Finals Starter Great British Menu

Ah! Trying to kill me!

It's finals week on Great British Menu.

-Oh!

-BLEEP!

The country's finest chefs have faced toil...

-I'm not

-BLEEP

-calm, I'm all over the shop.

..sweat...

I think I've stitched myself up on this course.

..and tears...

Ta-da!

-..to produce food that evokes wartime memories...

-Loving it!

..and show how British cuisine has evolved since then.

Wow. Yes!

Their aim?

It means so much to me.

The chance to say thank you to our Second World War heroes

at a banquet commemorating 70 years since D-Day,

to be held at St Paul's Cathedral,

an iconic bastion of British wartime resilience.

This week, the champions of their respective regions

give everything they've got.

Serious pressure here.

Cooking all four courses again.

-Oh,

-BLEEP!

It's the finals, Colin. Everything's important.

They must impress not only the judges...

This is boring.

Extraordinarily poor.

Disappointing flavours.

..but also their fellow competitors...

To me, this is average.

Execution wasn't great, flavours are far too sweet.

..as well as honorary banquet guests...

I'm really hoping I can give tens to everything.

..who were essential to the war effort.

In the bit I worked with, it broke the U-boat code.

If we hadn't broken it,

we'd have been starved to death in this country.

Today's the starter.

-No, no, no...

-BLEEP!

-And there's no room for error.

-BLEEP!

It makes me nervous.

But which dish...

My hands are shaking away down here!

..will get close to perfection?

Great start to an evening. I'm going to give it a ten.

-Ten for me.

-I'd happily put a ten against that.

It's a ten for me, all day long.

The chefs are about to kick off with their starters.

The top-three-scoring dishes

will go on the short list for the final banquet menu,

which will be decided once all four courses have been cooked.

In with a chance are first-timers Chris McGowan,

representing Northern Ireland

and David Kelman, from Wales.

Military's throughout my family.

I'd love to cook for the veterans at the banquet.

They're joined by newcomers James Durrant from the North West,

Jacqueline O'Donnell from Scotland

and returning contender Emily Watkins,

representing the South West.

Both my grandfathers were serving in the Navy during World War II.

It would be a great honour to them to get a dish through to the banquet.

Also eager to win are returning champions

Colin McGurran from the North East

and Aktar Islam from the Central region.

-Hey Aktar, we're here again.

-We are, yes.

I must say, we're only seven at the moment

so I think we're missing one.

Oh, you know, they've probably heard that we're involved again

this year, so they might as well stay at home!

The chefs have no idea that the London and South-East region

was so strong that, for the first time ever,

there will be two chefs representing it -

second-timer Adam Simmonds and newcomer Tom Sellers.

-Hello!

-How you doing?

-Great to see you again.

-And you.

So do you think they're going to be expecting two of us?

It means more competition.

Yeah, but competition's good, eh?

Ha-ha!

Hello!

How come there's two of you? There should be one, same region.

They just couldn't decide. London and the South East

obviously is quite an exciting region, isn't it?

And then there was two!

Oh!

-Two for the price of one!

-Yeah!

-I was worried at eight chefs!

-I know! So was I!

Double trouble, isn't it?!

-Gents?!

-How are you?

-You weren't expecting this, then, no?

-No, no. Not at all.

So what this means is it's just got that much tougher

because there's eight other chefs to beat for every course.

If any of you want to just go home for the week,

feeling homesick, you're more than welcome!

Judging the chefs, as ever,

are Prue Leith, Matthew Fort and Oliver Peyton.

I don't think I've ever been as excited as I am for this competition,

because genuinely, I have felt that the chefs have outdone themselves.

And we've got nine instead of the usual eight.

Ultimately, we are against each other but obviously, it would be

brilliant for London and the South East to get a dish to the banquet.

And it will be me, not you, Tom.

LAUGHTER

-I'll let my cooking do the talking, I think.

-Ooh!

LAUGHTER

I've been really struck by the research they've done,

the way they've identified with the D-Day landings themselves or

with some other part of the war.

Some of them had relatives who took part in it. It's been extraordinary, really.

I absolutely agree with you.

One of the things that's really surprised me

about this whole competition has been how often moving

the take that the chefs have had on the dishes,

and the research they've done about the Normandy landings

and the bravery of young men who were sort of 18, 19, 20.

One soldier who survived the D-Day landings

is 88-year-old banquet guest of honour George Batts.

He's back, having helped the judges

choose the North West champion in the regional heats.

Now he must help decide the starter for the banquet itself.

George, not only are you a World War II veteran,

you're now also a veteran of the Great British Menu. Are you ready?

Yes. I'm really hoping I can give tens to everything!

Your memories of D-Day -

do they get any less vivid or do they remain as vivid as they ever were?

As you get older, they become more vivid.

It is a thing we'll never forget.

Getting in the landing craft, chugging towards the beach,

getting off.

All the firing and all the people, my colleagues, that were killed.

That must never be forgotten.

And it's so marvellous

that this banquet is in honour of all we veterans

and also the number of colleagues that we lost there.

The chefs will compete in three groups.

First into the kitchen are Emily Watkins, Jacqueline O'Donnell and James Durrant.

A flaming pan.

These chefs have all delved into their family history for inspiration.

But it's the photos taken by Emily's grandfather

that Aktar, David and Colin are particularly impressed by.

He volunteered into the Navy and he was a keen hobby photographer

and he managed to capture some pretty incredible shots.

The ones which are most poignant for me are the ones

he took from the life raft, of his own ship being blown up.

