'I can't be only viewer who looks at Celebrity Masterchef line-ups and snorts'

17 August 2023 , 20:31

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Cheryl Hole (Image: BBC /Shine TV)

I’m afraid the normally serene and carefree world of Celebrity MasterChef found itself embroiled in one of those online storms during the week.

The row was sparked by the appearance of drag performer who goes by the stage name Cheryl Hole, and the basic thrust of it would perhaps be best summed up by one concerned parent who posted this direct question to the BBC on the social media network formerly known as Twitter: “If I’m watching Celebrity MasterChef with my 10-year-old daughter and she asks me to explain what’s funny about Cheryl Hole’s stage name, what do you suggest that I tell her?”

I suggest you ask your daughter “Why the hell are you watching Celebrity Masterchef?” Then I’d say “Who the hell is Cheryl Hole?” Let’s face it, in the list of wrongs done by the BBC here, booking someone who is not actually that famous for a TV show with Celebrity in the title should surely be right at the very top.

I know the BBC’s top brass like to think the entire nation is as much in thrall to Ru Paul’s Drag Race as they are, but I am not convinced that is the case. Not that Cheryl was the only contestant to have fallen foul of my celebometer this year. Just this week the arrival of that Welsh bloke from the Go Compare adverts left me wondering whether the BBC’s celebrity bookers had used a price comparison website of appearance fees – and then simply gone with the cheapest quote.

Celebrity MasterChef found itself embroiled in an online storm (Handout)

Nothing against Wynne Evans – or even Cheryl for that matter. But I can’t be the only viewer who looks at the Celebrity Masterchef line-ups these days and then snorts “That first bit won’t take long” each time John Torode says, “We want to strip them of their celebrity status and see if they can cook.”

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Honestly, the bar is now set so low I wouldn’t be surprised to see someone like the late Captain Sir Tom Moore’s daughter on the show next year. If she can afford to take time out from her busy charity work that is.

Ian Hyland