Final Fish Great British Menu

It's the national finals of Great British Menu...

-Sweating a little bit.

-You want to give it everything.

..as the eight regional champions go head-to-head...

-Pretty stressed.

-Yeah. Tell me about it.

..for a place at this year's glorious Taste of Summer banquet...

Fingers crossed.

..celebrating 140 years at the iconic Wimbledon Championships,

the oldest and most prestigious tennis tournament in the world.

Yesterday, the chefs battled it out for the starter course.

I think I'm just getting more nervous.

When you're up against the best of the best,

that's when you want to do even better.

And after a fiercely fought competition,

the three returning finalists found themselves

at the bottom of the leaderboard.

You've got rid of the old guard now.

The old guard will come back to fight again.

While, for first, there was a three-way tie,

with the judges eventually choosing

Pip Lacey's Whatever the Weather to open the banquet.

It was a perfect dish for the occasion.

-Congratulations, Pip.

-Thank you.

Today...

..the heat is on for the fish course...

I really want to get a dish to the banquet.

All or nothing.

..and the chefs are all feeling the pressure.

It's not an easy one to do whilst you're shaking, right enough.

But, with last year's fish champion hoping to do the double...

I'm desperate to get to that banquet again.

..who will be crowned the winner?

With just one point in it, the winner is...

Today, the chefs will be cooking their fish courses,

and, with the first spot on the final banquet menu already taken,

the pressure is on.

I'm nervous about today.

I got straight tens for my fish course in regionals,

so, at the end of today I want to know

that I'm cooking at the banquet.

Yeah, I really love my dish today, so I'm really excited to cook it.

Bit of pressure on you, mate, seafood restaurant.

Oh, no...

Judging on the standard of cooking yesterday,

I think today we're going to see some really good food.

To stand a chance of getting their dish to the banquet,

the chefs will need to impress the discerning panel of judges.

Matthew Fort...

Oliver Peyton...

and Andi Oliver.

Well, the fish course today,

what we need for Wimbledon is something that truly celebrates

the British summer time.

Well, I think we're going to get it.

Fish, it lends itself so beautifully to fresh, beautiful ingredients,

that sort of punch of flavour.

Summertime, and the eating is easy,

but the judging is really, really hard.

Pip Lacy has already taken the first spot on the final menu

with her starter Whatever The Weather.

Pip, you must have had a good night's sleep last night.

Yeah, slept really well, thank you.

How about you guys? Did you sleep well?

-No.

-No.

I'm particularly excited because I cooked last year.

Fish was a strong dish and it's a strong dish for me again this year.

For me, that ups the nerves a little bit and really ups the ante.

Sounds like everyone's going to be raising their game to catch Pip up.

I'm excited about revisiting some of these dishes today.

Yep. I'll be even more excited if they can cook them

-as well as they did last time.

-Or better!

Before they get into the kitchen,

the chefs have been summoned to the judges' chamber.

Welcome back, chefs.

I hope you've recovered after the first day of the finals.

Obviously, we already have one winner amongst you.

Pip, you'll be cooking the starter at the banquet.

Tommy Heaney, and Tom Brown, you were that close.

It was a dead heat right to the end.

Yeah. I was a bit gutted. Got so close yesterday.

But, it's fish today, so hopefully going to do a little bit better.

Yeah, I mean, I was delighted to get into the top three.

But, you know, push on today.

Tommy Banks, this is the course that you won last year.

Can you repeat it today?

I hope so. I've got to do better than yesterday.

I really like this dish,

so I'm looking forward to cooking it for you.

The standard is extremely high.

You're going to have to be cooking at the top of your game

-to get through.

-We're looking for perfectly executed dishes

that celebrate a taste of summer and, of course,

pay tribute to 140 incredible years of the Wimbledon Championship.

Remember, just like in the Wimbledon finals,

there can be only one winner.

I wish you all the luck in the world.

Get back in the kitchen.

- Let's go. - Thank you.

Good luck.

Today, the judges will each mark the chefs' fish dishes out of ten,

with the highest scorer winning a place on the final banquet menu.

The first chefs to cook for the judges are all newcomers,

hungry for victory.

-Good luck.

-Good luck.

-Good luck.

-Good luck.

-Good luck, mate.

-Good luck.

Selin Kiazim, representing London and the South East.

Ellis Barrie from the North West,

and Northern Ireland's Tommy Heaney.

All three are hoping to impress with dishes that pay tribute

to some of Wimbledon's greatest champions.

I think we've lived in a great era of great tennis players.

To be able to cook for this brief,

honouring these fantastic players, like Nadal and Federer.

I'm a huge tennis fan as it is,

so, yeah, I really want to get a dish to the banquet.

I bet you do, yeah.

The chefs' fish courses will also be judged by Tim Henman -

one of Wimbledon's biggest stars.

A former British number one, and world number four,

who reached the semifinal on four occasions,

and now commentates for the BBC.

Welcome to the Great British Menu.

-Thank you for having me.

-Oliver.

-Morning.

-Andi.

-Nice to see you.

I feel I should warn you at the very beginning

that Sue Barker left very strict instructions

that we're to fill you with as much food as you can possibly cope with.

Yeah, she gave me strict instructions not to have breakfast.

How old were you when you decided

you were going to take tennis seriously?

Not very old.

My mum took me to Wimbledon for the first time when I was six.

I was lucky enough to watch Bjorn Borg play in 1981.

I was there on Centre Court.

Saw him walk on and the green grass.

I just knew that's what I was going to do.

What is it about Wimbledon that makes it so special for people?

I think, really, the cornerstones of Wimbledon,

the history and tradition of the event.

I always felt very lucky that that was like my home tournament,

so to be able to play there and have that amazing support that I had...

Were the crowds important to you?

That was probably part of the motivating factor, I guess,

when I saw Centre Court for the first time as a six-year-old.

To sort of experience that atmosphere.

As I started playing more and more seriously,

-that was always the motivation, really.

-You like fish?

-I do.

