MasterChef The Professionals 2023: Meet the award-winning Leeds chef appearing 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.

Working in kitchens since she was 12, Molly started her journey to becoming a chef at a local French Bistro, she then worked at Kendell’s Bistro in Leeds and The Vincent and Wine & Wallop.

Speaking to the BBC, she said: “As a child my mum was always working so I wanted to cook a nice meal for her to come home to. I didn’t want her having microwave meals so taught myself how to cook proper food. I just loved it from the off. It was the only thing that felt natural to me and I was good at it. I knew that was my path.

“I spent so many years in a French Bistro learning classic French food and this is still a huge part of my cooking. My style is hugely varied when it comes to my food business but as a whole it’s fine dining with a Molly twist. I want it to be accessible though – not overly intricate - just really good food, great flavours and appealing presentation.”

A massive Leeds United fan, Molly met her partner Charlotte while playing the sport and was the first woman to win Chef of the Year at the Oliver Awards in 2017.

Excited to compete on the newest season of MasterChef: The Professionals, she said: “I’ve cooked for as long as I can remember and I just love what I do. I want to see what I’m capable of and I want to inspire other young chefs - especially young females.

“You don’t have to come to from the best backgrounds to make something good out of yourself.”

The new series of the hit BBC show began last Monday (October 23), and Molly will be judged by Monica Galetti, Marcus Wareing and Gregg Wallace for the first time tonight (Tuesday October 31).