What, taking that picture of his own ship being blown up, from the life raft?

-That's right, yes.

-Oh, my God.

He survived on that life raft for two weeks.

That's amazing, isn't it?

And then he was eventually captured by the Germans and sent to

a prisoner of war camp, where he spent the remainder of the war.

That's why this brief means so much for me.

Both my grandfathers fought selflessly throughout the war.

Emily's not the only one who's brought family photos.

This is my wife's grandad. He was 17 when he first joined the forces.

He was one of the first on the beaches on D-Day.

It's unbelievable that, at 17, he wanted to do it,

and, at 17, he got accepted.

-I can't even imagine.

-Incredibly brave, weren't they?

-Yes.

It soon turns out that James and Emily have more in common

than their family connections to the war effort.

My dish is inspired by rations - tinned ham in particular, really.

We've got the same kind of thought process going on, James.

I'm doing a take on the tinned ham as well.

And how did that go on in the regionals?

Prue gave me a ten for this dish.

Like last year, it's not just the judges the chefs have to impress.

The chefs themselves will be marking each other's dishes, so they can

actually influence the dishes which go through to the final short list.

It's going to be interesting to see how our marks compare with the professionals.

James is first up. His take on tinned ham uses the letters S-P-A-M

to symbolise the key ingredient in his dish.

Spam, S-P-A-M. By that, he means Spice, Pork,

Allium, which means onions,

and Mollusc, which means scallop, in this instance.

I remember his starter. It was very, very good.

Well, I hope that SPAM ends up representing

Special, Perfect, Amazing and Marvellous!

Very good!

James gets his ration boxes ready

and starts his plate with leek puree.

Then adds spiced pork balls.

Scallops.

Confit leek.

Pickled onion

and finally, pork vinaigrette.

OK, lovely.

There you go, please, thank you.

I'm confident with my starter. To get through to the banquet

will be a big honour, to celebrate with the surviving veterans

and also to commemorate the guys who lost their lives and fought for their country.

It's going to be a really special thing

and it's something I'll be really proud of, if I can do it.

Oh, yum!

Mmm!

That smells good!

Yes, there's a little poem in here, remember?

"Now Jackson had his acorns, and Grant his precious rye.

"Teddy had his poisoned beef, worse you couldn't buy.

"The doughboy had his hardtack without the Navy jam

"But armies on their stomachs move...

"And this one moves on Spam!"

Spiced Pork, Allium and Mollusc.

George, our army moved on Spam too, didn't it?

It did. It's a relief when you open the box

to find out it is a different Spam, let's be honest!

That's delicious. Lovely leeks. Nice and sweet.

It is absolutely wonderful to see an ignored piece of meat,

a pig's head, actually used with marvellous effect.

It is, it's incredible.

It really sings in your mouth. A perfect bit of cooking.

-Stunning.

-Beautiful.

I think it's very good cooking.

My only concern comes in how it all comes together with the brief.

I'm stretching it on the brief here.

-Just because he put it in a box doesn't mean it has a relationship to anything.

-I agree.

The Spam thing is convoluted and difficult.

It misses the brief for me completely.

He's realised that Spam was an integral part of the war,

if you like. I think it's clever the way he's taken the S-P-A-M and...

-Updated it.

-And done a dish on it.

It's a modern interpretation of a wartime classic. Exactly.

Maybe what he's saying is if the British had invented Spam, this is what it would be.

I don't see it going any lower than seven and maybe as high as nine.

That to me is an eight dish.

I would score the cooking as a seven.

I'm going to drop him down to six for the brief.

-I wouldn't give it a ten but I'd go very close to it.

-You're a wise man.

I'm with George. I think it's a great dish but I wouldn't give it a ten either.

What about Matthew? I suppose you're going to give it a ten.

-Of course I am, Prue.

-I thought so.

Slightly worrying. I'll get started on plating up my dish now.

Let's hope that it stands up.

Next up is Emily with her take on tinned ham,

which is truer to the original.

She's serving pork terrine

with pork belly, pork scratching

and miniature toffee apples.

BLEEP!

Having rescued her jelly from over-chilling,

Emily's about to discover that her potato bread has baked at too low a temperature.

Can you turn it up to 200 for me for another four minutes?

Prue gave me a ten for my starter last time

so it's really important for me to deliver the same again

but I'm really bad at not believing in myself and lacking confidence.

Partly it's a good thing because it keeps me on my toes

but at the same time it does make me nervous

and then when you're nervous you make stupid mistakes

so I want to try and dispel that.

Emily was the only chef to score a ten for her starter in the regionals.

Really? That's the one to beat today.

George, for me this was one of the best dishes of the competition.

-I absolutely loved it.

-I love pork belly.

-I quite liked this, Prue.

I wasn't in love with it though.

Under pressure to deliver on time,

one of Emily's last jobs is the toffee on her apples.

It's a delicate process.

Argh! BLEEP

She starts her plate with home-made mustard...

..and adds pickled onion,

pork belly...

..and finally her pork terrine,

covered with a specially made tin.

Right, if somebody could put some bread rolls on?

On the side she's serving home-made potato bread and Guernsey butter.

Thank you.

Thank you.

The bread hasn't come out right.

Pork and apple basically, something like that?

Today I feel that my bread didn't come out exactly as I wanted it to.

I would have done it at a different temperature.

It wasn't perfectly golden the whole way across.

It was still cooked nicely, lovely and moist

and juicy inside like it should be, but it just didn't look perfect.

(Oh, lovely.)