You're going to have a lot of it.

You are the voice of Wimbledon in the judges' chamber today.

We are looking for dishes that will celebrate 140 years of Wimbledon

and the British summer. Can you see that in food terms?

We have a strap line at the club,

which is "In the pursuit of greatness."

Whether it's the grass courts or the stadiums, or the food,

it's got to be absolutely perfect.

It's got to be great.

-Yeah.

-Tim, are you ready?

I certainly am. Looking forward to it.

After yesterday's closely-fought contest,

the chefs are all desperate to come out on top today.

Tommy, you made it into the top three yesterday.

You didn't quite make it. How are you feeling today?

Yeah, thanks for that, mate.

No, I mean, I've just got to be head down today.

Forget about yesterday and just keep cracking on.

A lot of people are saying,

fish is their strongest course,

-but I got sixes and sevens and eights for mine...

-Good.

So that'll put your mind at ease.

I'd love this dish to get through as well.

It's probably one of my strongest dishes.

So it would mean a lot for this to go through

and be where Pip is and have a good night's sleep.

That's it, isn't it?

First to cook for the judges today is self-taught chef

and North West champion Ellis Barrie, with his dish -

You Cannot Be Sea-rious, It Was On The Line.

I got good scores in regionals -

doesn't necessarily make me more confident today

because the calibre of chefs in there is really high.

Got to make sure I nail every component of this dish

and hopefully get tens from the judges.

Ellis's dish features sea bass, slow-cooked in pork fat,

with an elaborate garnish, including a sea bass crisp, mussels,

and salted blackcurrants.

So, what is the dish that you're cooking, Ellis?

The dish I'm cooking is based on summer barbecue on the beach

when we were younger in Anglesey.

It's called, You Cannot Be Sea-rious, It Was On The Line.

So it's paying homage to John McEnroe.

It's also that thing - you cannot be serious.

Sea bass cooked in pork fat.

It plays throughout the whole concept of the dish.

During the regional heats, the dish wowed veteran judge Daniel Clifford.

Ellis...I'm giving you a ten.

I've never tasted a plate of food like that.

And the judges were equally impressed,

giving it the highest score of any dish on his menu.

Well, our first dish of the day

is Ellis Barrie's You Cannot Be Sea-rious, It's On The Line.

Do you know? A double pun!

Well, we know the food is much better than the pun.

This was a delicious dish.

There were loads of little moments of genius on the plate, as I recall.

I loved this dish so much the last time, I gave it a ten,

and I really do think it's one of the dishes in contention

for the banquet.

Well, you've given it a pretty big intro,

so I'm looking forward to it.

What do you think of the pun at the top?

Er, very average.

Ellis's dish might pay tribute to the summer barbecue,

but, rather than use one,

he's showcasing innovative techniques

he hopes will give a smoky flavour.

What are you doing there, Ellis?

I'm just confit-ing the sea bass in the pork fat.

I've blowtorched it to get the flavour in there.

He starts by plating charred cauliflower puree,

followed by sea bass fillets...

florets of charred orange and purple cauliflower...

and Romanesco.

Next, salted blackcurrants.

-So, what's that going on there?

-Pickled radish.

Just finished with a little vinaigrette.

He adds shards of sea bass skin...

..mussels steamed in white wine...

..and tops with crispy seaweed.

Have you done anything to change the dish?

Last time I deep-fried the seaweed.

It was a bit too oily, so I've dehydrated it now

with a little bit of fennel pollen.

He finishes with oyster leaf...

..and places on to presentation barbecues.

-Well done.

-Well done.

Wow!

There's a happy sense of familiarity about this dish.

It's like an old friend. I'm very happy to see it again.

I hope they like it.

If I get another few tens then I'll be happy.

If I get four of them, I'll be grand. You know?

The sea bass is beautifully cooked.

It flakes away in good, generous amounts.

It's kind of firm and then soft and flaky at the same time.

-So beautiful.

-The flavours are absolutely amazing.

I think the salted blackcurrants do exactly what you want them to do.

The blackcurrant just cuts right through that cauliflower.

Caramelised cauliflower puree's so smooth and silky.

It's beautiful. Just like it was last time.

It works extremely well with the fish.

You are expecting it to actually overpower the fish,

but it doesn't overpower the fish.

I love the crispy skin as well.

The seaweed...

it is very, very chewy.

I think I preferred it fried.

I changed the seaweed from the original dish.

I dehydrated it, dried it out, rather than done it in the oil.

They said it was too oily last time.

This is a very unusual piece of cooking.

You know, it is not often you see

these sorts of combinations of flavour together.

Why do I no longer think this is a ten, though?

Well, maybe it's because we knew what to expect,

so that wonderful sense of surprise is no longer there.

I absolutely love all the different flavours.

I absolutely could see it at Wimbledon.

I think it's an absolutely magnificent dish.

You cannot take it out of contention.

Next to serve her fish course is South East contender Selin Kiazim -

a rising star on London's restaurant scene.

Fish course today, I'm really excited.

I really love this dish.

Hopefully I can get tens all round this time.

Selin's menu is inspired by her Turkish-Cypriot background,

and her love of the Wimbledon Championships.

My dish is called Nadal Versus Federer...

-OK.

-..and it's paying homage to one of the greatest finals

in Wimbledon history, in 2008,

when Nadal finally triumphed over Federer.

Picked out a couple of their favourite ingredients.

So, for Nadal, I'm doing barbecued octopus,

and then, to represent Federer, I'm doing these potato rostis.

I love octopus. For me, it's a winner.

Selin's serving her octopus and rostis with a wide range

of Mediterranean-inspired accompaniments,

including pea and samphire relish,

and red grape and cods roe purees.

In the regional heats,

despite scoring her an eight for her cooking,

veteran judge Angela Hartnett urged Selin

to show restraint in the number of components.

I think you can strip it back, lose one or two elements.

So, it's Selin's dish up next.

It's called Federer Versus Nadal,

in reference, of course, to that famous Wimbledon final.

