 of Master Chef featured auditions with a format similar to The X Factor, in which hopeful chefs cooked in front of the judges to secure a spot in the competition. More than 20,000 people applied to audition for the series.

Heats

The heats follow a three-round format:
The format of the quarter-finals has changed over the years. Before 2010, the format featured three rounds:
In 2010, the quarter-final format was cut down to two rounds:
The current quarter-final format consists of two rounds:
The sixth week is called "Comeback Week" and features contestants from previous series of MasterChef who did not advance past the heats or quarter-finals. The format changes for this special week. It includes:
MasterChef Live is an extension of the television programme. It has been held each November since 2009 and the event lasts three days. It is hosted at London Olympia and is co-located with the annual . Highlights of the event include live cooking demonstrations in the Chefs’ Theater, celebrity chefs, former contestants, critics, and MasterChef-style cook-offs.

''Celebrity MasterChef''

Celebrity MasterChef was devised as a celebrity version of MasterChef Goes Large. The show was screened on BBC One from 2006 to 2011. Originally, 24 celebrities participated in each series with three contestants per episode following the full MasterChef Goes Large test.
In 2011, the programme was moved to a daily daytime slot with 30 episodes screened over six weeks and featured only 16 celebrities. Catch-up shows were also aired on Fridays at 20:30 and on Saturdays at various times. In 2012, the show moved to BBC Two due to low ratings and returned to an evening 18:30 slot. In 2013, it moved back to BBC One prime time, airing at 20:00. Since 2014, the show has featured 20 celebrities competing for the title.

Contestants

The winner from each year is in bold text.
MasterChef: The Professionals, a version for professional chefs, was introduced in 2008.

''Junior MasterChef''

Junior MasterChef originally ran from 1994 to 1999 for contestants under 16 years old. It was revived in 2010 and featured contestants between nine and twelve years old. A second series of the revived format ran in 2012 and a third series followed in 2014.

Controversy

2018 rendang reprimand

MasterChef was involved in a controversy during the 13th episode of its 14th series when Wallace and Torode criticized a rendang dish made by Malaysian-born contestant Zaleha Kadir Olpin for its supposedly poor quality, despite the fact that Zaleha had attempted to make the dish in thirty minutes when it normally takes several hours to prepare. The judges deemed the dish inedible because the chicken skin was not crispy. However, many commentators, particularly from Malaysia and Indonesia, pointed out that rendang is usually cooked as a stew and is not intended to be crispy, and that both judges had failed to differentiate between "crispy" and "under-cooked".
Najib Razak, the Malaysian Prime Minister at the time, joined the conversation with a subtle tweet denouncing the judges' opinion. Former Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamed also joined in, suggesting that the judges were confusing rendang with KFC.

Winners

''MasterChef'' (original series)

Note: The original MasterChef series did not air in 1998.

''MasterChef Goes Large'' and ''MasterChef'' (revived series)

''MasterChef Goes Large''

''MasterChef''

The show's original name returned in series 4 in 2008.
YearWinner
2008James Nathan
2009Mat Follas
2010Dhruv Baker
2011Tim Anderson
2012Shelina Permalloo
2013Natalie Coleman
2014Ping Coombes
2015Simon Wood
2016Jane Devonshire
2017Saliha Mahmood-Ahmed
2018Kenny Tutt
2019Irini Tzortzoglou
2020Thomas Frake

''Celebrity MasterChef''

Charity specials

Other notable contestants

Transmission guide

Original series

Specials

''MasterChef Goes Large''

''MasterChef''

The show's original name returned in series 4 in 2008.
SeriesStart dateEnd dateEpisodes
47 January 200828 February 200832
55 January 200926 February 200932
618 February 20107 April 201023
716 February 201127 April 201115
817 January 201215 March 201215
912 March 20132 May 201323
1026 March 201416 May 201424
1110 March 201524 April 201524
1223 March 20166 May 201625
1329 March 201712 May 201725
1426 February 201813 April 201825
1511 February 201929 March 201924
1624 February 202017 April 202024

Specials

Books