Cooking with the Stars makes its long-awaited return to ITV on Monday, June 7. The series, which returns for its second run after proving popular with viewers, boasts an impressive list of contestants.
The second season of the hit ITV show will see celebrities compete across a series of cooking battles as they are trained by their mentor chefs to produce a series of dishes that will be judged by the remaining professionals. The bottom two will then have to fight for their place in the competition, creating a dish without any help from their mentor.
Eight celebrities go head to head in this year's edition of the cooking competition. Among those are Dame Kelly Holmes, Maura Higgins and Joe Wilkinson, who will all don aprons this summer. Also taking part are TV personality Anton Du Beke, This Morning’s Josie Gibson and Chaser Anne Hegerty. Completing the line-up is TV expert Dr Ranj Singh and DJ and Gogglebox star Woody Cook, the son of Zoe Ball and 'Fatboy Slim'. Read on to find out more about this year's contestants.
The person eliminated from the competition will be decided by a blind tasting judgement from a group of professional chefs. Unaware of whose food they are tasting, the celebrity's biggest supporter could unwittingly become their worst critic, inadvertently sending their own celebrity home from the competition.
Read more: BBC One Everything I Know About Love: Cast, air date and what it's about
Who is taking part in Cooking with the Stars season two?
Anton du Beke
Strictly Come Dancing star Anton has said that the reason he is taking part is because he's "never cooked in his entire life." He is teamed up with mentor Rosemary Shrager and revealed the first time he cooked anything was on the first morning of training with her.
On being partnered with pro chef Rosemary, he said: “She is hilarious, great and funny. She is perfect, she is exactly the one I would have wanted.”
Josie Gibson
Former Big Brother winner Josie, who is a regular presenter on ITV's This Morning, revealed: “I thought I was ok [at cooking] and then I was with a professional and I realised I’m not. I make a lot of things from packets, I just didn’t realise.”
Josie has said that she is proud of her roast dinners but should you ask her to rustle up an Indian meal, she would be clueless.
Maura Higgins
If you thought that you'd be able to escape Love Island over on ITV, you'd be wrong as former Islander Maura appears on Cooking with the Stars.
Irish Maura told ITV that she would give herself a two out of five for her cooking skills, meaning that mentor Jack Stein certainly has his work cut out.
The former ring girl is very competitive but doesn’t rate her chances of winning. She explained her self doubt: “I think it's probably because you're making things from scratch, like making mayonnaise from scratch, I wouldn’t have the first clue and I am thinking that I don’t work too well under pressure, so that could go against me.”
Dr Ranj Singh
Intensive care doctor Ranj is a self-confessed dessert-fiend. Ahead of the series, he said: “I love food, I absolutely love food and I love going out to eat. I love trying different things and I’m quite adventurous when it comes to food. I love doing different things and trying different flavours, but I have never really done the other side of it."
In the series, the regular face of ITV's This Morning, is mentored by Clodagh McKenna.
Dame Kelly Holmes
Athlete Dame Kelly has said she wants to join the show as she wants to learn "something completely new."
The Double Olympic Champion is partnered with her mentor, Ronnie Murray. She said: “Ronnie says go with your flavour palette because if you really like it and you are into flavours then you can’t really go wrong, well unless you put a ton of garlic in and it blows the judges heads off! That’s good as I do like flavours and I can tell when something is disgusting.”
Anne Hegerty
Having already tackled one reality show in the form of I'm A Celebrity in 2018, Chaser Anne Hegerty now takes on a completely new challenge in the shape of Cooking with the Stars.
After she was asked to go on the show, Anne, said: “I said no. I said you are kidding. I have an agent who is very good at working out what sort of things I should do and what sort of things the public would like to see me in."
On the show, Anne is being mentored by the Jean-Christophe Novelli.
Joe Wilkinson
Best known for his appearances on Taskmaster and 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown, comedian Joe Wilkinson is pitted against dancer Anton du Beke in the first episode of the new series. But how will he fair?
Prior to appearing on the show, Joe confessed that cooking isn't in his skill set. He said: “I make major mistakes, that's my thing,” he said. “I put salt in the pastry instead of sugar. It tasted awful. It did add to it but not in a positive way. I’ve made some awful mistakes. It’s under pressure though, isn’t it?”
Will Joe succumb to the pressure in the ITV cooking competition? Renowned chef Judy Joo is mentoring the comedian.
Woody Cook
The Gogglebox star and son of Zoe Ball and Norman Cook (aka 'Fatboy Slim') appears in the first episode of the new series but has confessed that he couldn't cook before the show.
“I think cooking is an important skill that I need to learn," said Woody "When else will I get an opportunity to learn how to cook, have a great time doing it, challenge myself, push my boundaries and maybe prove my surname, can Woody Cook?”
Woody will have to up his game as currently, he is only able to make scrambled eggs and rates his cooking skills at a zero.
Who hosts Cooking with the Stars?
Returning to host Cooking with the Stars is former Big Brother host Emma Willis and comedian Tom Allen, who recently stepped down from Bake Off: The Professionals. On returning to the series, Emma said: “Tom and I had so much fun last series and I’m looking forward to getting back into the kitchen. The pressure the celebs are under is real and once the competition starts heating up everybody wants to win, but I’m hoping there isn’t as much blood as last series!”
While Tom Allen added: “Last series was so exciting! Emma Willis and I have been polishing our frying pans in preparation – we have so much fun working together."
When is Cooking with the Stars on?
Cooking with the Stars season two begins on ITV on Monday, June 7 at 8pm.
