Which Chefs Are Featuring On Great British Menu 2025?

Despite being around for 19 years, Great British Menu remains one of the most popular cooking shows on TV. And now it’s back on our screens for its landmark 20th edition, featuring some brand-new faces alongside returning favourites. So what can we expect this year?

Great British Menu 2025: Everything We Know So Far

What Is The Theme?

The theme for the new series of Great British Menu is ‘Great Britons’, with the competing chefs drawing inspiration from people who have come from their region. 

BBC/ Optomen Television Ltd/ Ashleigh Brown

Who Presents Great British Menu?

British-Antiguan chef Andi Oliver will be returning to present Great British Menu 2025. She has hosted the show since 2020 after serving as a judge on the show for four series, taking over from Scottish comedian and presenter Susan Calman.

Who Are The 2025 Judges?

Michelin-starred chef Tom Kerridge and comedian and podcast host Ed Gamble returning to the judging panel. Former judge Nisha Katona, however, will be leaving the series after three years. In her place will be Lorna McNee, chef director at Glasgow’s only Michelin-starred restaurant Cail Bruich – who knows how transformative the show can be for chefs, having competed on it herself back in 2018. 

‘Winning Great British Menu back in 2018 made a huge difference to my career as a chef and was partly behind me becoming chef director at Cail Bruich, so I know just how much the competition means to Britain’s chefs,’ she said. ‘Being invited to join the judges this year was a total surprise but a delight, and I’m loving the chance to help choose this year’s banquet finalists. Tom, Ed, and Andi have made me feel very welcome, and I’m also meeting some amazing guest judges every week – each of whom has been invited to help us choose the dishes representing their areas to go with this year’s theme of UK Heroes.’

A number of guest judges will also be making cameos, but this year’s names are yet to be revealed.

Which Chefs Are On Great British Menu Season 20?

Episode Two: South West

• Nicholas Balfe – owner and chef director of HOLM in Somerset
• Amber Francis – head chef and food educator at a secondary school
• Ashleigh Farrand – head chef of The Kingham Plough, the Cotswolds
• Joseph Fallowfield – head chef of Fallowfields Restaurant, Cornwall

Episode One: North West England

• Jack Bond – head chef/owner of Cottage in the Woods, Lake District
• Eddie Shepherd – chef/ owner of The Walled Gardens, Manchester
• Livia Alarcon – head chef/owner of La Bistroteca, Liverpool
• James Hill – chef/owner of The Oak at Curthwaite, Lake District

WINNER: Jack Bond

BBC/ Optomen Television/ Ashleigh Brown

What’s The Format Of Great British Menu?

The show is essentially a cooking competition featuring chefs from eight different regions of the UK. Each week, four culinary figures from a specific region cook dishes based on a brief, with judges scoring each course out of ten. The chef who receives the lowest score leaves the competition, with another chef also leaving after all four dishes have been cooked. Then, the two remaining chefs will cook all four of their dishes, with the judges then deciding who has won in that region. 

In the final week, all eight regional winners will take part in a cook off with the hopes of being crowned champion and landing a place at the Great British Menu banquet.

Do Great British Menu Chefs Get Paid?

No, the competing chefs are not paid to feature on the show. In fact, it costs them: the restaurants they represent must provide a budget, but it’s worth it for the exposure. 

BBC / Optomen Television Limited / Ashleigh Brown

Who Won Great British Menu 2024?

Kirk Haworth, chef and owner of plant-based restaurant Plates, won the show in 2024. He was crowned the ‘champion of champions’ after impressing the judges with a sour cherry dessert named ‘A Taste of Unity’, served with a cacao gateau and topped with Asian blossom ice cream. 

Other notable previous winners include:

• Lisa Goodwin-Allen
• Adam Handling
• Niall Keating
• Richard Corrigan
• Paul Rankin

When Is Great British Menu 2025 On TV?

The show will return to BBC Two and iPlayer at 8pm on 28 January 2025. Three episodes will be screened each week for eight weeks, followed by five episodes in the ninth week.