Great British MenuThe "Great Britons" of Elizabeth II
Top British chefs compete against each other and are scored by a panel of acclaimed judges for the chance to cook one course of a four course banquet.
Where to Watch Great British Menu • The "Great Britons" of Elizabeth II
45 Episodes
- London & South East Starter
E26London & South East StarterToday, three of the most exciting talents from London and the south east region are competing for a place in the national finals. Head chef Mark Froydenlund runs Marcus Wareing's two-star restaurant and is back to make amends for his early exit from the competition last year. For the starter, Mark is using all his Michelin-starred techniques to reimagine the most refined and contemporary version of bubble and squeak. Newcomer Russell Bateman is head chef at The Grove in Hertfordshire and is hoping to impress with an unusual combination of haddock, sausage meat and scallops. He is such a perfectionist, he is even making his own brown sauce. The third chef is another newcomer, Ronnie Murray, who heads up the Hix Restaurant group. He is out to emulate the success of his boss Mark Hix, a former GBM banquet winner, by reimagining historic recipes including the unusual rook pie. - London & South East Fish
E27London & South East FishThe competition really takes off today as three of London and the south east region's most exciting chefs fight to get to the top of the leader board. It is the fish course and chef Russell Bateman is celebrating the diversity of his beloved home town of London by combining lobster with jerk spices for an ambitious fish course with seven key elements. Ronnie Murray is taking a risk with an ingredient that is close to the veteran judge's heart, and is planning to serve it at three different temperatures - warm, deep fried and frozen. And two Michelin-starred Mark Froydenlund is planning a novel way to present his dish - as though it is half eaten! - London & South East Main
E28London & South East MainIt is the all-important main course and returning contender Mark Froydenlund is banking on it being his strongest dish. He is showcasing British rose veal and celebrating the determination of British producers to bounce back from disaster. His veal is produced by a farming couple from Cumbria who lost their entire herd to foot and mouth in 2001. Russell Bateman is pushing himself again and creating a beef dish to represent the moment the modest great Britons meet royalty. And Ronnie Murray is mixing a crown of lamb with a curried filling, but he has to make sure the lamb is cooked medium rare. It is a tough day in the kitchen for all three chefs - the veteran judge is impressed but not by everything he sees. - London & South East Dessert
E29London & South East DessertIt is the dessert course and the final chance for three of London and the south east's most competitive and talented chefs to get through to the judging chamber, as today the veteran judge will send one chef home. It is a highly emotional dish for chef Ronnie Murray as he prepares a dessert inspired by a very personal great Briton. He struggles to maintain his composure as the veteran tastes his technically complex pudding. There is no let up for Russell Bateman - once again his take on an afternoon tea is challenging, and he has to create a perfect chocolate mirror glaze in the heat of the GBM kitchen. Meanwhile, Michelin-starred Mark Froydenlund is using the delicate fragrant flavours and spices from the Commonwealth island of Grenada in a bid to secure him a place in Friday's judging chamber, after the disappointment of leaving early last year. - London & South East Judging
E30London & South East JudgingToday is the head to head. The two highest scoring chefs from the London and south east region are cooking for judges Oliver Peyton, Prue Leith and Matthew Fort. Joining this week as guest judge is Kevin Gould, an award-winning food writer who has also been a chef, a grocer and a restaurateur. And it is a battle royal - standards are so high, the judges are handing out tens, and not just to one chef. - North East Starter
E31North East StarterMini Patel is back for a second attempt at the north east regional title but he is competing against two young newcomers - Tommy Banks and Chris Archer. Last year, Mini went home after the dessert course, so he is hoping to keep better control of his nerves this year. However, when the veteran judge reveals he made a consomme like Mini's in GBM and was scored a 9, it piles on the pressure. But Mini uses his own brand of humour to combat the nerves. Tommy Banks is 26, a self- taught chef who already has a Michelin star. He grew up on a farm in north Yorkshire and has brought many of his homegrown ingredients with him, including one the veteran judge confesses to hating. It is not a great start for Tommy's take on a dish considered a royal favourite. Chris Archer is another competitive young chef who is creating an entirely gold dish - hoping for a gold-star score as well. - North East Fish
