Celebrity MasterChef is back on iPlayer and BBC One with a dazzling line-up of stars from the worlds of screen and stage, sport and arts. Among the 20 celebs hoping to impress the judges with their culinary skills is actor and all round good geezer Tamer Hassan.
The boy from New Cross, who started life as an amateur boxer, before owning restaurants and nightclubs, has gone on to find fame as an actor in dozens of hit movies and television series. Among these are classic films such as The Football Factory (2004), The Business (2005), and Dead Man Running (2009), global blockbuster Game of Thrones (2016), and television remake of Snatch (2017–2018).
Tamer, who is of Turkish Cypriot origin, will be rolling up his sleeves for a brand new role – as a chef – in the nineteenth series of Celebrity MasterChef, where he will be expected to produce top notch cuisine.
Keeping an eye on him and the other celebs in the kitchen, which include ‘H’ of Steps, Sugababe’s Mutya Buena, comedian Eshaan Akbar, and Diane Carson of hit UK reality game show The Traitors, are veteran MasterChef judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace.
This series runs for six weeks over the summer, with contestants put through increasingly tough culinary challenges as they battle it out to earn the title of Celebrity MasterChef Champion 2024.
The full list of celebrities taking part in MasterChef are:
Charlotte Crosby – Reality Star and Influencer
Chloe Burrows – Reality Star
Christine McGuinness – Model and TV Personality
Craig Doyle – TV and Radio Presenter
Danielle Harold – Actor
Diane Carson – TV Personality
Dominic Skinner – Make-Up Artist and TV Judge
Edith Bowman – TV and Radio Presenter
Emma Thynn – Model and TV Personality
Eshaan Akbar – Comedian and Actor
Harry Aikines-Aryeetey – Gladiator and Team GB Sprinter
Ian ‘H’ Watkins – Pop Star
Jake Quickenden – Singer, Actor and Presenter
Jamie MacDonald – Comedian
Mutya Buena – Pop Star
OJ Borg – BBC Radio 2 Presenter
Rochenda Sandall – Actor
Snoochie Shy – TV and Radio Presenter
Tamer Hassan – Actor
Vito Coppola – Professional Dancer and Choreographer
It’s not yet clear in which heat Tamer will be competing in, nor with which other contestants, but the new series is already underway with the first episode airing on Tuesday, 13 August.
The first group of 5 celebs competing in Heat 1 are Charlotte Crosby, Ian ‘H’ Watkins, Edith Bowman, Craig Doyle, and Snoochie Shy. By Friday evening, only two of these will remain from Heat 1.
Of the 20 original celebs, only eight will remain after all the heats are completed, who will then battle it out in the quarterfinals, followed by the semi-finals and then the final.
Sarah Clay, Commissioning Editor for the BBC, says: “The standard of this competition gets higher every year, so expect lots of laughs and some fierce rivalry as we’re set for some of the hardest challenges yet.
“These celebs are a brave brunch and are taking us on a brilliant ride – all in the trusty hands of our distinguished Judges, John and Gregg.”
The episodes are initially all broadcast on BBC 1, or catch-up on any episode from Series 19 that you’ve missed on the iPlayer.