MasterChef returns to iPlayer and BBC One in 2025 to uncover the country’s best amateur cooks as they battle it out in the MasterChef kitchen.
Who will be the 2025 Champion? Let’s meet the Heat 1 contenders…
Please note this information is accurate at the time of filming; certain aspects may have since changed but this represents the contributors as the competition starts.
CQ
Meet the MasterChef contestants
Beth
Vocal Coach, aged 40
Beth lives in Northampton with her partner, Peter. She went to the Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts (LIPA) and spent a year in New York (Manhattan) following graduation.
How would you describe your style of cooking?
I love using a recipe as a starting point to then experiment and develop. Fish cookery is my favourite hobby but anything with bold flavours is my bag!
The enjoyment of someone eating and enjoying your food is similar to hearing your performance as a musician. All the hard work that came before is suddenly worth every minute of blood, sweat and tears!
How did you get into cooking? Earliest cooking memory?
In my 20s, we had a friend who was a single dad and a trained chef. He would come and help me cook and learn about flavour and we would feed the family. Tim, you were my inspiration, and I will never mess with your steak and ale pie recipe!
What is your favourite ingredient to cook with and why?
My favourite cooking ingredient is a lemon. I love lemons in drinks, savouries and desserts. The versatility but boldness of the citrus does it for me every time! Whether it’s with fish or gin… perfection.
Why did you enter MasterChef this year?
I love to have fun and live life to the fullest. I have been a singer/teacher for the whole of my career and I want to be more than just a voice sometimes. That’s why I wanted to enter into MasterChef. Cookery gives me the same feeling as performing, the same stresses but the endorphins at the point of serving are priceless.
Do you have a dream of working in the food world? What is it?
The Witches House is my dream restaurant idea, with musical theatre-themed seasons both decoratively and in the menus. Just imagine a Wicked style meal experience!
Gemma
Head of Business Development, aged 32
Gemma lives in London with husband Ziggy and their dog Chilli. She was born in Hong-Kong and grew up in Singapore and Malaysia and stayed in Malaysia until she was 23. She went to university in Manchester and then moved to London.
How would you describe your style of cooking?
I’d say my cooking is a mash-up of where I’ve lived and where I’m from – East meets West, with big flavours and plenty of spice. I love going all in, experimenting in the kitchen, and making food that’s truly delicious.
I’m inspired by everything from Asian street food to high end restaurants and cheeky late-night takeaway cravings. I’m also a bit of a cookbook addict I’ll happily devour anything from anywhere in the world. It keeps things fresh and pushes me to try new things in the kitchen.
My style is very much influenced by where I grew up. Malaysia is such a melting pot of cultures – it has in my opinion the best food in the world. I try to tap into as many cultures as possible and try to create yummy, strong-flavoured dishes that I will crave again and again.
How did you get into cooking?
I moved from Malaysia to the UK for university and missed the food so much it physically hurt. So I started teaching myself how to cook the stuff I grew up with. It was a lot of trial and error (mostly error), but once I got the hang of it, I was hooked.
Earliest cooking memory?
While it’s not strictly a cooking memory, my earliest food memory is being completely obsessed with the hawker stalls back in Singapore. Even now, I can still smell the smoky wok hei (“breath of the wok”) from the char kway teow (Malaysian stir-fried noodle dish) the gingery warmth of chicken rice, and the bubbling claypot rice doing its thing over an open flame. I didn’t know how to cook yet, but I knew food could make you feel something – and that really stuck with me. Those memories are so vivid, I feel like I’m right back there every time I step into a kitchen. I have always been obsessed with food and thinking about what I am going to eat next, so I have a lifetime of cravings and memories to pull from.
What is your favourite ingredient to cook with and why?
My favourite ingredient is the tomato. They’re absolute magic. Sweet, tangy, savoury there’s just so much going on with them. You can chuck them in almost anything and suddenly it tastes like you knew what you were doing.
Why did you enter MasterChef this year?
I went for MasterChef this year because I’ve always wanted to. I’ve been glued to the show for years, and I thought, why not? Let’s see what happens if I actually give it a go. It’s terrifying and brilliant all at once.
Do you have a dream of working in the food world?
