MasterChef is not currently airing. The most recent episode in our listings was Friday 18 September. No BBC MasterChef has a confirmed start date yet: the next series of The Professionals has been filmed but not scheduled, and the next amateur series is due in 2027.
MasterChef 2026: What’s On Next, the Presenters and Every Recent Winner
The BBC’s cookery contest in three versions: MasterChef for amateur cooks, Celebrity MasterChef, and MasterChef: The Professionals for working chefs. All three are shown on BBC One. Grace Dent and Anna Haugh have presented the main series since 2026, and Dent judges Celebrity MasterChef with Giorgio Locatelli.
This page is rebuilt every day from the published broadcast schedule, so the answer above is the current one rather than whatever was true when it was written.
When it has aired
Dates MasterChef has appeared in our published listings:
Friday 28 August, Tuesday 1 September, Wednesday 2 September, Friday 4 September, Tuesday 8 September, Wednesday 9 September, Friday 11 September, Tuesday 15 September, Wednesday 16 September, Friday 18 September.
Which MasterChef is on next?
None of the three BBC versions has a confirmed start date at the moment. This is where each one stands:
| Version | Last series on BBC One | Next series |
|---|---|---|
| MasterChef: The Professionals | 10 Feb to 26 Mar 2026 | Filmed in 2026, no broadcast date yet |
| MasterChef (amateurs) | 21 Apr to 5 Jun 2026 | 2027, no date yet |
| Celebrity MasterChef | 18 Aug to 18 Sep 2026 | No date yet |
The Professionals is the one most likely to come back first. For years it was the autumn MasterChef, starting in late October or early November and finishing a week or two before Christmas. The 2024 series ran from 29 October to 12 December. The series made in 2025 was held back and shown in February and March 2026 instead, so the autumn habit has already been broken once. Chefs were recruited for the next series in April 2026; the BBC has not said whether it will air this winter or in 2027.
The amateur series normally fills the spring, running for about seven weeks on several nights a week. Celebrity MasterChef is a late-summer show, and the 2026 series sat in its usual August and September slot.
When a start date is announced, this page and our BBC One guide will show the episodes as soon as they reach the seven-day schedule.
The three versions
- MasterChef is the original: amateur home cooks, picked down over several weeks of heats, quarter-finals and a finals week. The current format dates from 2005.
- Celebrity MasterChef has run since 2006. Recent series have had around 15 well-known names, cooking in the same Birmingham kitchen.
- MasterChef: The Professionals started in 2008 for working chefs, and is the toughest of the three. The skills test, where the judges show a technique and the chefs have to copy it against the clock, is its signature. It moved from BBC Two to BBC One in 2020.
All three are made by Shine TV and are filmed in Digbeth, Birmingham, where the show moved from London in 2024.
MasterChef presenters and judges in 2026
John Torode and Gregg Wallace fronted the amateur and celebrity series from 2005 until 2025. The line-up is now split by version:
- MasterChef: Grace Dent and Anna Haugh, announced on 8 September 2025. Dent is a restaurant critic who had been a guest on the show for years; Haugh, a Dublin-born chef, had judged The Professionals before.
- Celebrity MasterChef: Grace Dent and Giorgio Locatelli, announced on 3 June 2026. Locatelli, a Michelin-starred chef, has also judged MasterChef Italia since 2018.
- MasterChef: The Professionals: Marcus Wareing and Monica Galetti. Matt Tebbutt took Wallace’s seat for the 2026 series, then was reported as saying he had only ever agreed to one. Who sits alongside Wareing and Galetti next time has not been announced.
What happened with Wallace and Torode
Wallace stepped back from the show in November 2024 while complaints about his conduct were looked into. In July 2025 the BBC said it would no longer work with Wallace and would not renew Torode’s contract, after an inquiry by the production company substantiated 45 of the 83 allegations made about Wallace and one against Torode, for using a racist term. Both have disputed parts of the findings.
The amateur series filmed in 2024 was still shown from 6 August to 26 September 2025. The BBC said it went ahead for the sake of the contestants. Celebrity MasterChef 2025, judged by Torode and Dent, aired late, from 17 November to 19 December 2025.
