Meet the famous faces stepping into the Celebrity MasterChef kitchen this year.

By Grace Henry

Published: Sunday, 08 August 2021 at 12:00 am

The first five Celebrity MasterChef contestants will take to the kitchen on Monday, 9th August as the show returns for what will be the show’s 16th series.

Stepping up to the plate first is Su Pollard, Rita Simons, Duncan James, Bez and Munya Chawawa, who are all in the first heat.

They’ll be hoping to impress the likes of Gregg Wallace and John Torode, and follow in the footsteps of last year’s winner Riyadh Khalaf.

This year’s star-studded line-up has 20 celebrities, including Strictly Come Dancing‘s very own Johannes Radebe, former Blue member Duncan James, and TV presenter Melanie Sykes.

But will they be able to take the heat in the kitchen? Or will they crumble under pressure?

Here’s everything you need to know about the Celebrity MasterChef 2021 contestants.

Duncan James

Age: 43

Job: Singer and actor

Instagram: @mrduncanjames

Duncan James is best known for being 1/4 of British boyband Blue, which he formed in 2001 with Lee Ryan, Antony Costa and Simon Webbe. In 2016, the 43-year-old joined the cast of Hollyoaks as policeman Ryan Knight. He recently appeared on The Celebrity Circle, playing as himself on the social media game show.

Su Pollard

BBC

Age: 71

Job: Actress, singer, author and songwriter

Instagram: @officialsupollard

Su Pollard is an actress, singer, author and songwriter, who has a career spanning over four decades. Let’s face it, she’s a showbiz legend! She is perhaps most known for her role in the BAFTA-winning Perry & Croft sitcom Hi-de-Hi! but also appeared in You Rang, M’Lord? and Oh, Doctor Beeching!

Nabil Abdulrashid

BBC

Age: 35

Job: Comedian

Instagram: @manlikenabz

Nabil Abdulrashid (full name, Mohamed Nasir Nabil Abdul Rashid bin Suleman Obineche) is an English comedian of Nigerian descent. He became the youngest black comedian to perform stand up at the Hammersmith Apollo in 2010, when he was just 25-years-old.

In 2020, Nabil appeared on the 14th series of Britain’s Got Talent and became Alesha Dixon’s Golden Buzzer act. He managed to make it to the finals of the ITV show.

Munya Chawawa

BBC

Age: 28

Job: Comedian and content creator

Instagram: @munyachawawa

Munya Chawawa is another comedian stepping up to the plate on MasterChef 2021. The British-Zimbabwean comic has a huge following on social media, with over 672k followers, and is known for his funny sketches and parody videos, including made-up characters such as Unknown P – a posh drill rapper.

Melanie Sykes

BBC

Age: 50

Job: Television presenter

Instagram: @msmelaniesykes

Melanie Sykes is a television and radio presenter, and model. She has hosted shows including Today with Des and Mel with Des O’Connor, Let’s Do Lunch with Gino D’Acampo and series three of The Great Pottery Throw Down.

She regularly teams up with Alan Carr to present shows on BBC Radio 2.

Rita Simons

BBC

Age: 44

Job: Actress

Instagram: @rita_simonsofficial

Best known for playing Roxy Mitchell on EastEnders from 2007 to 2017, Rita Simons is a British actress. She left the soap when Roxy was killed off alongside sister Ronnie (played by Samantha Womack). Simons is also best pals with fellow contestant Duncan James, but will they get competitive when they step into the kitchen?

Megan McKenna

BBC

Age: 28

Job: Reality TV star and singer

Instagram: @meganmckenna

Megan McKenna is a reality TV star and singer. She’s probably best known for appearing on Ex on The Beach and The Only Way is Essex in 2015 and 2016 respectively. She also took part in the Celebrity X Factor in 2019, which she won. Her debut album Story of Me (released before X Factor) reached number four on the UK Country Chart.

Penny Lancaster

BBC

Age: 50

Job: Model

Instagram: @penny.lancaster

Penny Lancaster is an English model and photographer. She is married to rock singer Sir Rod Stewart and many daytime TV fans will recognise her from ITV’s Loose Women, which she joined in 2014.

Patrick Grant

BBC

Age: 48

Job: Fashion designer

Instagram: @patrickgrantism

Patrick Grant is a fashion designer and businessman, who is best known for being a judge on the BBC’s Great British Sewing Bee. But now it’s his turn to be judged!

He is also the director of bespoke tailors Norton & Sons of Savile Row, clothing lines E. Tautz & Sons and Community Clothing, and textile manufacturer Cookson & Clegg.

Will Kirk

BBC

Job: Antique furniture restorer

Instagram: @williamkirkrestoration

Will Kirk is a British furniture restorer, known mainly for his work on the BBC’s restoration programme The Repair Shop, which he started appearing on in 2017.

