Two get the boot in Celebrity MasterChef semi-final over poor puddings
Two more budding celebrity chefs have hung up their aprons.
Opera singer Lesley Garrett narrowly avoided the chop in Celebrity MasterChef as actor Brian Bovell and French tennis star Henri Leconte were sent packing.
The first of two semi-final episodes of the BBC food programme saw the eight remaining stars cook for 120 staff and volunteers at the Royal National Lifeboat Institute in Poole, Dorset, before having to invent a delicious dessert in the MasterChef kitchen.
In the nail-biting pudding round Garrett almost fell foul with her undercooked frangipane tart and, fearing the worst, became emotional after her dessert was described as “a real shame” by judge John Torode.
Former sportsman Leconte, who had previously impressed with his savoury dishes in the competition, admitted that sweets were his “weakness”.
Tasting Leconte’s apple tart, Torode said: “You know how to cook, I’m disappointed in it.”
For soap and film actor Bovell, it was the dry biscuit base and the overall lack of structure and skill of his cheesecake that saw him eliminated from the show.
Bovell said he was happy to have made it as far as the semi-final, while Leconte said his rivals “all deserve” to have made it through to the next stage.
Garrett will be joined by TV presenters Ulrika Jonsson and Angellica Bell, Gogglebox star Rev Kate Bottley, radio DJ Dev Griffin and Olympic swimmer Rebecca Adlington in Friday’s second semi-final episode.
:: Celebrity MasterChef continues on Friday at 8.30pm on BBC One