E32North East FishIt is the fish course and two chefs, Tommy and Mini, have very similar ingredients - both are cooking mackerel. But Mini is trying an original beetroot sorbet while Tommy is using wild woodruff and oyster leaf from his own garden. Chris Archer has chosen the king of the sea, turbot, but there is controversy in the kitchen when he reveals he is discarding a precious oyster! The veteran judge is not impressed... And there is laughter when Mini tries a wholly original way of shaping his beetroot sorbet - the chefs are glad they don't have to do his laundry. The beauty of Tommy's presentation wows his competitors as he creates woodruff dew drops. Finally, when it comes to the judging, one chef struggles to contain his emotions - he can't believe what he is hearing. - North East Dessert
E34North East DessertIt is a highly emotional day for one of the chefs as he prepares a dish which is inspired by and a tribute to his own great Briton, his late grandfather. But all is not going to plan and the chef ends up making one key element three times in a bid to achieve perfection. On the other side of the kitchen, another chef is also challenging himself, attempting to make a meringue mountain with some unusual smoke effects. The battle is on to get the first ten of the week from the veteran judge. - North East Judging
E35North East JudgingToday, the two chefs are cooking for judges Matthew Fort, Prue Leith and Oliver Peyton for the very first time. Joining them as guest judge is John Williams MBE, the executive head chef at The Ritz, the only hotel to hold a royal warrant for banqueting. For one of the chefs, the chance to cook for John is a lifetime's ambition - he was one of his first culinary idols. It is a tough contest - both chefs excel with different courses and the judges must decide who should be north east champion. - Northern Ireland Starter
E36Northern Ireland StarterThis week, three top chefs from Northern Ireland are competing for a place in the national finals. After 20 years working at top restaurants in London, Chris McGowan has just opened his first solo venture - Wine & Brine in County Armagh. It is Chris's third time in GBM. He has made it to the national finals once but this time only the banquet will do. However, he is facing tough competition from Mark Abbott, head chef at Daniel Clifford's two Michelin-star restaurant, Midsummer House in Cambridge, and also from Eddie Attwell, who has just completed a year as head chef at Ardtara Country House in Upperlands. There are some varied and exciting starters as the chefs get creative with pigs heads, potatoes and re-inventing the classic ploughman's. And there is real shock and emotion as the veteran chef delivers his scores - he is stunned by the quality of the cooking. - Northern Ireland Fish
E37Northern Ireland FishToday the atmosphere in the kitchen gets even more competitive as the three chefs from Northern Ireland cook their fish courses. Mark Abbott is pushing himself again, plating up a complex fish course of the very finest produce. He is calling it shellsational but at the last minute he forgets a key element. Returning chef Chris McGowan is refining cod and chips and Eddie Attwell is getting classical with the king of the sea turbot. The repartee is relentless as the chefs jostle for top place on the leader board. Once again there is plenty of emotion as the veteran chef delivers the scores. - Northern Ireland Dessert
E39Northern Ireland Dessert The three chefs from Northern Ireland are cooking their desserts and one chef is on course for an historic score. He could beat his boss - a veteran of GBM - and achieve more marks than anyone has done throughout the history of the competition. But it is a hot kitchen and the chefs are tempering chocolate and working with sugar. One chef is heading for disaster after his cream splits and he loses valuable time. There is so much at stake, but the chefs have to pull off a perfect dessert dish if they are going to win a chance to cook for the judges. - Northern Ireland Judging
E40Northern Ireland JudgingToday is the head to head. The two highest scoring chefs from Northern Ireland are cooking for judges Oliver Peyton, Prue Leith and Matthew Fort, who are joined by guest judge, restaurant critic and editor-at-large of the Independent, Amol Rajan. From the starter onwards, the judges are impressed by the exceptional cooking. The scores are close and the judges are devastated that they can only send one of the chefs through to the national finals. - Finals Starter