It was the first Wimbledon final that I ever commentated on, 2008.

So, it was probably the best match I've ever seen.

Do you like octopus?

Yeah, I do, but I think it's quite easy for it to be a bit chewy,

and so I think you've got to obviously have the skills

to get it absolutely spot-on.

I liked this dish.

I thought the grapes and the octopus worked very well together.

It tasted incredible.

We wanted a little more refinement in the presentation.

Today, Selin is hoping to finesse her dish

by presenting the elements more delicately.

I got eights and nines for it.

I think they liked all the flavour combinations,

so I think this time I've just got to try and cook it even better.

Selin starts by putting her octopus,

which she's blanched with bay leaves, onto the barbecue.

What are you rubbing the octopus in?

Just a bit of olive oil, lemon juice, and dried oregano.

Next she deep-fries her potato rostis,

before seasoning with sumac and ground coriander.

I think, so far, it's coming out better this time.

So, fingers crossed.

She plates her red grape puree...

..followed by cod's roe puree tarama...

and the barbecued octopus.

That's a really good-looking piece of octopus right there.

Then grape slices...

..pea and green chilli relish,

samphire, asparagus spears,

and pickled caper leaves.

She serves the dishes in a display box,

complete with a cartoon commemorating the epic match.

OK, guys, as it's facing you, please, in front of the judges.

-It smells beautiful.

-Yeah, it does.

-Really does.

Oh, yes, the drawing.

I quite like this cartoon.

I'm not sure Nadal's going to be that happy.

LAUGHTER

I love when you open it up, actually.

I think it looks more elegant than it did before.

I think she's sharpened up the presentation quite a lot.

-Yep.

-It does look nice.

I've been eyeing it up anyway.

The octopus is actually really well cooked.

It's lovely. It's smoky and rich and beautiful texture.

My original concern that it can be a bit sort of tough and a bit chewy...

far from it. It's tender and a really delicious flavour.

-What about the potatoes?

-I love the rostis.

-Very good.

-They're actually quite light.

You get all that lovely crunchiness on the outside,

but because the potato's been shredded, it's not too heavy.

The pea salad is quite hot.

I think the heat is definitely up there but, for me,

if you eat it with everything, it should mellow out a little more.

It has that element of spice but it's not overpowering.

You just get little hits of warmth

every time you kind of get a different combination on your fork.

-It's really great.

-She's marshalled her flavours a lot better.

It's a much more cohesive dish.

You know, I think it's a greater balance in flavour.

I'm liking this a lot more this time.

Well done. That's your fish course out of the way.

I think everything's spot-on, as I wanted it.

Happy.

Something I can't quite get my head round is octopus

at a Wimbledon banquet.

It's still essentially a rustic dish.

I don't agree it's essentially a rustic dish.

I think that's not true.

Is it banquetable?

No.

Next up is Northern Ireland champion Tommy Heaney.

Yesterday, his starter tied at the top of the scoreboard,

but narrowly lost out when the judges had to decide

which dish to put through.

Yesterday really got me pumped up, ready to go.

I can push on and get a dish to the banquet.

I've definitely gone for it today.

Tommy's fish course pays tribute to the famous hill at Wimbledon

where fans gathered to watch the action.

But he's unaware of the guest judge who'll be tasting his food today.

So, what is your dish?

It's called Murray Mound.

It used to be called Henman Hill.

Controversially it was changed to...

..Murray Mound.

Looking at this, Tommy Heaney's got no chance, has he?

Murray Mound?

Have you got an objection to that?

Absolutely.

It doesn't exist.

And it never will.

I'm starting to feel sorry for him already, actually.

You never know, it could be Tim Henman today,

so you might want to change the name, just in case.

We had Sue Barker yesterday.

So, the dish today is called Henman Hill.

LAUGHTER

Tommy's homage to the British picnic serves salmon two ways.

Curate confit salmon and a cucumber and salmon tartare.

He's also making a technical horseradish sorbet,

and a lovage and cucumber granita, topped with summer cup foam.

In the regional heats, veteran judge Michael Smith

scored the dish a nine.

I can picture myself on Murray Mound on a summer's day

watching Andy win another championship,

eating your fish course.

But, when it came to the judges' chamber, the dish divided opinion.

I actually liked this dish.

You liked the horseradish sorbet, which I didn't expect you to,

but you did. It worked quite well.

If you're going to put a sorbet in,

you cannot have the sorbet melting by the time it gets to us.

-Well, he's a clever boy. Let's see how he does today.

-Yes.

Have you made any changes?

I mean, they said the salmon could have had a bit more flavour,

so I've cured it a bit longer.

They said the sorbet melted too quickly,

so I'm just trying to stabilise that a little bit.

With a total of 12 tricky elements to complete,

Tommy is feeling the heat.

How are you looking, Tommy?

I've stitched myself up with all these components, haven't I?

He starts by pouring summer herb jus into mini serving bottles.

He removes his confit salmon from the water bath

before charring with a blowtorch, and adding to the plate.

Then, compressed cucumber...

..topped with a salmon tartare and a quenelle of horseradish sorbet.

So, is that some form of caviar?

Yeah, we've got pickled red cabbage caviar,

to give it that little nudge towards Wimbledon.

Next, rolled, compressed cucumber, pickled cucumber, and samphire,

followed by oyster leaves, mooli spaghetti, coriander cress,

and avocado puree.

-So, what's that?

-Like a lovage and cucumber granita.

He tops the granita with summer cup foam

and places everything in a picnic basket.

Thank you.

-How you feeling?

-Not overly happy with that,

to be honest with you, no. I mean, one of the comments they made

the last time was the sorbet was melting, and it's sitting there

melting again. So, what can you do?

-It looked fantastic, though.

-Thank you.

Oh, I remember the little perky umbrellas.

Wow!

I really like the hamper. That's got a sort of Wimbledon feel to it,

but this plastic cup...

That's Murray Mound for you, isn't it?

Yes.

I really enjoyed the presentation.

Felt it was spot-on.