I can hear George puffing and panting about the nice warm bread over there.

Well, I make my own bread so delighted to see other people doing it.

There's a gorgeous piece of crackling.

-That is actually top drawer.

-Scratching to die for.

Scratching to die for.

And the bread... I wish mine turned out like that!

You know, it's back to the wartime thing

because you made bread out of anything you could grab.

I think the bread, maybe a couple more minutes in the oven.

-It's quite doughy inside.

-Yeah.

I think it's better than it was before.

I love the pork, the scratching, the crab apple.

There's nothing on here I don't like.

Actually quite surprised with the terrine.

I think she's missed the seasoning off completely.

I think it's wonderful.

The mustard? Ideal.

The killer for me is this English mustard.

-Really, really hot.

-It's so strong it kills everything.

I think it's a perfect first course.

Is it a perfect first course for the banquet though?

While I agree with you that it's filled

with the most beautifully detailed pleasures, this is a pub dish.

This is a pub dish of such exquisite accuracy.

Of course Matthew is correct, Prue, because one of the key things

we have been looking for here in the brief is 21st century.

-It definitely takes you back in time but it's got to be 21st century gastronomy.

-You're right.

-George, what do you think? Do you prefer this to the last dish?

-Yes.

It's average.

-I think for me it's going to be a high score.

-I agree.

I would give this dish an eight.

-I think it is a banquet dish.

-George, I am with you.

I gave it a ten last time and I'm giving it a ten again now.

It's absolutely perfect for the banquet.

Last up in this group is Jacqueline O'Donnell.

I'm doing something totally different.

Liver and onions is the bottom line.

She's aiming to evoke austerity nostalgia with a modern twist,

serving calf's liver with onion puree,

onion tuile and savoury granola.

George, we have a lady from Glasgow called Jacqueline

who got here after beating a chef with multi awards, two Michelin stars.

Excellent.

It feels amazing that I managed to get past Stephen.

Jak.

I actually still can't believe that I'm here today.

I think it was nerve-racking enough the first time

but now coming in again, slightly nervous to say the least.

Wow, liver. I love liver.

-I love calf's liver.

-Me, too.

-And me.

-Good.

I've been looking forward to this actually

-because I'm a big fan of offal.

-How have you cooked it?

-Just pink.

Jacqueline starts her miniature casseroles with onion puree.

OK, scram. You're making me even more nervous.

She tops her calf's liver with savoury granola.

One minute.

-Your hands are shaking, aren't they?

-It's windy!

-Windy!

Finally, an onion tuile.

-Thank you.

-Happy?

Looks lovely. Well done.

It's nerve-racking, isn't it, your first one?

Especially with this lot rattling around you.

Out of all the dishes, my starter was the one I was worried about.

It's simple and you see the plates of food that are going up in here,

it really feels like I'm out of my depth.

I think she needs to sack the sack.

-It's supposed to be a sandbag, I suppose?

-It's plastic inside.

I'm afraid to say my spirits are beginning to resemble this onion tuile.

Oh, dear. It's getting soggy, is it? Yes, it is.

At the banquet she needs to put this on a plate away from the steam and it will stay crisp.

To be honest, even at this early stage

I can't help feeling that this is possibly not the dish

which is going to go through to the final banquet.

-You took the words out of my mouth.

-No matter how delicious it is.

-George, offal was never rationed in the war, was it?

-No.

-And most people like liver.

-Yes. My liver's cooked just right.

-Mine is slightly overcooked.

-Mine is perfect.

Probably one of the best pieces of liver I've ever eaten.

Liver is only good if it's perfect and it's not perfect.

Perfectly cooked, that liver. Quite something, actually, cooking liver.

For me, I just don't like liver

and I just can't see everybody liking liver.

Can I point out Colin can't think it's that bad because he's eaten a whole one to himself?

I love calf's liver. She has cooked it beautifully so I'm going to eat it all day long.

Also I don't think really there is enough drama happening with the dish.

Is it the finest hour on a plate, as they say? Maybe not.

-I think this is boring.

-It's too simple.

Halfway through this dish I feel o'erwhelmed by a drowsy numbness.

I would probably sit on a seven on that.

For me it's going to fall somewhere between six and eight.

-I'd give it a five.

-I'm in agreement.

-I've got to give it a six, I'm afraid.

-I'm going to give it a five.

-Well, that's it then, isn't it?

-This liver is shot.

-Yes.

Three starters down and fourth judge George is keen to meet the chefs.

-Hello.

-Hi, George, how are you doing?

-Very well, thank you.

You were actually there on D-Day on the beaches. How was that?

The worst part was getting ready to go in the assault craft.

And then on the beach, training took over.

And you were scared but you could run.

When you're in an assault craft, you're stuck.

But I was one of the lucky ones.

It's marvellous to be here with you lot

and I'm so looking forward to the big event at St Paul's.

George, it is an absolute honour to be cooking for you today

and hopefully one of us will be good enough to cook for all of you at the banquet.

I hope all three of you are!

Next into the kitchen are returning champions Colin McGurran

and Aktar Islam, joined by newcomer David Kelman.

-I'll just follow your lead. You're experienced, aren't you?

-It's my third year, same as Colin.

We've got to make it.

Everyone is pushing for it but we really have to do absolutely everything we can

to make sure we're at that banquet.

-Serious pressure here.

-I'm kicking off first. Good luck.

-Cheers.

Colin is serving a modern interpretation

of a soldier's ration pack,

attempting to incorporate many different elements

into one harmonious dish.

