He may cook as EastEnders' Ian Beale, but it seems Adam Woodyatt has a new-found respect for real chefs as he enters the Celebrity MasterChef kitchen next week...
Ian Beale has run a chippy and a café in EastEnders but actor Adam Woodyatt can’t hide behind his on-screen alter ego as he enters the MasterChef kitchen for next week’s fourth and final heat.
Alongside him are Geordie Shore star Vicky Pattison, former boxing manager and transgender campaigner Kellie Maloney, TV weatherman Tomasz Schafernaker and international DJ and lawyer Judge Jules.
Their first task is to create a curry of their own design using fresh spices, chillies and herbs and a range of meat, fish and veg. But will Adam prove to be a better cook than Enders’ Ian?
Here EastEnders star Adam, 51, reveals more about his MasterChef experience…
Why did you want to take part in Celebrity MasterChef? Do you enjoy cooking?
Adam Woodyatt: "I enjoyed cooking when I was younger but, over the subsequent years, I haven’t done as much and got very lazy just putting something ready made in the oven or microwave. I don’t really have a style."
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Who else in the EastEnders cast – past or present – is a good cook?
AW: "Steve McFadden, who plays Phil Mitchell, is brilliant with fish!"
What food do you like to eat?
AW: "I’ll eat pretty much anything apart from baked beans!! Sushi, oysters, steak and pork are probably my favourite things."
How did you find cooking for judges John and Gregg on MasterChef? What did you think of their critique of your food?
AW: "They were always very helpful and fair. John in particular was full of little tricks and tips."
How did you find cooking in the professional kitchen/restaurant?
AW: "I loved it, really enjoyed it. It was really hard work and relentless but very rewarding. And it was a real eye opener into how hard a chef’s life is."
Who would be your dream dinner party guests – dead or alive?
AW: "I’d have to say Lord Michael Cashman, Dame Barbara Windsor, Julia Smith, Sylvia Young, Bob Monkhouse and Sir Terry Wogan."
Finally, if we came round for dinner, what would you cook for us?
AW: "For the starter, I’d make chicken skin with rosemary mascarpone and bacon jam. The main would be fillet of beef with horseradish mash, roasted carrot, crispy onion and red wine and onion sauce. Dessert would be bananas and custard with honeycomb."
Watch Adam’s Celebrity MasterChef heat on Monday September 23 at 9pm on BBC1.
