Celebrity MasterChef is returning to our screens and the BBC has announced an all-star cast ready to cook up a storm in the kitchen.
Viewers will see 15 famous faces from across the showbiz world try and impress the MasterChef judges.
But which celebrities will cut the mustard? Who will follow in the (very capable) footsteps of last year’s winner, Strictly Come Dancing favourite Vito Coppola? And which star will just be a recipe for disaster?
Here is everything you need to know about upcoming series, including who is in the starry cast, the judges and when it starts.
Celebrity Masterchef 2025 line up: Alfie Boe OBE
Legendary singer and musical theatre actor Alfie Boe will step up to the plate in the new season. The 55-year-old previously worked as an apprentice mechanic in Blackpool. It was a customer that recommended he auditioned for an opera school in London, and since then, Alfie has never looked back.
Alfie’s most prominent roles include as the lead in Baz Luhrmann-directed opera La boheme in 20o2, as well as Jean Valjean in the Broadway and West End versions of Les Miserables. The latter he played in 2010, and reprised in 2015, 2019 and 2024. Meanwhile, he also starred on Broadway’s Finding Neverland in 2016.
In addition to theatre roles, Alfie has released 17 studio albums of classical music. He frequently partners Michael Ball, with the two having released five albums together. In 2022, the pair collaborated for Together in Vegas, which features popular ratpack tunes. It reached No. 3 in the UK’s album charts upon release.
Alfie is also no stranger to our TV screens. Again joined by Michael, the pair performed ITV specials: Ball & Boe: One Night Only in 2016, and Ball and Boe: Back Together the following year. Most recently, he starred in BBC One reality show, Freeze the Fear with Wim Hof.
Rugby player: Alun Wyn Jones OBE
Heralded as one of the world’s best rugby players, will Alun be able to step up to the plate on Masterchef? The 40-year-old was highly decorated throughout his two decade career.
Having originally played for Swansea between 2004 and 2006, it was at the Osprey rugby club where he made his name. Alun scored 257 points there when he played for the team between 2005 and 2023. He then briefly played Toulon, before retiring in 2023.
Alun is also recognised on an international level. He is the world’s most-capped rugby union player, playing for Wales 158 times as well as captaining the British and Irish Lions. Having won three grand slams, Alun was named best player of the 2019 Six Nations Championships, and was nominated for World Player of the Year in 2015 and 2019.
Married to Dr Anwen Jones and sharing three daughters, Alun is now trying to develop his Welsh language skills. But do his real talents lie in the kitchen?
Singer and actor: Antony Costa
Antony Costa shot to fame in 2000 as one part of boyband quartet Blue, alongside Lee Ryan, Duncan James and Simon Webbe. Their biggest hits included ‘All Rise’, ‘Too Close’ and ‘U Make Me Wanna’. The group split in 2005 after releasing three number one albums.
In this time, the 44-year-old pursued other projects, including a short-lived solo career. TV endeavours included starring in 2005’s edition of I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here, and 2011’s Total Wipeout. He also pursued acting, starring in the stage version of Blood Brothers in 2006. Antony also toured the UK with Boogie Nights the following year. In 2009, Antony had a one-off part in BBC One’s Casualty. He had another brief appearance in the medical drama in 2014.
Blue reunited in 2011, and represented the UK in the Eurovision Song Contest that same year. They landed 11th place. they went on to star with other 90s and 00s pop bands, including Atomic Kitten, in 2013’s The Big Reunion. Blue has since released another three albums, with seventh outing Reflections out in 2026.
Most recently, you may have spotted Antony in BBC Two quiz, Richard Osman’s House of Games.
Reality star: Ashley Cain
Previously a footballer for Coventry City, Ashley Cain’s showbiz career started when he appeared on MTV’s Ex on the Beach in 2014. He appeared on the show again the following year.