And like a picnic, like a really posh picnic.

Posh picnic, aye!

I like the bitterness of this foamy loveliness in the cup.

It's very sour and sharp.

I think the salmon's cooked really well.

I like the kind of rare nature of it.

I like that it's really pink in the middle.

-It's seared.

-I think it's delicious, but I'm almost eating this

thinking it should be a starter.

Maybe because it's salmon.

I like the horseradish sorbet, but it is melting.

I think there's a technical issue here with the horseradish sorbet.

I don't think at a banquet, it would be able to last.

What are we supposed to do with this?

Pour it in. Maybe that'll make the whole thing...

You see, then it just starts swimming.

That's like one too many liquids, I think, in there.

Once you put that jus on there, it almost melts the sorbet on its own.

Maybe I should have left that off.

He hasn't cooked it as well this time.

There's a certain sort of unity or cohesion missing from the dish.

It's a bit of a jumble.

It's perfectly fine.

I don't think it's original enough and personal enough to the chef.

It's not doing it for me.

So, you think, Andy Murray, he's welcome to this dish.

Yeah, that's fine by me.

We'll have to find something different for Henman Hill.

With the first three fish dishes cooked,

the judges are considering their scores so far.

What a morning!

We start off on a superb high note.

We've had two very high-scoring dishes, one that missed the mark,

but I think two out of three's not bad.

I was really happy with my fish course, so I'm quite hopeful.

I was a little bit deflated.

Just felt I didn't execute it the way I wanted to.

We're always going to be incredibly critical with ourselves, aren't we?

Yeah. I'm pretty sure they're going to be critical in there as well.

I'm enjoying it and looking forward to this afternoon.

I can feel a slew of tens coming this afternoon.

Oh, optimistic Oliver!

-No, I really am.

-It's great.

Next into the kitchen are south-west champion Tom Brown,

and Pip Lacey, who won central region.

-BOTH:

-Good luck!

As the chefs get cooking, unbeknownst to them,

today's guest judge Tim Henman is on his way to pay them a visit.

-Good afternoon.

-Hello.

-How are you?

-Yeah, good, thank you.

-Nice to see you.

-Lovely to meet you.

-Pip.

-Yep.

-Nice to meet you.

-How are you?

-Yeah, good.

-Good, good. How's it all going?

-Yeah...

-Everything under control?

-No, but...

I do have one favour that you might be able to help me with.

Any chance I can speak to Tommy Heaney?

Yeah. I'll go and get him.

He wants to speak to you.

-He wants to speak to me?

-Yeah.

-OK.

Tommy, how are you?

-Pleased to meet you. Very good.

-Nice to see you, too.

I was just wondering whether we could have a bit of a debate

about the title of your dish.

I thought that was coming.

Yeah, I mean, I kicked off when it was changed as well.

We'll just change it back to Henman Hill.

-There we go, we've got a deal.

-Perfect.

-Thanks.

Cheers. Sorry about that!

Yesterday, along with Tommy Heaney,

both Tom and eventual winner Pip tied at the top of the scoreboard.

With the competition so tight,

they're each hoping to pull clear of their rivals today.

You've got one dish through already.

Are you going to try and make it a double?

I'm not taking it easy. It'd be amazing to get another one through.

I came so close to getting one yesterday.

You just got me.

Tom is up first with another dish from his Cornwall-inspired menu.

Waiting, in that moment, when they're going to tell you

about the tie-break...

..you know, your sort of heart's going,

and you think, "Could it be, could it not be?"

It was an amazing feeling coming that close.

Now I just want to get over the last bit.

As head chef at a Michelin-starred fish restaurant,

all eyes are on Tom to deliver.

Pressure on you this time then, eh? You work in a fish restaurant,

it's the fish course.

Yeah. I cook fish every day.

If I make a mistake, I'm going to look a bit silly.

Soused Breal & Scrumpy pays tribute to Cornish mackerel

and features mackerel pate with cider jelly,

served with grilled mackerel, and black treacle soda bread.

How strong do you think this course is for you?

For me, it's one of my strongest, definitely.

I just think it's very much me.

It really comes from the heart.

I think it's a tasty plate of food.

In the regional heats, the dish scored an eight

from veteran judge Michael O'Hare.

To me, this hit the brief.

It was light and refreshing and, ultimately, summery.

Tom Brown, it's all about the south-west, isn't it?

You want fish off the Cornish coast,

scrumpy from the orchards of the south-west.

I really like this dish, because I thought the cooking

was very, very precise.

The flavours were beautiful.

It was fine, it was delicate.

-But the bread...

-Was underdone.

We saw yesterday how it completely transformed a dish

which was a disaster into something very, very close to a triumph.

If you can take a very good dish and make it even better,

then we could have a banquet.

What are you going to do to make it a ten then?

I'm just going to execute the dish perfectly, and, if I do that,

then hopefully it's going to be a ten.

With plate up approaching, Tom removes his black treacle soda bread

from the oven.

Tom, how's your bread? Looks nice?

Yeah, it's good. It's risen up nicely. It's one of the things

the judges commented on in the regions, actually.

They felt it was a little bit doughy in the middle, so...

Yeah, I mean, for me, it's bang on now.

Tom decorates his mackerel pate with slices of cured mackerel

and leeks.

-How are we doing now, Tom?

-Yeah, just all the fiddly bits now.

He tops the pate with a sprinkling of seaweed and dill,

and finishes his mackerel fillets under the grill.

If anybody knows about fish, mate, it's you.

-No pressure, eh?

-Yeah, no pressure!

He serves the grilled mackerel with his black treacle soda bread.

-That looked brilliant.

-Happy with that.

-Yeah.

-Nice.

Oh, I love the way this looks, actually.

I like the look of this.

Oh, that bread smells amazing.

-Really does.

-Yum.

Visually, looks stunning.

-Looks really elegant.

-Cheers.

The pate is silky, got beautiful flavour,

and then you just get that slightly acidic little jelly.

I'm loving this.