He's under pressure to deliver as he made it to the banquet two years ago

but failed on his last attempt.

Going home last year was soul-destroying.

I said to myself, "If I do this competition again, I have to get to that banquet."

This year the brief is very special, very poignant.

My grandad was actually on the D-Day landings attack. He was on the boat.

He was the one shovelling coal into the burners.

It fills me with a lot of pride, the sacrifices he must have made,

and his family, so I really feel a strong passion

to make sure I do all of my cooking justice.

Colin's been inspired by how the army used deception

as a key strategy in battle

and is busy making a corned beef hash disguised as an egg,

a Parmesan crisp shaped into a cigarette,

an egg and bacon croquette and chocolate cherry explosion.

Colin's his own worst enemy because his cooking is so technical.

If all the things on that dish work perfectly, he will have a winner.

If anything is off, it's not right.

But I love the precision of it.

I love the mystery and the "Ooh, what's that?" feeling of it.

I was slightly surprised by the inclusion of chocolate

but I believe it appeared in the original ration boxes.

But Colin has got to improve on that because last time it melted.

-Oh, no!

-YOU did that.

-He'll have adjusted all that now, won't he?

-We hope, we hope.

-How's it going, Colin?

-Full-on, really, full-on.

-Chocolate on a starter?

-Chocolate on a starter served cold.

In the regionals it started to melt,

so we want a cold chocolate crack in your mouth.

-That's what we're trying to attempt.

-We'll leave you in peace.

-Thank you.

Colin starts his mess tin plates

with dots of parsley and tarragon emulsion.

He adds tea bags of soupe bouillon.

His technical corned beef hash egg...

..egg and bacon croquette...

..Parmesan and truffle cigarette

and finally his controversial chocolate cherry explosion

on spoons to prevent another melting disaster.

BLEEP!

Got to be careful putting these guys down.

Had to walk like a snail to get that to the table. Whoa.

OK, thank you.

-Be careful, guys.

-Well done, Chef.

-Looks good, doesn't it?

-Looks nice.

There are a few things I'm disappointed on there.

I think my cigars weren't as perfect as what I wanted.

So, yeah, if it's not perfect then I'm not happy.

I don't remember the spoon being on there

and I'm sure that's a way of keeping the chocolate colder.

It seems rather odd to start with chocolate.

-We ought to eat it before it melts!

-Exactly. Remember last time.

BLEEP

Mm! That's lovely.

It is delicious.

George, was there chocolate in the ration packs

-or only in emergency ration packs?

-Only in emergency.

That's very nice but it was rather a big mouthful.

-Do you find it quite a lot?

-Yes, a lot of liquid in there.

-George, corned beef probably evokes memories, does it?

-Yes, very much so.

It was the last meal I had before I got into the assault craft.

Bully beef, to me, is for wartime but I still loved it here.

But the bouillon frankly tastes exactly like a stock cube.

The little cigarette is chewy rather than crisp, which I think it should be.

I'm not sure that the relationship between the four individual parts on this dish are working together.

What holds it all together is that everything relates to something

that they would have had in the war.

While I get that he's on brief,

as a banquet dish I find there's an awful lot going on.

To me they are two separate flavours.

I think people will be slightly confused by it.

-For me it's around the six mark.

-Yes.

A dish of parts without enough hearts.

I'll give this dish seven.

I can't decide. Can I go 7.5?

THEY CHUCKLE

I wanted to give tens.

I'm afraid this one doesn't come into that category.

So, guys, what are you bringing up to the pass today?

My dish is called Run Rabbit Run.

It's based on the wartime song that came out in 1939.

-Great minds think alike.

-What are you doing, then?

I'm doing Run Rarebit Run.

Oh! I like the twist. Sounds the same.

Bit clever, that. I've done a take on the song as well.

The song is about rabbit pie, so I'm doing rabbit pie with Welsh rarebit.

-We'll see who's best though.

-Yep.

Aktar is up next.

His Run Rabbit Run includes a rabbit pie, rabbit cutlet,

and rabbit terrine with pickled vegetables...

..all infused with Indian spices.

For me, this brief is quite important because the sacrifices

that people made and the war effort laid the foundations for a place

where my forefathers could feel comfortable to raise their family

and that's where I came from.

My great-grandfather, my grandfather, both decided to set up home here

and it's led me to live the life I have today.

For me, I think I'm a direct beneficiary from all their effort.

That's fantastic, that.

Like Colin, this is also Aktar's third time in the competition.

He got to the banquet on his first attempt but on his second try,

didn't even make it to the final.

My history with Great British Menu has been about the ups and the downs

and the downs were really bad so for me,

I was really desperate to go through to the judges' chamber

to give myself a chance to make it to the finals week and here I am.

I'm going to give it my all. I'm here to make it through to the banquet.

-OLIVER:

-I love this dish. I particularly love the pie.

-It was a really, really good dish.

-You're in for a treat, George.

-This is a 10.

-I'm very much looking forward to it.

-MATTHEW:

-Is it a 10? I don't know. I have my doubts. We'll see.

Up in ten minutes, which is going to be interesting.

Aktar starts his plate with pickled veg.

This is a tough one.

I've got 4/10 for this from Marcus, partially because I was late.

He then adds mango jelly.

With a history of being late in the competition, fellow chef Tom

turns up with a present.

I've come to make sure you get on the pass on time.

-I've got four minutes, Chef.

-Yeah. Timer's on.

-Colin, I'm going to leave this with you.

-Oui.