In 2021, Ashley’s daughter Azaylia tragically died of cancer aged just 8 months old. He had raised £1.5 million for his daughter’s specialist treatment in Singapore, but sadly she didn’t make it there. Alongside Azaylia’s mother and former partner Safiyya Vorajee, the pair launched a charity in Azaylia’s name to fight childhood cancer.
Now, 33-year-old Ashley has welcomed two sons with new partners. His first son, Aliyas Cain, was born in January last year. Meanwhile, Atlas Diamond Cain was born in November 2024.
Sports presenter and reality star: Chris Hughes
After his legendary stint in Love Island back in 2017, the 32-year-old has become a regular on our screens. In 2018, he starred in reality series with then-girlfriend Olivia Attwood, titled Chris and Olivia: Cracking On. He also featured alongside Love Island winner Kem Cetinay in gameshow, You vs Chris & Kem, the same year. In 2019, he raised awareness for testicular cancer with BBC doc: Me, My Brother And Our Balls.
He has now moved towards sports reporting. Since 2019, he’s fronted live horse race coverage for ITV. In 2021, he has covered The Hundred cricket tournament for the BBC.
Chris is now possibly best known for his celebrity relationships. As well as dating Little Mix’s Jesy Nelson between 2019 and 2020, he is now in a relationship with US pop star JoJo Siwa. The pair met when they both starred on ITV’s Celebrity Big Brother earlier this year.
Broadcaster: Dawn O’Porter
Best known for her documentary work, Dawn O’Porter fronted Super Slim Me for BBC One in 2007. This one-off doc saw her explore the Size 0 phenomenon. In 2008, she then fronted a series of documentaries for BBC Three exploring off-beat topics including nudity, lesbianism and pregnancy.
Dawn’s other documentary series, Extreme Wife, focused on relationships. The 2008 Channel 4 series saw her explore polygamy, mail order brides and geishas.
Her more recent work has explored body image and sustainability. Her 2009 series, My Breasts Could Kill Me, looks at breast cancer, while in 2014, she fronted This Old Thing, where she looked at the popularity of vintage shopping.
Dawn married actor Chis O’Dowd in 2012, with the pair sharing two children together. She now works as a writer, and has released five novels – the most recent of which being Honey Bee, which came out last year.
Paralympian and actor: Gaz Choudhry MBE
Gaz had both his legs amputated in 1995 after a serious accident when he was just 10 years old, and has played wheelchair basketball since he was 13.
The British basketball player participated in the 2012 London Paralympics for Great Britian’s wheelchair basketball side. The team won bronze; a feat Gaz repeated in the 2016 Rio Paralympic Games.
In 2022, Gaz was made an MBE in the Queen’s birthday honours list for his services to wheelchair basketball. Multi-talented, Gaz is now acting; he made his debut in Apple TV’s 2023 series Extrapolations.
Drag performer: Ginger Johnson
Real name Donald Marshall, fans of BBC’s RuPaul’s Drag Race, will recognise Ginger as the winner of the show’s fifth season. Ginger’s drag performances are inspired by Golden Age Hollywood actresses. She decided to pursue the art after trying out drag at university.
When performing of Drag Race, the 37-year-old described herself as “a helium balloon in the shape of a woman”, and her performances as “silly” and “camp”.
Soul singer: Jaki Graham
The legendary performer has performed with Cliff Richard, David Grant and Michael McDonald. Best known for her single ‘Could It Be That I’m Falling In Love’ in 1985, Jaki went on to release five further dance hits up to 1987.
Having released 10 studio albums, the 69-year-old has turned her talents to radio presenting. In 2016, she fronted Soul on Sunday on BBC Radio London.
Actor: Jamie Lomas
Best known for playing the conniving Warren Fox in Hollyoaks, Jamie played the villain between 2006 and 2011. He briefly starred in BBC One’s EastEnders as Jake Stone between 2013 and 2015. Jake returned to the Chester soap in 2016, and left once more in 2024.
Jamie’s other TV roles included a stint in 2017’s I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here, where he placed second. He also (bravely) starred in The Full Monty on Ice in 2020.