It is elevating the mackerel pate to such a level

that it becomes pretty close to the sublime.

Yeah.

I think this is great.

This bread, to me, is absolutely delicious,

and it goes so well with the pate.

I'd quite like to eat it all.

-Feel free.

-Thank you.

I just want them to like it now, like I like it.

I just want them to like it as well, so fingers crossed.

Fingers crossed, mate, yeah.

The mackerel is perfectly cooked.

I mean, it really is. It's just absolutely delicious.

It's so clean tasting.

The skin's been perfectly seasoned.

It's very brave to put a piece of mackerel on its own

on a plate like that. It takes a great deal of skill

to be able to do that.

What about hitting the brief?

You've hit it, the brief, you know, with the summer bit.

I'm worried that the link to Wimbledon isn't there.

Yeah.

It's a great summery dish, isn't it?

It's got all that sense of freshness and lightness and clarity

that you want on a summer's day.

I don't want to rudely interrupt you, but you are here

to speak as well as eat, you know that?

Well, I am, but I think that speaks volumes, doesn't it,

because I'm enjoying it so much.

-If you would stop interrupting me, I could eat the other...

-Sorry.

THEY LAUGH

This is definitely a contender, for me.

Absolutely. I'd kind of struggle not to give it a ten.

I'm sensing this as four tens.

Is that correct?

-Um...

-Oh!

-I'm going to think.

-You do that.

I'm going to think.

Pip is next to serve her fish dish.

Having already won the starter course,

today she's hoping to do the double.

I really want to push on.

It'd be amazing to get more than one dish at the banquet.

There's only a few select people that have done it.

So if I can be one of them, then that'd be amazing.

Pip's original fish course, which combined strawberry and lobster,

didn't go down well.

How did you do with fish in regionals, then?

They didn't like it, so I had to change it completely.

In the heats, veteran judge Richard Bainbridge wasn't sure

Pip's unusual flavour pairing paid off.

You took a risk, and I'm sorry, but I'm still not convinced.

The dish also failed to impress the judges,

who gave it the lowest score of all the finalists' fish courses,

advising her to start again.

Pip, Pip, Pip.

I mean, at least she's had a starter through to the banquet,

-because if it was reliant on her fish course...

-Oh!

..she'd be in big trouble today.

It was ill thought out and it didn't work.

Let us draw a veil over that dish.

Her second dish contains cured trout and smoked trout.

This could be the most exciting dish of the day,

because we haven't tried it in any shape or form.

-It's new.

-It's new.

Pip's new dish, First & Second Serve,

is designed to be eaten in two stages,

starting with a jasmine tea-smoked trout tartare,

followed by citrus cured trout, served under a net.

Do you feel like it's a better dish?

I'm happy with it. Hopefully they'll like this.

It's really different.

Pip begins by frying her potato game chips,

before mixing her smoked trout tartare.

She plates horseradish creme fraiche,

followed by citrus cured trout on top.

-How's it going, Pip?

-Yeah, all good.

Just got to get it right.

She adds charred watermelon, slices of compressed cucumber,

and covers with a mini net.

That is really interesting, Pip. What's the presentation there?

So it's called First & Second Serve.

-It's like two servings of trout.

-OK.

-And, obviously, one's in the net, so second serve.

-Ah.

Next, her trout and broad bean tartare...

..followed by game chips.

Is this another winner, do you reckon, or...?

Who knows? I really don't know.

She finishes with potato espuma,

topped with a pancetta crumb and watercress.

OK.

-Nice one.

-Looked really nice.

-Well done.

Thank you very much. Wow.

Completely new.

A few sort of doubts creeping in a little bit?

Yeah, I think so, just because I was so sure on my original.

Can I just be the first to say that I think this looks really weird?

This hat thing's peculiar, right?

It's just not right.

You think this is something we put on in order to eat

this in a ritual form?

It's different, it's interesting.

I don't know if it's as wow as your starter.

I think it's a sign that this is one serve,

and the other one is the other serve.

It's two parts. We're supposed to approach each part separately.

I think the trout tastes good.

I think it's a bit underwhelming.

There's a little bit of smoke coming through eventually.

There's not enough curing, there's not enough smoking.

The chips are just pretty average, aren't they? I mean...

Quite nice and crunchy.

The espuma?

There's no distinct flavour, there's no clarity.

Everything just tastes a little sort of muddy.

My confidence has been knocked by them slating my first one,

but normally I'm really good at fish.

-Fingers crossed they like it better than my first.

-Yeah.

It sort of looks like it's just a bit tired.

It looks exhausted.

It's making me feel exhausted.

There is no more greater condemnation that I can give

than this - that I do not want to eat another mouthful.

-Oh, dear.

-Wow.

I'm wanting to have another mouthful because I feel like

I've missed something, but then I have another mouthful

and it was the same as the first.

There just isn't really any flavour to it.

We know that Pip can cook.

Yesterday was incredible, and then this appears.

It's really confusing that it's from the same person.

This is a double fault.

As opposed to a first or second serve.

It's out.

With five fish courses down, today's competition has passed

the halfway mark and the judges are reflecting on their scores so far.

We've had some excellent cooking and a couple of howlers there.

But do you think we've had the banquet dish already?

I think it's possible.

How are you holding up? Are you ready for three more?

I'm very ready for three more.

-I've still got room.

-I take my hat off to you as an eater.

You don't look much of a trencherman,

but you can stash it away, all right.

-I'll take that as a compliment.

-Yeah.

The last group to cook for the judges are the three chefs

who've each made it to the finals before.

Good luck, buddy.

-Good luck, Michael.

-Good luck, fella.

-Good luck, mate.

Scotland's Michael Bremner...

..north-east champion Michelin-starred Tommy Banks...

..and Phil Carmichael for Wales.

But despite their experience in the competition,

yesterday, all their starters came in the bottom three.

Are we excited about fish course?

I just hope it's not the same as yesterday

and us three leaving the chamber first.

Obviously I'm hoping for a better score than yesterday.