MasterChef winners: every recent champion
MasterChef
| Year | Winner |
|---|---|
| 2022 | Eddie Scott |
| 2023 | Chariya Khattiyot |
| 2024 | Brin Pirathapan |
| 2025 | Harry Maguire |
| 2026 | Jhané Gibson |
Celebrity MasterChef
| Year | Winner |
|---|---|
| 2022 | Lisa Snowdon |
| 2023 | Wynne Evans |
| 2024 | Vito Coppola |
| 2025 | Ginger Johnson |
| 2026 | Lauren Steadman |
MasterChef: The Professionals
| Year | Winner |
|---|---|
| 2021 | Dan Lee |
| 2022 | Nikita Pathakji |
| 2023 | Tom Hamblet |
| 2024 | Dan Merriman |
| 2026 | Gareth Baty |
There was no Professionals series shown in 2025, which is why the list jumps from 2024 to 2026.
Is there a MasterChef Christmas special?
There usually is, but nothing has been confirmed for Christmas 2026 yet. Last year BBC One showed a Celebrity MasterChef Christmas Cook-Off on 22 December 2025, which Iain Stirling won, and a Champion of Champions special on 29 December 2025, in which four past winners came back and Thomas Frake (the 2020 champion) took the title. In 2024 the BBC dropped its two planned festive episodes. Our Christmas TV guide lists the specials that have been confirmed so far.
MasterChef Australia and other versions
If you want MasterChef in the meantime, U&W has been showing the 2026 season of MasterChef Australia at 7pm on weeknights, with an hour-later repeat on U&W+1. It is a separate competition with its own judges and is not made by the BBC.
The BBC’s Young MasterChef, for cooks aged 18 to 25, had two series on BBC Three in 2023 and 2024 and has not been back since.
For everything else on tonight, see what’s on TV tonight, and the TV shows page lists the other series we follow.
How to watch MasterChef
On television it is a BBC One programme. Online, every episode is on BBC iPlayer at no cost beyond a TV licence, and episodes stay there for the usual catch-up window.
Frequently asked questions
What night is MasterChef on?
MasterChef is not currently airing. The most recent episode in our listings was Friday 18 September. No BBC MasterChef has a confirmed start date yet: the next series of The Professionals has been filmed but not scheduled, and the next amateur series is due in 2027.
What time is MasterChef on tonight?
MasterChef is not on tonight.
How can I watch MasterChef online?
Every episode is on BBC iPlayer, free with a BBC account. Episodes usually appear there as soon as the broadcast starts.
When is MasterChef: The Professionals 2026 on?
The series the BBC called MasterChef: The Professionals 2026 has already been shown. It ran on BBC One from 10 February to 26 March 2026 and was won by Gareth Baty, a private chef. Applications for the following series opened in April 2026, with filming planned for the spring and summer, but the BBC has not announced when it will be broadcast.
Who presents MasterChef now?
Grace Dent and Anna Haugh present the main amateur series, and first did so in spring 2026. Celebrity MasterChef is judged by Grace Dent and Giorgio Locatelli. MasterChef: The Professionals has Marcus Wareing and Monica Galetti; Matt Tebbutt joined them for the 2026 series but has said he only signed up for one.
Who won Celebrity MasterChef 2026?
Paralympic triathlete Lauren Steadman. She beat Emily Campbell and Shakira Khan in the final on BBC One on Friday 18 September 2026, the first series judged by Grace Dent and Giorgio Locatelli.
Who won MasterChef 2026?
Jhané Gibson won the main amateur series, which ended on 5 June 2026. Kirsten Dodd and Matt Willett were the other finalists.
When is MasterChef back in 2027?
The BBC has not announced dates for the 2027 amateur series. The 2026 run started on 21 April, and spring is its usual slot, but 2025 broke the pattern when the series was held back to August. Until the BBC confirms a date, treat any start date you see as a guess.
Why did Gregg Wallace and John Torode leave MasterChef?
In July 2025 the BBC said it would no longer work with Wallace and would not renew Torode’s contract. An inquiry by the production company substantiated 45 of the 83 allegations about Wallace’s behaviour, and upheld one against Torode for using a racist slur on set in 2018. Wallace maintains the gravest claims against him were not upheld; Torode has said he does not remember making the remark.
Related: BBC One TV guide · All TV show times · What’s on TV tonight
Air dates and times updated daily from the published broadcast schedule.
