Great British Menu

Great British Menu
Presented by	Jennie Bond (Series 1 & 2)
Narrated by	Jennie Bond (Series 3, 4 & 5) Wendy Lloyd (Series 6)
Original language	English
No. of series	5
No. of episodes	230 + 5 Specials (as of 13 May 2011) (list of episodes)
Production
Running time	29 min. per episode
Original release
Network	BBC Two
Release	2006 - Present

Great British Menu is a BBC television series in which top British chefs compete for the chance to cook one course of a four course banquet. The first series banquet was for the Queen on her 80th birthday. The second series was to cook for the British Ambassador to France at the British Embassy in Paris. The third series was to prepare a banquet to be held at the Gherkin in London, hosted by Heston Blumenthal. In the fourth series, chefs competed to cook at a celebratory dinner for British troops returning from Afghanistan. The fifth series prize was to cook at a banquet hosted by the Prince of Wales for outstanding local food suppliers. For all six series to date, the show's regular timeslot has been 6:30pm from Monday to Friday. For the first four series and the early part of the fifth, slightly different scheduling applied in Scotland, where the show did not air on Thursday and the weekly final was broadcast on Saturday. The music to the series was written by Daniel Pemberton.

Format

Series one and two were presented by Jennie Bond, the former BBC Royal correspondent, where by each week, two chefs from a region of the UK create a menu. In series three and four, both narrated by Bond but with no presenter, three chefs from a region of the UK create a menu; only the two with the best scores went through to the Friday judging. In series five and six, the fifth narrated by Bond while the sixth is narrated by Wendy Lloyd, three younger chefs from a region of the UK create a menu, with in kitchen judging undertaken by a past contestant chef; only the two with the best scores go through to the Friday judging.

In each series, the Friday show is when chefs present all courses of their menu to a judging panel, tasted and judged by Prue Leith, Matthew Fort and Oliver Peyton. One chef each week goes through to the final, where the judges taste the dishes again and award them marks out of ten. The three dishes that have scored the highest for each course are then put to the public vote.

During the first series, it was decided that a chef could only win one course overall, therefore any chef who won the public vote for a particular course was then eliminated from any subsequent courses they had been shortlisted for. As the results for all four courses were announced on the same day, some chefs were eliminated under this rule after the public had voted for them. This system may have contributed to the subsequent result of chefs from each of the four countries of the UK being represented at the final banquet. During series two, this rule was dropped, as highlighted by Mark Hix winning both the main course and dessert.

Series one (2006)

The birthday meal for the Queen was on 17 June 2006 and for 300 people, so each dish created had to be suitable for a summer banquet. All recipes have been published in a book by Dorling Kindersley.

Contestants

• John Burton Race and Michael Caines (won heat) represent the South West of England
• Antony Worrall Thompson and Galton Blackiston (won heat) represent the Midlands and the East of England
• Marcus Wareing (won heat) and Simon Rimmer represent the North of England
• Paul Rankin and Richard Corrigan (won heat) represent Northern Ireland
• Tom Lewis and Nick Nairn (won heat) represent Scotland
• Angela Hartnett and Bryn Williams (won heat) represent Wales
• Gary Rhodes and Atul Kochhar (won heat) represent South East of England

Final result

Starter – smoked salmon with Irish soda bread, woodland sorrel and cress (recipe) – Richard Corrigan

Fish course – pan-fried turbot with cockles and oxtail (recipe) – Bryn Williams

Main course – loin of roe venison with rosti, celeriac, cabbage, carrot and game gravy (recipe) – Nick Nairn

Dessert – custard tart with Garibaldi biscuits (recipe) – Marcus Wareing

Great British Christmas Menu

From 11–15 December 2006, a special Christmas edition of the series was shown. This involved the four winning chefs creating a four course Christmas dinner that viewers could prepare at home.

Unlike the original series, only one chef was able to be crowned the winner and there was no special prize at stake (i.e. the meal won't be cooked for The Queen). The final result was decided by the judges and a viewers' vote; 30p from calls made in order to vote was donated to Children in Need.

Final result

1st – Richard Corrigan (Northern Ireland)

2nd – Marcus Wareing (England), Nick Nairn (Scotland)

4th – Bryn Williams (Wales)

Series two (2007)

Series two started broadcasting on 2 April 2007. The format was the same as before, with the winning chefs from each region from series one taking on new challengers. The final menu was cooked at the British Embassy in Paris at an Ambassadors Dinner.