Last year, both Tommy and Michael's fish courses

paid tribute to mackerel.

And there's a similarity with their dishes this year, too.

So you're cooking turbot, Michael, same as me.

-Yeah.

-Last year, we both did mackerel.

-I'm glad you've been reading my e-mails.

-That's a good point.

Tommy Banks is first to plate up his turbot dish,

which he's hoping will see him triumph

for an impressive second year in a row.

I'm desperate to get to the banquet again.

There's not many people who've done that. Forget yesterday.

You know, I think the fish course is a really good chance.

Tommy, will you, being the reigning champion of the fish course,

are you feeling any extra pressure on that?

I didn't get my highest scores for this, but I got

high enough scores to think I could be in the mix with it.

-What did you get in the regions for this dish?

-All nines.

His dish combines luxurious turbot with an innovative take

on a classic summer dessert.

What is your inspiration?

It's an obvious one. It's turbot with strawberries and cream.

-Strawberries with fish?

-I'm going to do red strawberries,

and they're going to be pickled with elderflower vinegar,

and green strawberries that are fermented,

-so they're nice and acidic.

-Sounds nice.

In addition to his strawberry tartare,

Tommy's serving his turbot with a creamy herb veloute.

The unusual combination won over veteran judge Jeremy Lee

in the regional heats.

I thought it was a very accomplished dish.

The turbot was excellently cooked.

That was delicious.

I think when we read "Turbot With Strawberries And Cream",

we were all a bit like, "Oh..."

Shoehorning the strawberries.

But we all scored it a nine

so we really enjoyed it.

I think it was surprising.

Well, I just thought the plate itself,

I think for a taste of summer, I just didn't feel

that piece of crockery benefited the turbot.

Tim, do you feel...?

Strawberries and fish, have you ever tried it before?

No, no, I haven't,

and I'm trying to use strong powers of imagination.

-So, have you changed anything?

-Well, the main complaint was they didn't

like the plate I put it on. So I've just got like a plain plate.

That was the only thing they didn't like about it?

That was the only comment I got, yeah.

So you should be scoring tens, then, if you change the plate?

Well, unless they don't like my new plate.

Tommy starts by plating his vegetable tartare

with green and red strawberries.

He serves his fish veloute in jugs, splitting with chive oil.

At the last minute, he fries his turbot fillets in a pan.

All that buttery goodness.

Oh! Money-maker!

The best way of cooking turbot is in nice, foaming butter.

Whoa, whoa! That's not the only way that you can cook turbot.

-I'm doing it in a water bath.

-Tell me you're using butter,

-tell me you're using butter.

-I am using butter.

-Oh, that's all right.

-But it's not foaming.

It's just gently caressing.

Tommy serves his turbot, sprinkles with fennel pollen,

and tops with slices of fermented green and red strawberries.

Yeah. Lovely, thank you very much.

-Looks good, buddy.

-Yeah, looks nice.

-Thanks very much.

Yeah, looks summery.

Hopefully better than yesterday.

-Mm!

-Thank you very much.

I remember this, cos I remember it's the sauce that brings this to life.

Cos when you pour this, the whole dish...

Look at that!

It's so beautiful.

Oh, I see, with the sauce, I get the Wimbledon bit coming through

-with the green.

-It's so dramatic.

It's a bit of magic.

I've never seen strawberries with fish, ever.

-I'm looking forward to trying it.

-It's what Great British Menu does.

Challenges you to do something you've never done before.

Oh, wow!

That fish is beautifully cooked.

That is a lovely bit of cooking.

Very elegant.

It's cooked with great precision, great sureness.

It's tender and soft and it's got very good flavours.

I think the handling of the strawberries is really

the mastery of this, because there's not too much of it,

but it just gives it enough sharp contrast.

I absolutely agree.

You get little sharp bursts of acidity from it, don't you?

Execution wise, I know it's extremely technical,

but visually it's an extremely simple dish.

I think that's the joy of that plate,

but then will the judges see that?

-I don't know.

-I've have given up trying to second-guess them.

Yeah.

I really like this connection with Wimbledon.

I felt with maybe one or two dishes,

they haven't been fit for a banquet,

and I think this is fit for a banquet.

I'm trying to find something not to like about it.

We even like the plate.

Great dish. I really like it.

Yeah, I hope it's in contention.

I'm very aware you got straight tens for your dish.

The fish course is my stronger dish, and, you know...

Yeah. It's got me worried.

We're talking about chefs here who are cooking perfect food.

How do you divide them?

This is a really strong contender.

Scotland's Michael Bremner is next.

Having just missed out on a place at last year's banquet,

he's determined not to let it happen again.

Last year, I was so close to getting my fish course in.

This year, I feel like there's some unfinished business.

So, I genuinely want to get my fish course through.

It would be great.

Fish is something I love doing, love cooking, love eating.

This is your favourite of your dishes as well, isn't it?

I'm just really excited about this dish.

It's something that I put a lot of thought behind.

Michael's turbot dish is called Traditions Of White,

and like Tommy, he's also paying tribute to an iconic aspect

of the Wimbledon Championships.

So, what is the link to the brief?

Tennis players have to wear white when they go on to the court.

How I'm sort of presenting it is my take on a player

wearing white, essentially.

The dish features turbot served on blanc de blanc sauce,

topped with green potato tuilles,

to signify a tennis court

while dots of almond puree represent the players dressed in white.

During the regional heats, it made a big impression

on Michelin-starred fish chef, Nathan Outlaw.

This was a super dish.

And very fitting for the standards of Wimbledon.

I remember this dish quite well, actually.

It was beautiful cooking.

Precision again, and really extraordinary to look at,

but yet it felt very contemporary,

which is quite a clever juxtaposition, anyway.

My only problem was the sauce.

I thought that sauce was too bitter on the dish

and I really hope he's changed that.

Michael came last yesterday, but I hope it won't have

demoralised him, either. I think he's got a lot to prove.

I think it happens in any walk of life, doesn't it?