Next on is rabbit terrine.

And beetroot yoghurt.

You've got two-and-a-half minutes, Aktar.

But with last-minute touches, time starts slipping.

-He adds his rabbit pie.

-You're five seconds late.

-Officially late. Officially late.

-Late again, Aktar, again.

Five seconds. By my standards, that's fantastic!

-Last it's charred rabbit cutlet...

-OK!

..before covering the plate with specially made cloches.

-Smells nice.

-Hope it's good.

It's an achievement to get it done on the right day, Chef.

-Looks good.

-Three minutes late, though.

-What's three minutes between friends?

-That is true.

-We can't see anything.

-Can't see anything!

-PRUE: It's beautifully done, isn't it?

-It's beautiful.

It says here, "One rabbit has at least 12 young in a year,

"which is 45lbs of meat."

So it's worth keeping rabbits, basically.

I was 14 when the war started so I remember this at home.

We ate one heck of a lot of rabbit.

Being in the country, there were plenty of them.

It brings back so many memories.

-It used to be the biggest treat of my life!

-How wonderful.

My first initial reaction is, what's the idea behind it?

My knowledge of the Second World War or whatever,

-I wouldn't get it even if I saw the cloche.

-Yeah.

I can understand it cos, obviously, mine's Run Rabbit Run as well.

I think mine hits the brief a bit more than Aktar's, personally.

-Oliver, is the pie as good as last time, cos you loved it.

-No.

-No?

-It's not seasoned as well. You know, it's...

-It's bland.

I mean, for me, the pie tastes really good.

I think the flavours are fantastic. Beautiful flavours there.

I would like a bit stronger flavours in it.

The sauce is a little bit more flavoured.

I love the pickled vegetables.

The other problem is the roll, the brawn is...I think it's too cold.

So the contrast in temperatures is too extreme, really, isn't it?

For me, the vegetables, cold vegetables,

I don't really understand what he's trying to achieve.

It's an odd dish because in a sense it should all work.

It worked last time.

I think it still works but not quite as magically.

This is actually a very, very fine dish. It just should be finer!

PRUE LAUGHS

Cold vegetables, hot pie. 6.

I think that's slightly generous.

-I can't see it scoring any higher than a 5.

-For me too.

George, instead of pulling a rabbit out of a hat,

are you going to pull a 10 out of the hat for this one?

I'm afraid not.

Welshman David Kelman is next.

His twist on the wartime song Run Rabbit Run

is a more traditional rabbit pie with pickled veg and Welsh rarebit,

presented in a miniature rabbit hutch.

The brief this year for me is absolutely perfect,

with my family history going back generations in the military

and myself in the TA for a little bit, when I was a young man.

-There, in the middle.

-Wow!

And getting a dish to the banquet would be an absolutely

amazing thing, I think, for myself.

I just love that this competition has got

so much resonance for so many chefs.

It makes it such a special competition.

With people like David in it, they want to win.

They understand the brief and I think that's really translating into their food.

And rabbit again! Oi!

PRUE: I don't think it was as good as Aktar's.

The Welsh rarebit, it wasn't very good if I remember,

and I gave it a 7 last time but I think

it could easily be a 9 or 10 if he gets it right.

First on David's plate is a reduced portion of Welsh rarebit.

Then pickled carrots, rabbit loin and more pickled veg.

I'm intrigued. We've got rabbit hutches.

I wanted you to have a bit of a smile on your face

when it goes to the banquet, you know.

Notice I said "when" it goes to the banquet!

Finally, David adds his rabbit pie.

To the judges, please.

-Well done.

-Phh!

Thank God!

I'm doing this for my family.

There's a big connection with the military

and to get a dish to the banquet for them would be

the biggest honour I could probably pay them back with, to be honest.

# Run rabbit, run rabbit Run, run, run

# Bang, bang, bang, bang Goes the farmer's gun

# So run rabbit, run rabbit Run, run, run. #

Obviously, the rabbits we're about to have, George,

weren't listening to that tune because they didn't get away.

-In a hutch like this they won't, will they?

-What do you think?

I think it's wonderful.

I love the presentation.

-The wee rabbit hutches, the wee song to go along with it.

-Yeah.

-OLIVER:

-Mm. You know what?

That pie has got what Aktar's didn't. It's got a lot of flavour.

Hm. Good flavouring there.

Yeah. It's a tasty pie.

-I think that pie is incredible.

-PRUE: Mm! It's good.

Anybody who tastes this pie is going to go, "Wow!"

Absolutely delicious.

-GEORGE: I like the vegetables as well.

-Do you?

-They were nice.

-Do you need the pickled veg?

-Yes, you do.

-Could we just have the pie?

Actually, if you borrowed Aktar's pickled vegetables

and that pie, then we have a perfect dish.

-Aktar's pickled veg, for me, was a little bit more mellow.

-Yes.

Which I quite liked that.

That Welsh rarebit, when it's all on by itself,

underneath the vegetables, the cheese is slightly unpleasant.

He's so wedded to the idea of the title, I suppose, the Welshness

of it, he's determined to keep the cheese in there at all costs.

I don't think it really needs that rarebit.

It's a tiny technical issue for me. That pie is delicious.

George, if that was to appear at the banquet,

what do you think people would think, other than yourself, of course?

Being quite honest, I don't care what others think.

-I would love that.

-THEY LAUGH

Content with this dish?

Think it's a 7 again. There is too much rarebit on that dish.

I think I'm going to go with 7 as well.

Three 7s on this one.