Contestants

• Week 1 – 2 April to 6 April – Galton Blackiston and Sat Bains (won heat) represent the Midlands and the East of England
• Week 2 – 9 April to 13 April – Bryn Williams (won heat) and Matt Tebbutt represent Wales
• Week 3 – 16 April to 20 April – Nick Nairn and Jeremy Lee (won heat) represent Scotland
• Week 4 – 23 April to 27 April – Richard Corrigan (won heat) and Noel McMeel represent Northern Ireland
• Week 5 – 30 April to 4 May – Atul Kochhar (won heat) and Stuart Gillies represent the South East of England
• Week 6 – 7 May to 11 May – Michael Caines and Mark Hix (won heat) represent the South West of England
• Week 7 – 14 May to 18 May – Marcus Wareing and Mark Broadbent (won heat) represent the North of England

Final result

Starter – ham, egg and peas (recipe) – Sat Bains

Fish course – whole poached wild salmon and duck egg dressing with wheaten bread and country butter (recipe) – Richard Corrigan

Main course – rabbit and crayfish stargazy pie (recipe) – Mark Hix

Dessert – perry jelly and summer fruits with elderflower ice cream (recipe) – Mark Hix

Series three (2008)

Series three began broadcasting on 17 March 2008. The chefs competed for the opportunity to cook a four-course dinner held in June 2008, at the restaurant at the top of the iconic Norman Foster-designed "Gherkin" building in London. The host was the chef Heston Blumenthal and his guests included top chefs from around the world along with gourmets and celebrities who represent a cross section of modern Britain.

The series began with seven special programmes in which Great British Menu judge, Matthew Fort, traveled around the UK, selecting the two chefs who will go through to represent their region in the competition.

Contestants

• Southwest: Richard Guest, Chris Horridge, Elisha Carter and Chris Wicks
• Northern Ireland: Danny Millar, Noel McMeel, Liz Moore and Nick Price
• London and the South-east: Jason Atherton, Jake Watkins, Adebola Adeshina and Atul Kochhar
• Wales: Angela Hartnett, Chris Chown, Stephen Terry and James Sommerin
• North: Mark Broadbent, Michael Wignall, Nigel Haworth and Anthony Flinn
• Scotland: Michael Smith, Matthew Gray, Tony Singh and Tom Kitchin
• Central region: Aaron Patterson, Sat Bains, Rupert Rowley and Glynn Purnell

Heats

• Central region: Sat Bains vs Glynn Purnell (Winner)
• Wales: Angela Hartnett vs Stephen Terry (Winner)
• North of England: Nigel Haworth (Winner) vs Anthony Flinn
• Scotland: Tom Kitchin (Winner) vs Matt Gray
• Northern Ireland: Danny Millar (Winner) vs Noel McMeel
• South-West: Chris Horridge (Winner) vs Elisha Carter
• South-East: Jason Atherton (Winner) vs Atul Kochhar

Final result

Starter – Bacon, lettuce and tomato with Croque Monsieur (recipe) - Jason Atherton

Fish course - Organic salmon and smoked salmon with crab fritters and cockle 'popcorn' (recipe) - Stephen Terry

Main course – Dexter beef fillet, ox cheek, smoked potato puree and marrow bone (recipe) - Jason Atherton

Dessert – Strawberries with tarragon and black pepper honeycomb with burnt English cream surprise (recipe) - Glynn Purnell

Series four (2009)

Series four began on 30 March 2009 and revolved around cooking a meal for British soldiers returning from the War in Afghanistan. A chef from a previous series came back in this series to act as a mentor, giving the two chefs from their region guidance and advice. They were in the kitchen and acted as an unofficial 4th judge.

The north region was split into north-east and north-west.

Heats

• Central: Glynn Purnell (won heat) vs Daniel Clifford
  Sat Bains as mentor
• Scotland: Tom Kitchin (won heat) vs Alan Murchison
  Jeremy Lee as mentor
• North East: Kenny Atkinson (won heat) vs Ian Matfin
  Marcus Wareing as mentor
• Northern Ireland: Danny Millar (won heat) vs Clare Smyth
  Richard Corrigan as mentor
• South West: Shaun Rankin (won heat) vs Nathan Outlaw
  Mark Hix as mentor
• Wales: James Sommerin (won heat) vs Stephen Terry
  Bryn Williams as mentor
• North West: Nigel Haworth (won heat) vs Aiden Byrne
  Marcus Wareing as mentor
• South East: Tristan Welch (won heat) vs Mark Sargeant
  Jason Atherton as mentor

Final Result

Starter - Salad of Aberdeen Angus beef, carrots, horseradish & Shetland Black potatoes (recipe) - Kenny Atkinson

Fish course - Masala spiced Monkfish with red lentils, pickled carrots & coconut (recipe) - Glynn Purnell

Main Course - Lonk lamb Lancashire Hotpot, pickled red cabbage, carrots & leeks (recipe) - Nigel Haworth

Dessert - Treacle tart with Jersey clotted cream & raspberry ripple coulis (recipe) - Shaun Rankin

The Banquet

The final episode of the series was broadcast on BBC2 on Tuesday 16 June where the Banquet was held for 100 military personnel in the Officers' Mess at RAF Halton, Halton House, along with series judges Matthew Fort, Prue Leith and Oliver Peyton. Fellow chefs Mark Hix, Marcus Wareing, Richard Corrigan and Bryn Williams, who mentored the chefs in the heats, also attended the event.