Kirk graduated in 2010, and launched his own London-based furniture restoration company in 2012.

Katie Price

BBC

Age: 42

Job: Glamour model, TV personality and businesswoman

Instagram: @katieprice

Popular TV personality Katie Price will be trying out her cooking skills on Celebrity MasterChef this year. She initially gained recognition back in 1996 during her days as a glamour model when she went by the pseudonym Jordan. Nowadays, she has multiple business projects, including several autobiographies and novels.

She’s no stranger to reality TV either, appearing on I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! in 2004 where she met her first husband and father to two of her children, Peter Andre. More recently, she has released BBC documentary Katie Price: Harvey and Me, alongside her 18-year-old son Harvey Price.

We’re not sure if Katie is a good cook, but her motto is “Never underestimate the Pricey”.

Dion Dublin

BBC

Age: 51

Job: Television presenter and former footballer

Instagram: @diondublin09

Dion Dublin is a television presenter and former footballer, who many will recognise from presenting the BBC’s popular show, Homes Under the Hammer.

Dublin started out as footballer, playing for Norwich City and Cambridge United, where he made his name as a centre-forward. He has also played at other clubs, inlcuding Manchester United, Coventry City, Millwall, Aston Villa, Leicester City and Celtic before returning back to Norwich to end his career.

In 2015, he joined the BBC show alongside Martin Roberts and Lucy Alexander who later stepped down.

Johannes Radebe

BBC

Age: 33

Job: Dancer

Instagram: @johannesradebe

Strictly Come Dancing’s Johannes Radebe will be temporarily swapping the ballroom for the kitchen. Radebe is a South African professional dancer and choreographer, who joined the BBC dance show in 2018, and was given his first celebrity partner one year later, dancing with actress Catherine Tyldesley. Last year, he was partnered with actress Caroline Quentin, with whom he finished in eighth place. He’s already a Strictly icon, but will he be able to cook as well as he dances?

Gavin Esler

BBC

Age: 68

Job: Journalist, author and presenter

Gavin Esler is a Scottish journalist, television presenter and author. From 2003 to 2014, he presented BBC Two’s flagship political analysis programme, Newsnight, taking over from Jeremy Vine. He also hosted BBC News at Five on the BBC News Channel.

Since 2014 he has served as the Chancellor of the University of Kent.

Kadeena Cox

BBC

Age: 30

Job: Paralympian

Instagram: @kad21

Kadeena Cox is a British parasport athlete competing in T38 sprints and C4 para-cycling events. She was part of the 2015 IPC Athletics World Championships and the 2016 UCI Para-cycling Track World Championships, in which she won world titles in the T37 100m and C4 500m time trial.

Kem Cetinay

BBC

Age: 24

Job: Reality TV star and presenter

Instagram: @kemcetinay

Kem Cetinay is a reality TV star and presenter who is best known for appearing on the 2017 series of Love Island, which he won alongside then-girlfriend Amber Davies. Since then, has gone on to front other shows including multiple formats with fellow islander Chris Hughes.

In 2018, Kem took part on Dancing on Ice, and finished in fourth place with his professional skating partner Alex Murphy.

Joe Swash

BBC

Age: 39

Job: Actor and TV presenter

Instagram: @realjoeswashy

Joe Swash is a presenter and actor. He rose to fame as Mickey Miller on EastEnders, which he starred in until 2008. Since then he’s had various presenting roles with ITV2. And when it comes to winning reality shows, the other contestants might want to watch out – he won the eighth series of I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! in 2008 and the twelfth series of Dancing on Ice in 2020. Could MasterChef see him land a hat-trick?

Joe is engaged to Loose Women star Stacey Solomon.

Melissa Johns

BBC

Age: 31

Job: Actress

Instagram: @melissa_johns_1

Melissa Johns is a British actress. She’s best known for playing Hannah Taylor in Mike Bartlett’s BBC One mini series Life and Imogen Pascoe in Coronation Street.

Michelle Collins

BBC

Age: 59

Job: Actress

Instagram: @michelledcollins

Michelle Collins is an actress who has starred in many TV shows over the years. Loyal EastEnders fans will remember her for playing Cindy Beale on the soap from 1988 to 1998. She then moved over to ITV’s Coronation Street, where she landed the role of Stella Price from 2011 to 2014. Her other well known roles include Real Women, Sunburn and Two Thousand Acres of Sky.

Bez

BBC

Age: 56

Job: Musician

Instagram: @bezmondays

Bez (real name Mark Berry) is a percussionist, dancer and DJ. He is well known for being part of the rock bands Happy Mondays and Black Grape.

Celebrity MasterChef 2021 is set to air on BBC One later this year. To find out what else is on TV, check out our TV Guide or visit our hub for more Entertainment news.

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