E41Finals StarterIt is day one of the national finals. Before cooking starts, the eight champions are called to London's Southbank to get a sight of the prize - the chance to cook at a banquet held at the Palace of Westminster, in celebration of everyday great Britons honoured by the Queen. It has a huge impact on every one of the chefs, and each is determined to do all he can to get a dish to the banquet. There are some shocks and surprises as the chefs' opinions differ from the judges, and one chef struggles to contain his emotions as the judges deliver the result. - Finals Fish
E42Finals FishIt is day two of the national finals, and the eight champions must cook their fish courses. Two chefs have reason to be confident after scoring tens from every judge in the heats. Can they deliver a perfect dish second time round? After disappointing scores in the regional heats, another couple of the chefs have opted to change their dish radically. It is a gamble, preparing an untested dish for the first time in the finals. Judges Matthew Fort, Prue Leith and Oliver Peyton are joined by award-winning food writer Tim Hayward who previously judged the Scotland heat. Once again, opinions are divided, and it is a surprise to see which two chefs end up at the bottom of the leaderboard. - Finals Main
E43Finals MainIt is day three at the national finals and time for the main course, the one course every chef wants to cook at the banquet. Judging the chefs' dishes are Matthew Fort, Prue Leith, Oliver Peyton and guest judge John Williams MBE, executive chef of the Ritz. It is a nerve-wracking day for three of the eight regional champions who have decided to cook new and untested dishes, and a fourth chef is turning what was his starter into his main course. The day ends in crushing disappointment for one chef - after misjudging his timings, he ruins what could be a winning main course - but there is cause to celebrate for others. It is up to the judges to decide who has done enough to get a dish to the banquet. - Finals Dessert
E44Finals DessertMatthew Fort, Prue Leith and Oliver Peyton judge the dessert course and then decide on the banquet menu to be served at the Houses of Parliament. Joining them in the judging chamber is restaurant critic, journalist and author Grace Dent. In the year of the Queen's 90th birthday, the chefs are celebrating the everyday great Britons who have been honoured for their extraordinary achievements. The challenge is to create dishes that are a fitting legacy to the modern Elizabethan age, creating food that represent the complete transformation in British cuisine during the Queen's reign. The competition is more intense than ever, with the chefs dishing up some original, creative and technically difficult desserts. The superlatives are flying in the chamber as the judges are impressed again and again. The chefs are not making it easy for the judges to decide on the final banquet menu. - Banquet
E45BanquetGreat British Menu's winning chefs arrive at the Palace of Westminster to cook for the banquet of great Britons. The chefs have been selected because their dishes showcase contemporary British cuisine and demonstrate the transformation in British food during the Queen's historic reign. Welcoming them is banquet host Lindsay Hoyle MP, deputy speaker of the House of Commons. The chefs are overawed by the grandeur of the Houses of Parliament. It is their first time here and the first time they have seen the kitchens, but as they discover, their prep time is limited - the Houses of Parliament kitchens are a busy machine. The banquet guests include individuals from across the UK who have been honoured for their work for charity, for their community, or for their country. They include military hero Johnson Beharry VC, headteacher Kamal Hanif OBE, charity fundraiser Lynne McNicoll OBE, Anna Kennedy, honoured for her work for children with autism, 18-year-old Louise Greer, who campaigns for riding for the disabled, RNLI volunteers, food producers and women such as Justice Williams and Zoe Jackson who have received honours for their work with young people. Also present are guest judges Grace Dent, Kevin Gould and Enam Ali and veteran chef judges Michael O'Hare, Lisa Allen, Daniel Clifford and Simon Rogan. As the banquet is served, the chefs show just why they are amongst the best in the country, pulling off four stunning courses that leave the guests overwhelmed and delighted.
