Mary Berry and Chris Bavin welcome Angela Hartnett to Britain’s Best Home Cook
Michelin-starred chef Angela Hartnett joins the judging panel for the second series of BBC One’s Britain’s Best Home Cook, alongside Mary Berry and Chris Bavin.
Mary Berry with host Claudia Winkleman.
“I’m looking forward to joining the incredible Mary Berry and Chris Bavin to judge the next series of Britain’s Best Home Cook. For me, home cooking is about family sitting around a table eating together, laughing and talking, with delicious, tasty and unfussy food; it’s about the people as much as the food. My mum always said, it’s good to be an all-round cook, everyone needs to be able to master the store cupboard!” – Angela Hartnett
Hosted by Claudia Winkleman, the new series is set to return next year, testing the creative recipes and home cooking skills of a new batch of contestants battling to be crowned Britain’s Best Home Cook.
She joins former market trader Chris Bavin who has worked in importing, wholesaling, retailing, food service and catering. Chris co-founded his retail business The Naked Grocer and has since gone on to TV success fronting a range of shows including Eat Well for Less, Tomorrow’s Food, Food: Truth or Scare and The Truth about Meat and of course Mary Berry best known for her judging role on The Great British Bake Off during its BBC years, however Mary has more than 75 cookery books to her name, her authority in the home kitchen is beyond question. Other series she’s appeared on include Thames Television’s Afternoon Live and Southern’s Houseparty both for ITV.
Hartnett has previously appeared in Beeb shows such as MasterChef, Great British Menu and Saturday Kitchen. She is currently Chef Patron for Italian fine-dining restaurants Murano and Cafe Murano. She replaces Dan Doherty who was a judge alongside Berry and Bavin during the first series. It was revealed in January Doherty had faced allegations of ‘sexual misconduct’.
Angela Hartnett.
Doherty left his restaurant, the Royal Oak gastropub in Marylebone, in November 2018, Eater London reported, while consultancy firm HR180 carried out an investigation into allegations that he had asked a junior female member of staff for oral sex. Other inappropriate comments in the workplace were reported that he’d allegedly stated how he’d like to see the kitchen staff naked, without their chef’s whites on.
Eater London noted that ‘Doherty was found guilty of “misconduct” and returned to work following the investigation when he apologised to staff. It is also reported that two former employees claimed four members of staff left the restaurant because of Doherty’s conduct.’
At the launch of the first series, the Beeb noted of Dan ‘One of London’s most prominent and creative chefs, Dan Doherty is currently Chef Director at one of the city’s most celebrated restaurants, Duck and Waffle. Having started his career as a graduate of The Royal Academy of Culinary Arts, Dan is known for his innovative, playful and indulgent cooking style, with a number of awards and accolades now under his belt. He recently released his second book focused on the recipes he cooks at home for family and friends. In his role as judge, Dan is on the hunt for inventive home cooks with hidden kitchen talents.’
Britain’s Best Home Cook will return for an eight-part series in 2020 where once again ten contestants will need to demonstrate skill under pressure and individual flair, as they’re asked to serve the most perfect version of dishes that define modern British home cooking as well as create their special take on well-loved classics. The judges will be looking for dishes that define a new benchmark of excellence, whether it’s roast beef with the perfect roast potatoes, an ingenious twist on chicken curry or irresistible chocolate pudding.
Each challenge will reveal new tips and techniques as the competing cooks battle to prove that they have the skills and repertoire, technical ability, resourcefulness and creativity to get through to the final and be crowned Britain’s Best Cook.
“I would never intentionally make offensive comments to anyone I work with, male or female. I have apologised to the whole team for any offence I may have inadvertently caused. It would never be my intention.” – Dan Doherty statement released in The Sunday Times