I’d love to teach people how to cook, especially if they’ve never felt like the kitchen was their thing. A cookbook is on the wishlist, and I’d love to grow my little food corner on social media into something bigger. No five-year plan, just going where the food takes me.
Gon
Recruiter/Thai Boxing Coach, aged 26
Gon lives in Coventry with his Dad. He was born in Thailand, and lived in a seaside town in Rayon. Then moved to Coventry when he was seven years old.
How would you describe your style of cooking?
My cooking style is cook and hope for the best! Sometimes it’s a hit and sometimes it’s a miss but that’s the joy of cooking. The misses become a lesson, and the hits become a wonderful lunch or dinner. My food and this style have both been inspired by my mum. She cooks everything with just the judgement of her eye and, this woman, I’ve never seen her miss. She makes it so effortless, and I think it was so cool, so she’s the person I aspire to cook like.
How did you get into cooking?
I got into cooking through my mum and the rest of my family. I was brought up on amazing food cooked with love. I had to replicate the endless core memories and great moments that food has created for me.
Earliest cooking memory?
My earliest cooking memory is from a food tech class where we made traditional British mince pies. When my mum and I first read the recipe, we mistakenly assumed mince meant minced beef — we didn’t know it was the English fruit-based filling. I got a few laughs in class and the other students got together to share their ingredients with me. Hard to forget that one, and surprisingly, I went on to love cooking.
What is your favourite ingredient to cook with and why?
I love cooking with belly pork. It’s versatile and when you pick the right fat to meat ratio, you can really do amazing things.
Why did you enter MasterChef this year?
I entered the competition almost by accident. I saw applications were open through social media and I had a curiosity about what it’s like to apply for a TV show. MasterChef is a show I know, and cooking is something I love, so it felt right to apply for it.
Do you have a dream of working in the food world?
My dream is to recreate the amazing food experiences I had growing up and share them with others. One day, I hope to have my own food truck, but I also want to help people eat balanced meals and save time through an Asian meal prep service. It would feature my mum’s authentic recipes — meals packed with both nutrition and soul.
Penelope
Writer, aged 70
Penelope lives in Dorset with her very spoilt Tibetan Terrier, Panda Bear. She was born and raised in New Zealand and moved to Australia when she was 20. She then moved to London before returning to New Zealand in 2010 for six years before moving back to the UK, where she lived in Bath and completed a Master’s Degree before moving to Dorset.
How would you describe your style of cooking?
I like to experiment as I have travelled and am always searching for different flavour and texture combinations. My style has been described as eclectic. Perhaps you could call it a new Antipodean-based style like ‘Con-Fusion’, because it confounds some people until they taste it. This week it has been a breakfast of chilled strawberries on hot buttered toast, with a dollop of salted rosewater and cardamom ice-cream. After all, it does have all the elements of toast and jam.
How did you get into cooking?
I was the oldest child, living in a farming environment and it was just natural to start cooking. I would cook scones and pikelets (Scottish pancakes) for shearers and family meals when my mother became ill when I was 11. It was a time when boys did woodwork and girls were expected to do home science classes. I was bored to death because what they taught, I knew already.
Earliest cooking memory?
My earliest cooking memory is my father smoking fish he caught in a homemade smoker in the garage and raiding the vegetable garden to cook carrots and potatoes on sticks over the burning drum.
And now I have grandsons, to share in their early cooking memories. Their food journey started by licking the beaters, peering into saucepans, stirring sauces and harvesting from the garden. They love it and they love to learn as well.
What is your favourite ingredient to cook with and why?
I love to cook with anything, particularly if it is new to me and I can invent something. I have crazes for flavours. My current ones are tamarind, fennel, rosewater and cardamom. Not always together!
Why did you enter MasterChef this year?
My friends and family have nagged me to do this since MasterChef started. I cannot resist a challenge, and why not at 70 years old! A lesson that you can have a go at just about anything if you are passionate about it.
Do you have a dream of working in the food world?
I really want to do a cookbook for the ‘I hate…’ crowd. I’d love to write something fun and good food for children, easy family cooking or the sneaky way to good nutrition. The recipes could even be inspired by fairy tales and folk stories.