Series five (2010)

Series five began on 6 April 2010 with a double episode. In this series, the participating chefs were challenged to find food producers they had not previously used, basing their search around a National Trust property in their region, with the aim to source as many of their ingredients as possible from the property itself or the surrounding area. The banquet was for producers of British food and Prince Charles was the guest of honour.

Heats

This year saw a change in the format of the heats. Instead of only two chefs being present for all the heats for their region, as in previous years, in this year three chefs compete in the 'courses' section of their heats, with two going forward to cook for the judges in the 'judging' episode. As in series four, a previous participant returned each week, but with the added responsibility of scoring each chef's four courses. The chef with the lowest score at the end of the 'courses' episodes is eliminated, and the remaining two cook for the judges.

• Scotland: Alan Murchison (winner), Tony Singh and Michael Smith. Judge/mentor - Tom Kitchin
• North West: Lisa Allen (winner), Johnnie Mountain and Aiden Byrne. Judge/mentor - Marcus Wareing.
• Central: Will Holland (winner), Daniel Clifford and Richard Bainbridge. Judge/mentor - Glynn Purnell.
• South West: Nathan Outlaw (winner), John Hooker and Henry Herbert. Judge/mentor - Michael Caines.
• North East: Kenny Atkinson (winner), Lee Bennett and Tim Bilton. Judge/mentor - Nigel Haworth.
• Wales: James Sommerin (winner), Richard Davies and Aled Williams. Judge/mentor - Bryn Williams.
• Northern Ireland: Niall McKenna (winner), Derek Creagh and Brian McCann. Judge/mentor - Richard Corrigan.
• London and South East: Tom Kerridge (winner), Anthony Demetre and Tristan Welch. Judge/mentor - Jason Atherton.

Final Week

In the final week running up to the Banquet the chefs cook one course per day but instead of being ranked first to eighth place the top three chefs were all given a possible dish at the banquet thus allowing the judges to have more choice when choosing the menu at the end of the week.

Final Result

Starter: Wild rabbit and leek turnover with piccalilli (recipe) - Lisa Allen
Fish Course: Mackerel with gooseberries (recipe) - Kenny Atkinson
Main Course: Slow-cooked Aylesbury duck with duck fat chips and gravy (recipe) - Tom Kerridge
Dessert: Poached rhubarb with strawberry jelly, yellow man and lavender ice-cream (recipe) - Niall McKenna

The Banquet

The banquet was held in the Bath Assembly Rooms, a National Trust building, and broadcast on BBC1 on June 12, 2010. HRH the Prince of Wales was guest of honor along with his wife the Duchess of Cornwall. Regular series judges Matthew Fort, Prue Leith and Oliver Peyton attended along with the chefs who'd acted as mentors and judges during the series, plus the producers of the food used in the final meals.

Series six (2011)

Series six of The Great British Menu started on 4th April 2011. The theme for this series is sharing and communities , with chefs being asked to cook food that encourages people to come together to enjoy food. During the series, chefs will visit and cook for a number of community groups.

Heats

• North East: Andrew Pern (winner), Stephanie Moon and Tim Bilton. Judge/mentor - Nigel Haworth
• Northern Ireland: Chris Fearon (winner), Chris Bell and Brian McCann. Judge/mentor - Richard Corrigan
• North West: Lisa Allen (winner), Johnnie Mountain and Bruno Birkbeck. Judge/mentor - Marcus Wareing
• Central: Aktar Islam (winner), Richard Bainbridge and Sue Ellis. Judge/mentor - Glynn Purnell
• South West: Paul Ainsworth (winner), Andre Garrett and John Hooker. Judge/mentor - Michael Caines
• Scotland: Michael Smith (winner), Tony Singh and Philip Carnegie. Judge/mentor - Alan Murchison
• Wales: Aled Williams, Gareth Jones and Hywel Jones. Judge/mentor - Angela Hartnett
• London and South East: Tom Kerridge, Phil Thompson and Tom Aikens. Judge/mentor - Jason Atherton

The Banquet

The banquet for series six is to be held at Leadenhall Market and, in keeping with this years theme, will be a lavish street party.

External links

• Great British Menu at BBC Online
• Great British Menu at IMDb