George, can a humble pie be a cause of celebration for your colleagues?

Yes. If this is eating humble pie, I'll eat humble pie,

and all my colleagues will, any time you like!

-Nice bit of cooking.

-Thanks. It was all right, yeah?

-Very nice.

-Phh. One down.

-One down.

Last into the kitchen are the two London and South East chefs,

Adam Simmonds and Tom Sellers,

along with Northern Ireland's Chris McGowan.

Six down, three to go.

I reckon we've got two contenders already for the banquet.

-Yet to come, by the way, is my favourite dish.

-Yes.

My favourite dish too.

Two from the south-east.

The judges couldn't decide between them both,

which means they're both exceptionally strong.

-It's London and the South East against the rest of us.

-Yeah.

The chefs are right to be worried, as Tom and Adam have the most

accolades of all of them and are both fiercely competitive too.

-No, no, no, no.

-BLEEP!

-Look at you, you... Clean it up, Simmonds.

-Yeah, but...

-Simmonds, clean it up.

-Get off the stove.

-BLEEP!

-I'm not on the stove!

-BLEEP!

Shut up!

Yes, there's more pressure because there's two of us from London and

the South East and I don't want him to go through to the final banquet.

It has to be me.

My goal this week is to beat everybody around me. Simple.

But today, Tom is also going directly head-to-head

with Chris from Northern Ireland.

They're both doing dishes based on the same Dig For Victory

campaign which encouraged people to grow their own veg during the war.

And they've both chosen to present their dishes as allotments

with edible soil.

-Chris, are you digging for victory?

-Yeah. I'm here to win.

-Who's digging deeper? Me or you?

-Hold on a minute.

-This is not two people. There's three people here.

-Sorry.

-Sorry, Adam's here as well. I forgot.

-Yeah, yeah.

-Do you remember Dig For Victory campaign?

-Yes, very much so.

My dad was a butler

and the house that he worked at was surrounded by a massive park

and the whole acreage was dug up and wheat and barley

and everything else put in there.

Tom. I see you've gone for quite a rustic allotment, whereas mine

is maybe slightly more sophisticated.

I think my cooking is probably more sophisticated than yours though.

Could be right.

Chris is serving first.

He has every reason to be hesitant about his now vegetarian

Dig For Victory salad,

as this is the second time he's completely changed his starter.

Chris McGowan from Northern Ireland, Richard Corrigan's protege.

The man who's won The Great British Menu more times than anybody else.

I can assure you he's going to want to win this competition.

But last time he gave us this starter that we all didn't like.

Started off with mackerel and then it changed to duck

and now it's changed to cheese.

-You don't dig many mackerels, do you?

-No.

I'll do everything I can this week to get to the banquet

but the starter, that's probably the one which would be, I mean,

a potential banana skin. Obviously, I've got baggage on that one.

Chris' whole menu was criticised for not telling

enough of a story and he's taken the feedback on board.

I thought that I should look at the briefs

and try and add value by carrying some props.

-Is yours not a bit style over substance though?

-Do you think so?

I don't know.

He starts his new allotment dish with new edible soil.

-That's a lot of soil.

-It is a lot, isn't it?

-Yeah, yeah.

-They don't have to eat all of it, you know.

-OK.

Then fills a second tray with avocado mayonnaise.

It's very big. It feels very big.

It is but you'll see it when it's finished, do you know what I mean?

He tops the mayonnaise with his edible soil before starting

to plant his veg.

Baby sprouts,

baby turnips, baby carrots,

goat's cheese-filled onions and smoked beetroot.

The props don't stop at his dish.

The waitresses have been given a land girl make-over.

Ready? OK.

Thank you very much.

-Wow!

-That is beautiful.

That's stunning.

It's completely unrecognisable from the original dish

and I hope that reflects in the scoring! Urgh!!

Oh! PRUE LAUGHS

-OLIVER:

-Hello, girls!

-Does that bring back memories for you, George?

-Yes.

-I didn't mean the vegetables, by the way.

-No, no.

-I didn't mean the vegetables either!

-THEY LAUGH

-Happy days.

-Happy days.

This is spectacularly pretty. It is a completely unrecognisable dish.

-I don't quite know how to tackle it.

-Well, any old way.

Maybe he needs to downsize.

We're certainly going to eat a lot of dirt today.

-It would make the taters grow in this soil, wouldn't it?

-Absolutely.

-For me it was very big.

-You know, too big.

He has actually cooked each of the vegetables slightly differently,

which I think works really well.

-PRUE:

-I just had beetroot. It's lovely.

I love the green mayonnaisey stuff. I love the soil.

It's a very pretty thing. It's a much improved dish.

But to me, the carrots don't really have much flavour,

the baby turnip has a bit more flavour.

And every radish I've had has always been much hotter, pepperier.

-Exactly right.

-I think it's fresh and it's lovely.

-It takes of what it's supposed to taste.

-Yeah.

-Perfect for Dig For Victory. The flavour was great.

-Yeah.

I'm actually disappointed. I don't like the favours.

A bit boring for me. It's not exciting.

It's literally just a selection of vegetables.

-I think it's more interesting than delicious.

-Yes.

-OLIVER:

-It's a weird one, isn't it? I mean, it's not a starter, is it?

This is reminiscent of one of those courses

you get at a restaurant just as a filler course.

This would be terrifically nice handed round,

"Please help yourself to a dainty vegetable or two beforehand."

I think you've hit the nail on the head there, Matthew. It's a canape.

And it's not really a dish.

I think it's a nibble course, or what I would call a nibble course.