Shaun
Digital Marketing Manager, aged 28
Shaun lives in Manchester on his own. He was born in Zimbabwe, grew up in Cambridge until he was 11 and then lived in Peterborough before settling in Manchester.
How would you describe your style of cooking?
I’d call my cooking style curious and flavour-driven. I love challenging myself to recreate dishes I’ve eaten out or seen online, sometimes with the goal of making them even better. I don’t stick to a specific cuisine, but I do gravitate towards bold Asian flavours and ingredients in my day-to-day cooking. It’s all about experimenting, learning, and pushing myself each time I step into the kitchen.
How did you get into cooking?
I’ve been surrounded by food for as long as I can remember. My dad was a professional chef and my mum ran a bakery, so good food was always a part of my daily life. From a young age, they encouraged me to cook, teaching me to trust my intuition in the kitchen rather than always sticking to recipes. That instinctive approach has stuck with me ever since.
Earliest cooking memory?
I was about nine years old when my parents put me in the kitchen with the ingredients to make Spaghetti Bolognese. They simply said, “You’ve seen us cook this so many times, now it’s your turn.” It was a bit of a sink-or-swim moment, but it gave me a real sense of confidence and kickstarted my love for cooking and I’ve loved being in the kitchen ever since.
What is your favourite ingredient to cook with and why?
Chicken is hands down my favourite ingredient to cook with. Its versatility is unmatched; you can break it down, roast it, fry it, poach it, and every part serves a purpose. Even the bones become a rich stock that can elevate an entire dish. There’s always something new to try with chicken, and I don’t think I’ll ever run out of ideas for it.
Why did you enter MasterChef this year?
I entered MasterChef this year because I wanted to challenge myself and take my cooking to the next level. Cooking has always been a passion, but this felt like the perfect opportunity to push my boundaries, learn from the best, and see how far I can go under pressure. I wanted to test my creativity, improve my skills, and hopefully inspire others who love food as much as I do. MasterChef isn’t just a competition for me, it’s a chance to grow and make my mark on the food world.
Do you have a dream of working in the food world?
My dream is to teach others to cook in the same intuitive way I learned, showing that cooking can be simple and accessible to everyone. I want to share this through the platforms I already use, like social media, and eventually expand into cookbooks. Helping people gain confidence in the kitchen and discover the joy of cooking is what truly drives me.
Thea
Marketing Coordinator, aged 28
Thea lives in London with four housemates. She was born and raised in Shrewsbury and then went to Loughborough University before moving to London.
How would you describe your style of cooking?
I would describe my style of cooking as intuitive with lots of adding in, dashes of this and pinches of that. That’s how my dad taught me to cook, taste as you go.
I’m influenced by a lot of cuisines; I like to mash up my styles and add a twist to things. I’m most drawn to Korean, Italian, Chinese (specifically Hunan and Sichuan) and Thai but I am always looking to expand my repertoire. One of my favourite flavours to work with is umami, it’s my go-to.
How did you get into cooking?
I’ve been cooking since the age of four. My parents both encouraged me to start learning to cook early on in life, but it was my dad who encouraged me to try new things and ingredients. There were lots of regular talks about what flavours could go together. My dad is my greatest cooking influence. He has the ability to rustle up something delicious with basically nothing in the fridge.
Earliest cooking memory?
I have fond memories of when I was taught to make carbonara by my mother. It was one of the simplest recipes but I found it the most difficult to perfect. After countless practice and multiple failures (too scrambled or too runny egg) I have now made it my signature dish.
What is your favourite ingredient to cook with and why?
My favourite ingredient to cook with is pork belly. I love the way that you can put any flavour profile with it. Whether it be Asian-inspired, Italian, French or British. Also, the combination of falling apart meat with crispy crackling is super special.
Why did you enter MasterChef this year?
I was definitely encouraged to enter MasterChef by a close friend, however as the process went on I really wanted to see whether I could actually make it into the competition. I’ve recently been considering what to do with my life and I host regular dinner parties for my friends, and they tell me it’s great. I get excited about inventing new dishes and flavour profiles and get such a buzz when my friends enjoy my food. I’m keen to learn more in a high quality and pressurised environment.
Do you have a dream of working in the food world?
I have a dream of opening my own restaurant one day. I want to run a business that curates and creates dinner parties for people across all walks of life.