MasterChef The Professionals 2023: Award-winning Leeds chef announced as contestant on new BBC series

Halton-born entrepreneur Molly Payne will star in the new series of the BBC One show, which hunts for the next superstar chef. Molly is the founder of fine-dining private chef service byMölly, which she runs with her partner Charlotte Drew.

Molly's culinary journey began at French restaurant Kendell's Bistro, where she worked her way up to head chef and was the first woman to win Chef of the Year at the Oliver Awards in 2017.

After a stint working at a triple AA Rosette restaurant in Liverpool, she returned home in November 2019 where she worked for an agency and was posted to Leeds Playhouse. The idea for ByMolly was sparked on a bike ride in Roundhay during the first lockdown – and the business has grown a fiercely loyal client base.

The new series began on Monday, and Molly will be judged by Monica Galetti, Marcus Wareing and Gregg Wallace for the first time on Tuesday October 31.

After announcing the news on social media, Molly said: “Myself and Charlotte just want to say a huge thank you for all the support, love, kind words and messages we received after announcing that I’m going to be on this years MasterChef UK the professionals! We were simply blown away yet again by all of the support so thank you.

"We’re both so truly grateful and count ourselves very lucky and blessed to have the following and support that we do.”