Johannes will make his Celebrity MasterChef debut tonight.
Johannes Radebe is swapping the ballroom for the kitchen this summer, as he takes on the ultimate cooking challenge of Celebrity MasterChef.
Johannes – who is one of the Strictly Come Dancing professionals – will be showing off his culinary skills in a bid to impress judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace.
But while the shows might be very different, the pro dancer says the judging isn’t, as he compared Wallace and Torode to two of the Strictly Come Dancing judges in particular – Craig Revel Horwood and Bruno Tonioli, who will be replaced by Anton Du Beke on the upcoming 19th series.
Bruno and Craig are known for their straight-to-the point, constructive feedback, and being in the MasterChef kitchen brought back memories for Johannes.
Speaking exclusively to RadioTimes.com, he said: “They’re from the same WhatsApp group if you know what I mean. When something is good, something is good, and when something is average, something is average, and when something is, ‘meh’, it’s ‘meh!’ They don’t hold back at all.”
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So, how did Johannes feel about the criticism?
“I love it because that’s how we improve,” he said, before admitting: “I’m OK with it on Strictly – I’m not as nervous as I was on MasterChef. I mean, constructive criticism is very, very good. And you know, you can’t say you’re not going to take away from that because these are skilled individuals – they know exactly what they’re talking about. And it’s funny because everything they said, I came back home and practiced. I recreated the incredible dishes with those minor changes. They gave me those tools.”
Not all feedback was negative however, with Johannes adding: “When John pays you a compliment, that for me was like a weight off my shoulders. It was just an affirmation to say, ‘I can do this’ and ‘maybe I do have something to offer.’ After all, I’m not so bad.”
Johannes will compete against Kem Cetinay, Kadeena Cox, Michelle Collins and Gavin Esler, who are a part of the heat four. They’ll be trying to secure a place in the semi-final, alongside Megan McKenna, Su Pollard, Bez and more.
Celebrity MasterChef airs on BBC One. To find out what else is on TV, check out our TV Guide or visit our hub for more Entertainment news.