If you have a bad day at the office, you've got to be able

to bounce back. He needs to respond and put in a good showing today.

There's no reason at all, with a chef of his calibre,

why he can't turn this into a winning dish.

Have you made any changes?

I've taken on board what the comments were from the judges.

So I'm just going to adapt the seasoning, focus on presentation.

Hopefully I'll get there.

Have you got quite a lot to do?

I've got loads to do, yeah. I should probably stop chatting to you guys.

That'd be nice.

That would be nice, wouldn't it?

Michael starts by dressing his intricate potato tuilles

with cannellini bean puree.

He dusts with parsley and spinach powder

and pipes on watercress puree.

-Give it a taste.

-You've changed it?

Yeah. It's a lot less bitter.

I think it's really tasty.

I think you've got good depth of flavour in there.

Next, kale crisps, followed by almond puree...

..and herb crisps.

You're making a miniature tennis court, then?

I mean, that's the idea.

As you can see, it's quite loose in that sort of...

sense.

It's green.

He covers the bottom of his dish with the blanc de blanc sauce,

adds his turbot fillets, and tops with his tennis court tuile.

It's not an easy one to do whilst you're shaking, right enough.

I had a bit of the shakes as well. It's hard, isn't it?

I totally get the fact it looks like a tennis court, though.

Looks seriously cool.

Thank you very much.

-Glad that one's done.

-Well done. That looked really good.

Thanks a lot.

Does this evoke Wimbledon for you?

It certainly does.

And I was just sort of thinking that we should probably get them all

facing the same direction.

Tennis courts all face north-south,

so that the sun goes from east to west.

If they face east to west, you can't see anything in the morning

-from one end.

-Ah!

So north-south we should be facing.

Right, OK. Well, turned it round now.

I feel bad tucking into it, in a way.

It's definitely a piece of art, isn't it, when you look at it?

-Are you happy with that?

-Definitely better than how I executed it...

for the regions.

The fish is absolutely...

..brilliantly cooked.

The texture of that, it's just amazing, actually.

This is a piece of turbot that deserves the word "majestic".

I love this little fine tuile.

The potato tuile on the top, it's so beautiful.

It is astonishing.

It's like a tiny little layer of lacquer.

I like it. I mean, the turbot's cooked to perfection.

-Yeah.

-Even though it's not roasted in butter.

My problem with this is the sauce.

-Bitter.

-Yeah.

I do find it sharper than it was.

A bit more lemony.

I've just got the sauce for the first time and it is a slight shock.

It just overshadows the rest of the very fine cooking.

It's a dish that I would definitely love to get to the banquet.

You know, doing a fish course for me is the one I'd really love to do.

Yeah.

It looks fantastic as it goes down.

I think it looks really exciting.

I think when it's all put together, it works very well.

It's a tough playing field. We've had some incredible cooking today.

He's a very, very fine chef.

This is a high-class problem we have here.

Phil Carmichael, representing Wales, is the final chef to serve up.

Having come seventh yesterday, he's desperate to do better today.

Very disappointed to come out the chamber yesterday so early.

So now I've just got to come out guns blazing for the fish course.

It's your strongest dish, right?

Yeah. The judges scored it strongest in regionals.

I think, personally, it's my favourite dish, so all or nothing.

Just have to see if I can serve an ace.

Oh, wow!

Phil's dish, Mackerel In Summer Flavours,

is an elegant tribute to the classic summer cup cocktail.

He's serving mackerel two ways - a cured and charred fillet -

and a mackerel tartare, infused with summer cup flavours.

In the regional heats, veteran judge Tom Aikens

didn't think the dish quite hit the mark.

The flavours of the summer cup, for me, were a little bit too subtle.

But after intensifying the flavours in his tartare for the judges,

Phil managed to turn things around.

Phil Carmichael's dish in the heats, it was the highest scoring dish.

He got four tens. He's just got to keep a steady ship, right?

We've got mackerel again and it was wonderfully summery.

It had all sorts of lovely clean flavours going on.

It was actually a superb piece of cooking.

So you're setting expectations pretty high.

Phil starts by plating his cured and torched mackerel fillets.

Next, a disc of pickled mooli.

I just hope they like this as much as they did

in the regionals, you know?

He places mackerel tartare onto the mooli discs

and tops with charred, compressed cucumber.

-Hello!

-How's it going, Phil?

Fantastic.

He adds Parisian apple pearls, a quenelle of creme fraiche...

..and nasturtium leaves.

-What's that one, Phil?

-It's borage.

In the summer cup, it's got flavour of borage, juniper.

They're the sort of botanicals that go in gin.

Summer cup's a gin-based drink, so all of the flavours I've added

to the dish are flavours that are sort of present in the summer cup.

So it should all work together.

Are you happy with everything on the plate, Phil?

For me, it tastes as good as it did in regions

and it was four tens then.

He finishes with cucumber powder.

OK.

-Happy to get that one out of the way.

-Yeah.

Yeah.

I feel slightly nervous.

-You've given it the big build up.

-I know.

Aah.

The fillet of mackerel is just perfect.

It looks very refined.

There's a sort of quiet confidence about this dish.

It's very, very simple to the eye.

-Looks good.

-Looks really nice, yeah.

It is a very, very subtle dish.

But in regionals, that's what the judges liked about it.

Wow. It tastes very clean and sort of fresh and...

And it's delicious.

Has that freshness to it, lightness, elegance.

I like the brining of the mackerel.

It comes through in the flesh really nicely.

I would have liked a little bit more torching on there,

but I kind of quite like those charred flavours.

The little pearls of apple on the tartare are lovely.

It's really fresh and light.

I'm getting some citrus from the tartare, which I really like.

I'm not sure I'm getting summer cup.

Yeah, I've executed it as well as the regionals, so...

You know, nothing more I can do.

Having eaten quite a lot of fish, this, I keep going back for more.

Some of the other dishes today have had a certain magical element

that this lacks.

-But it delivers pleasure.

-It does.

