The Guardian’s restaurant critic Grace Dent will judge the next series of Celebrity MasterChef alongside John Torode, it has been announced.
Dent will judge the show’s upcoming 20th series following last month’s news that Greg Wallace would step down from the role amid an external review into misconduct allegations.
Author and podcaster Dent regularly appears as a guest on MasterChef, and last year was a contestant on MasterChef: Battle of the Critics.
She said: “I’ve been watching MasterChef since I was a girl sitting on the sofa with my dad. My whole family watches it. It’s all about uncovering and supporting talent – and reaching this position is more than a dream for me.
“I’m so excited I can’t eat, which is seriously damaging for a restaurant critic. I feel very fortunate to be stepping into the shoes of the next Celebrity MasterChef.
“I can’t wait to meet the new celebrity faces of 2025.”
Torode, who has presented MasterChef since 2005, said: “I have loved working with Grace on MasterChef for years. She has been an excellent guest, an inspiring critic and has set some incredible challenges.
“MasterChef is all about expertise, from the contestants to our amazing production team, to us as the judges.
“The love of food, the love of MasterChef and that undeniable expertise make Grace the ideal person to step in as a judge alongside me for the upcoming Celebrity MasterChef series.”
Last year, Dent appeared on ITV’s I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! Was part of the lineup of! But he left the show early due to medical reasons. She writes a restaurant review column for the Guardian and hosts the celebrity food podcast Comfort Eating.
Her book Comfort Eating: What We Eat When Nobody’s Looking was published last year, with her memoir, Hungry, published in 2020.
Kalpana Patel-Knight, BBC head of entertainment, said: “Grace Dent is the perfect choice to step into the next series of Celebrity MasterChef.
“Grace is not only an energetic and well-established member of the MasterChef team, but also a world-renowned food critic, so she will definitely keep the next batch of celebrities on their toes.”
The most recent series of MasterChef: The Professionals continued to air amid the storm of allegations against Wallace, including two MasterChef Celebrity Christmas specials, a Celebrity MasterChef Christmas Cook Off and a Strictly Festive Extravaganza, which was removed from the BBC’s festive programme. Were given.
Wallace’s lawyers previously told the BBC, “It is completely false that he engaged in behavior of a sexually harassing nature”.