A father of three, Jamie, 50 is now making another triumphant return to Hollyoaks later this year to celebrate the show’s 30th anniversary.
Gladiator: Jodie Ounsley (Fury)
The 24-year-old previously was a rugby union player before she swapped the scrum for the Gladiators arena. Jodie, who is better known on screen as Fury, was on the England Women’s rugby team between 2019 and 2024. It’s an even more astonishing achievement; Jodie was born prematurely and is profoundly deaf as a result. Her role on the England team made her the world’s first-ever deaf female rugby sevens international.
In addition to her rugby prowess, Jodie also won a gold medal at the British Open Brazilian jiu-jitsu final in 2016.
Jodie’s other broadcast work includes interviewing and providing sports coverage. In 2024, she reported on the Paralympic Games in Paris for Channel 4.
Soap star: Katie McGlynn
Katie’s first entree into acting was as the unruly Scout on BBC One’s popular school drama, Waterloo Road. She joined the cast of Coronation Street in 2013 as Sinead Tinker, before being killed off in an emotional storyline where the character developed cervical cancer. Katie was widely praised for her performance; in 2020, she won the gong for Best Serial Drama Performance at the National Television Awards.
After Coronation Street, she joined the cast of Hollyoaks in 2021 as young mother Becky Quentin. She left the soap in 2022.
Katie was a contestant in Strictly Come Dancing in 2021, partnered with Gorka Marquez. However, the pair were eliminated in week 3.
Singer: Michelle Heaton
Shooting to fame in 2001 when she auditioned for Popstars, Michelle and the five other runners-up, who were not picked for the Hear’Say group, formed Liberty X. They released three studio albums and sold over 3 million records. The band split in 2007.
Since then, Michelle has dipped her toe in the reality TV circuit. In 2009, she was a contestant on Celebrity Big Brother, where she was the third housemate evicted. She reformed with Liberty X for ITV’s 2013 edition of The Big Reunion, and participated in 2023’s Dancing on Ice as well as Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins the same year.
In 2018, she released a memoir titled Hot Flush, where she discusses undergoing a double mastectomy and hysterectomy. The surgery resulted in Michelle, now 46, going into an early menopause.
Comedian: Noreen Khan
The stand-up comedian is also a radio host, having fronted her own programme on the BBC Asian Network.
Her more recent TV work includes appearances on Countdown, Celebrity Antiques Roadtrip and Celebrity Mastermind.
Noreen also fronted documentary series ‘Back in Time for Birmingham’, which looked at South Asian families who settled in the UK from the 1950s onwards.
TV personality: Uma Jammeh
Having risen to fame on Love Island last year, Uma has taken a more unusual route beyond the villa. Eschewing the usual reality TV route, the 25-year-old has established herself as an influencer with 937,000 Instagram followers.
Earlier this year, she got engaged to partner Wil Anderson, with Uma famously leaving the Love Island villa to pursue him.
Who are the judges?
John Torode, who has been at the helm of Masterchef since 2005, will be turning up the heat on the celebrities competing. However, it will be the 60-year-old’s final appearance on the popular BBC series. Earlier this year, John, alongside former Gregg Wallace, were let go from the BBC following allegations of inappropriate behaviour on set.
This season of Celebrity Masterchef is Grace Dent’s first as a permanent judge. The 52-year-old journalist is The Guardian’s chief restaurant critic, and has featured on Masterchef: The Professionals as well as The Great British Menu. In 2023, she appeared on I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! but was forced to leave on medical grounds.
When is Celebrity Masterchef back on TV?
While there is no confirmed date, the Beeb has confirmed Celebrity Masterchef will be on BBC One and iPlayer in the autumn.
The first three episodes will be the Heats where celebs prove their talents, before the quarter finals really finds the cream of the crop that go to the semi final stages. The sixth and final episode will see who will claim the esteemed Celebrity Masterchef 2025 trophy.
Read more: Penny Lancaster opens up about ‘abusive’ MasterChef experience with Gregg Wallace