Tim, I keep on going back to have another little nibble.

"Thank you very much... Oh, it's all gone."

-It's really, really good.

-I think it will follow on really well

from Pip's starter, so I think you're definitely a contender.

I really, really like the taste of this,

but, going back to the banquet,

I find it visually slightly underwhelming.

I think the visual appeal, in the face of the competition,

lets it down a little bit.

It's a dish of wonderful quiet pleasures.

With all eight dishes cooked,

the judges must award each one a mark out of ten.

The scores will then be added together

and the chef with the highest total will be cooking the fish course

at the final banquet.

I've had a brilliant day.

I'm available tomorrow, if at all needed.

Have you had any surprises?

I've had plenty of surprises and most of them have been good.

The chefs are great though, aren't they?

The standard of cooking today has been so high.

Yeah, it's brilliant. Because they're all so good,

I think they're pushing each other to bigger and better things.

How's everyone feeling, then? A bit less nervous than yesterday?

I just don't want to come last this time.

That would be a killer. I can't do two lasts.

You can see they all want to succeed.

And they've put so much into it, and I'm so happy for them all, actually,

because they've all, most of the time, excelled.

Getting four tens in regionals, this is my big chance, I think.

Obviously, I work in a fish restaurant,

so I'd really love to do well in this one,

but the competition's so fierce.

It's our job to make their job difficult

and I think we've done that today.

I almost gave three tens.

Tim, did you give any tens?

Yes, I did. I gave two tens.

Definitely gave a few nines as well, so it did, for me,

felt like an incredibly high standard.

It's going to be tight at the top.

Add them up.

Welcome, chefs.

You've made it.

Well, to the end of the second course of finals week, anyway.

Has it been any easier than day one?

-Nope.

-Not at all.

It's been an absolutely wonderful day's eating for us.

I think it was an even higher standard than yesterday.

However, as you know,

only one chef can go through to cook their dish at the final banquet

at Wimbledon.

I'm sure you're all dying to hear the results.

So, without further ado, in eighth place...

..Pip.

Now, you drastically changed your fish course, but unfortunately,

it just failed to impress.

-I am a bit gutted about that.

-Well, at least you've given someone else

a chance to get through.

That was my plan. Thank you.

In seventh place...

..it's...

..Tommy Heaney.

We found your salmon dish just a little underwhelming.

Yeah, I think I made a few mistakes.

Thank you.

Didn't give them a chance from yesterday!

In sixth place is...

..Michael.

-Fair enough.

-It was a stunning looking dish, Michael.

Very, very beautiful.

Sadly, it was the sauce that let you down.

We found it a little out of balance.

Thank you very much.

-No way!

-I'm surprised at that, mate.

-Unlucky, man.

-Bit gutted.

I'm absolutely gutted for you.

In fifth place...

..is Selin.

You did manage to refine the dish quite a lot, actually.

It was delicious, just wasn't quite there.

-Thank you.

-Thank you, Selin.

So there are four of you left.

All four of your dishes were absolutely delicious.

Such incredible cooking, guys, honestly.

There really weren't many points between you at all.

But I can reveal that...

..in joint third position...

..are...

..Ellis...

and Phil.

How are you feeling about that?

Bit gutted, but you know, everyone's tried hard today,

so it is what it is. But thank you very much.

Yeah, gutted.

I thought it was a really strong dish.

I thought I executed it as well as regions, but obviously not.

I do think we were nit-picking on dishes because the quality

of the food today was absolutely amazing.

It really, really was.

-OK. Thank you.

-Thank you very much.

Thank you, guys.

So, that just leaves you, Tom and Tommy.

Both of these dishes were so beautiful.

They were cooked incredibly well.

We could have seen either of them at the banquet, truly.

But you know there can only be one winner,

and with just one point in it...

..the winner is...

..Tommy Banks.

Thank you.

-Well done.

-Congratulations, Tommy.

-You've done it again.

-Thank you very much.

That's... That's amazing.

Thank you. I was pretty nervous today after, obviously,

yesterday really didn't go to plan.

So thank you very much.

We thought the concept of strawberries and cream

was really clever, we were so taken with it,

and you executed everything completely perfectly today.

It's a stunning dish. So, congratulations.

Thank you very much. I really appreciate it. Thank you very much.

Tom, commiserations. Your dish was truly elegant

and a sublime bit of cooking.

-Thank you.

-In actual fact, you got three tens from this table.

And Tim here ate all of it.

Perfect. Honestly, I saw all the dishes today and, you know,

this kid can cook. I'm not ashamed in any way to go out to that.

The turbot was really good so...

Tommy, your turbot, strawberries and cream

is going to go down extremely well at Wimbledon, so congratulations.

Thank you very much.

And what's it about you and fish and the banquet?

That's two years running.

Yeah! I'm over the moon to be cooking at Wimbledon.

Thank you both very much indeed.

-Thank you very much.

-Thank you.

-Well done.

-Thank you.

-Nice one, man.

-Thanks very much.

To do it again, it's just surreal.

It hasn't sunk in at all.

I feel just really nervous and shaky, to be honest.

I don't know what to say.

Well, Tommy Banks, second time through to the banquet.

He joins a very small elite group who have managed to pull that off.

Thoroughly deserved, I think.

That dish was absolutely stunning.

Tommy's going to the banquet.

My heart goes out to Tom Brown because, genuinely,

that mackerel dish is as good as any dish you're ever going to eat,

and it could so easily have been at the banquet,

so I'm really looking forward to what he's coming up with tomorrow.

I'm, really, really happy. I mean, 39 out of 40

is a pretty good score, so I'm just chuffed to be up there again,

even if I didn't quite make it.

So, Tom, you're back in the final two again.

Always a bridesmaid, eh?

The guys who have made it to the banquet twice,

they're kind of my heroes, to be honest.

So it's just awesome to be in the same bracket as them, it really is.

It's just something I'm going to tell my grandkids about.

Tommy "The Banquet" Banks.

-Cheers.

-Well done.

-Cheers.