I don't see this getting many scores lower than a 7.

-I think it's going to be about 6.

-I would agree with you.

-10/10 dish for me.

-Very, very nice, clean cut dish.

PRUE: I think it's a 7. I mean, I think it's a very good dish

but not suitable for a first course.

I think this dig has not resulted in a victory.

MATTHEW LAUGHS

Tom Sellers is the penultimate chef of the day.

His Dig For Victory is almost identical to Chris's,

serving vegetables in edible soil.

The biggest difference is that he is also serving chicken as a rillettes.

Chris, you won't know this but in my restaurant I like to

-put a quote on the pass during service.

-Really?

I've brought one for us today and it reads,

"You ask, what is our aim? I can answer in one word:

"Victory."

It's a Churchill quote, fitting to Tom's determination.

I 100% believe that I can beat every single chef in there.

There is no doubt that Tom Sellers is immensely ambitious and talented

and a clever chef but I don't think this was his greatest dish.

I mean, I think there is considerable room for improvement.

I think he will have done something to the dish

because he's very, very competitive.

So he might have been doing a bit more digging to get things right.

I hope so. He's a talented chef.

-Adam.

-Yes.

-Taste my soil, because I changed it massively from last time.

-What did you change?

-Everything. The whole recipe.

It's finer and the flavour of the hazelnut comes through better,

which I think will help your dish.

Tom starts his allotment with chicken rillettes.

Then adds goat yoghurt and herb emulsion

and his improved edible soil before planting baby turnips...

..micro potatoes...

..and finally sliced heritage carrot.

And the finito touch.

He finishes the allotment with dabs of oil.

I'm... I'm the judge, yeah? Facing.

-Happy with that, chef?

-Yeah.

Nice. Pretty.

The signs that he's made, I think, are wonderful.

It would bring out a lot of conversation amongst

the people at the tables.

The turnips are delicious. And the beetroot.

You know the difference between the last dish and this dish?

-This dish is delivering flavour.

-I prefer the other one.

-For me there's not quite as much...

-There's not as much flavour. Yeah.

And I really think the chicken remains a great idea

in this dish, to give it some balance.

-I think the chicken rillettes is not at all nice.

-Really? I like it.

I think it's great because you've got the...

the rillettes' got a really good mouth-filling flavour.

I'm not sure it needs the chicken part.

-Actually, I love the chicken. It's my favourite part.

-Is it?

I think our dishes are very different.

The difference between this dish and the last dish

is this you're going to eat with a fork.

The last dish you ate with your fingers

so psychologically it felt like a canape.

What made the other one stand out for me

was the fact that each vegetable item was a little dish in itself,

it was a little flavour.

The earth is nice because it's more refined

but everything else is pretty mediocre and I think by the time

you get to the end of it, you think, "Thank the Lord that's over!"

It's like spending a day in the allotment.

You feel tremendously virtuous to begin with

and by the end of it all you want is to lie in the bath and soak out the aches and pains.

-You're not feeling it. Are you, George?

-No.

It's a nice dish but we've had better, I think.

-It's an 8 for me, I think.

-I totally agree.

-I'll be bold and say 8.

-I would give it an 8.

-So, no 10 yet, George, no?

-Unfortunately.

-Are you feeling a bit bad about that?

-Terrible.

THEY LAUGH

Last but not least is Adam Simmonds.

-BLEEP!

-The push is on now, isn't it?

We're watching.

He's been inspired by how food was preserved for soldiers

in their ration packs and is serving dehydrated chicken liver parfait and

celeriac, which will be brought back to life with a chicken consomme.

Adam Simmonds, he's an interesting one.

Failed to get through before. He's desperate to win this competition.

I think he's a very good cook but I was less keen on his starter.

Never work with children, animals and tin cans.

I'm not going to lie, I am nervous. It's my first time at finals week.

I am worried about my starter course because it's the most

labour-intensive out of all four of my courses.

You know, there's lots of little elements that could go wrong.

Well, I'm very excited about this dish.

This is one of the dishes I've been looking forward to all day.

This is the last chance for our four 10s. Do we cheer or keep quiet?

He starts his ration box with dehydrated chicken liver parfait

and adds celeriac choucroute to plates,

which he tops with slow-cooked egg yolks.

Can somebody get me another egg?

-How many eggs have you gone through?

-I've gone through a few today.

I think the nerves have got the better of me. It's you lot.

I feel like there's 1,000 eyes watching me. It makes me nervous.

Next on is crispy chicken wing,

chicken Spam...

..and powdered burnt butter.

Finally, he pours chicken consomme into flasks on the side.

-THEY CLAP

-One each.

-Nice one.

-Very good.

-Amazing, mate.

I think, for me, that this was the best that I could make it for today.

It would be a massive, massive honour to get to the banquet.

Will it be the same? Will it be as good? Will it be a banquet winner?

"Spoon dehydrated food on top

"and add chicken skin. Pour hot consomme on the side."

Are you excited, George?

I think it looks lovely. Really lovely.

I just think it's terrifically good fun.

LOUD CRUNCH That was so crunchy!

Mm. I really love this dish. There's lots of different flavours.

The chicken itself is delicious, the egg, every thing there is...

It's faultless to me, in a way.

Mm.

Very tasty.

-I can't find anything to fault on that.

-I agree.

-OLIVER:

-I don't know. What do you think, George?

-I think it's wonderful.

I have to admit that it is very full of modern techniques,

yet all these things, and the consomme poured over,

look slightly disgusting.

I actually like it more now than I did when I first tasted it.

-It's super tasty.

-I think this is the one to beat.

He's looked at ration packs, he's looked at dehydrated food

and he's brought into the 21st century.

I think this is absolutely incredible, the way he's done this.

-Did you get any dehydrated food?

-Yes.

I remember potato and carrot and onion.

I just don't like it very much.

Not the best soup I've ever eaten,

not the best chicken I've ever tasted...

I think this is like a series of very,

-very clear echoes of the past sort of amplified by modern technique.

-Yeah.

-Please, sir, can I have some more?

-Sorry, Oliver! I've done mine!

Really tasty and a great start to an evening. I'm going to give it a 10.

-10 from me.

-I'd happily put a 10 against that.

It's a 10 from me, all day long.

To me, it's the dish of the day and it's got to go through.

-So it's going to be a 10 from you?

-Yes.

-Prue?

I'm not telling you cos you'll hit me!

The food has been marvellous.

I feel almost surprised to admit it but I gave two 10s.

I only gave one.

But I'm very interested to see what the other chefs think.

Will they agree with us, in other words?

Cooking over, the chefs and judges are about to find out

who would make the top three if it was down to the chefs' scores alone.

-Chefs' short list.

-Oh, great.

So, guys, this is who we would have if we were to pick the short list.

Do great minds think alike?

-Come on. Come on.

-Get on with it.

-In no particular order...

Adam.

A triumph for the chicken dish. You and I gave it 10, George.

That's wonderful. So pleased about that.

-The whole world is against you, Prue.

-I know, I know, I know.

Tom.

-TOM?

-Vegetable garden?

-Yes.

-I don't think I'd necessarily have put it on the top

but it's pretty good. I gave it a very high mark.

Chris.

-Good Lord!

-What is wrong with those people?

The other Dig For Victory dish.

Don't tell me they've gone vegetarian out there!

They've seen it a dish suitable for the banquet

whereas we thought it was a canape.

-I'm quite humbled, actually.

-I'm surprised, if I'm honest.

-For me all I can say is thank you very much.

-Right.

We have to do some arithmetic now, don't we?

The chefs' scores are averaged and added to the judges'.

The three dishes with the highest totals

will go on to the final banquet menu short list.

'Bit disappointing not to be in the top three from my peers.'

I'm not sure how I'm feeling about my starter now.

It has been a really tough day actually.

I'd like to see myself in the top three but it's so open, I think.

'I'd like to be in the top three in the chamber'

but I think it will be interesting to see how different some

opinions that we have as cooks and the judges have.

Welcome, chefs.

I can tell you, we have enjoyed some tremendous food today

and it has been an extremely close-run thing.

In ninth place...

It's...

Jak. I'm sorry.

We just couldn't see your liver dish at the final banquet.

-Thank you.

-Thank you.

Having to come out of the judging chamber first was quite hard going.

It's already been a tough day.

In eighth place...

Chris.

We know all the chefs loved your dish

but we thought it was more of a set of canapes.

-It was beautiful though.

-Thank you.

In seventh place...

It's Colin. We loved the technicality of your dish.

-We just didn't think it was very cohesive. Sorry, Colin.

-No problem.

-Thank you very much.

-Thank you.

-BLEEP!

-COLIN LAUGHS

In sixth place...

Aktar. Aktar! What happened to that pie? It was the seasoning!

-We loved that pie before.

-I guess it's one of those things.

-It's still a lovely dish.

-Thank you very much.

-Thanks, Aktar.

COLIN LAUGHS

In fifth place...

Tom. We know all the other chefs really love your dish

-but today this is an example of how close it was.

-Thank you.

I think it's a privilege to come fifth, to be honest.

Thank you very much.

BLEEP!

Now there are only four of you left

and only three of you will be on the final short list.

So, in fourth place...

and just pipped at the post...

David.

Commiserations, David. It was good but just not good enough on the day.

Thank you very much.

The rest of you - James, Emily, Adam -

are all in with a chance of cooking at St Paul's.

Congratulations. ALL: Thank you very, very much.

OLIVER: Ladies first.

Emily, your luncheon meat. It was absolutely beautifully executed.

Completely delicious. Faultless, I thought.

That means a great deal. Thank you very, very much.

-It really was.

-Adam.

Every single aspect of the dish we loved, except Prue.

-But it was an amazing dish.

-Thank you very much.

James, we were hugely impressed by your...

what can only be described as a very individual

interpretation of the letters S-P-A-M.

But we absolutely adored it.

I mean, everybody put such good food out today that I just...

-I'm really over the moon.

-And from my point of view,

I've been so delighted and proud to be here and sample your cooking.

It has been absolutely incredible and for me, a lifetime experience.

-All: Thank you very much.

-Thank you.

It's amazing. I'm down to the last three and I've got a chance.

I got the chance to get a dish to the banquet.

-THEY CLAP

-Well done. Well done.

It's brilliant. Really, really great and you know...

It's fantastic. I'm really chuffed.

-Congratulations, anyway. Representing London.

-Thank you very much.

I'll try and do the same on the next course.

Of course. I couldn't ask for more.

-Tomorrow it's the fish course...

-SHE GASPS

..and the top three starter chefs are after a repeat performance.

You've already made the short list. Looking to do the same for this one?

Makes you pretty intent on wanting to, doesn't it?

But the losers are really pushing the boat out.

Impressive plate of food.

Prue said to me if she could have given me 12,

-she would have given me 12/10.

-She didn't tell me that!