Three of the UK’s most renowned chefs are going back to catering college. Tom Kitchin, Theo Randall and Michel Roux Jr are each looking for a young student to take under their wing, someone they can mentor and inspire, who can eventually become their protege.

All week, Michelin-starred chef Tom Kitchin has been on a search for a student with promise that he can help rise to the challenge of being his apprentice. He has spent time at his old catering college in Perth and from seven hopefuls he is now down to the best three.

With bonds beginning to form, the students are invited to cook at The Kitchin, Tom’s Michelin starred Edinburgh restaurant. Here they are each challenged to cook one of his signature dishes for a special lunch service attended by Tom’s closest and most trusted restaurant colleagues.

Throwing them in at the deep end Tom has not chosen the simplest options on his menu, including a razor clam starter that cannot be cooked until the very last minute; a complex lamb main and a fresh but intricate desert using seasonal fruit – there is a lot at stake for them to get it right. The exacting chef shows his young students how to prep, cook and plate his Michelin-starred dishes before stepping back and hoping that his enthusiasm and passion for food has rubbed off. With everything pinned on this final task the three aspiring chefs must take control and do their best not to buckle under the pressure.

In the end though Tom is looking for just one apprentice and today he must lose another student from the running and decide which two to take through to continue in the hope of becoming The Chef’s Protege.

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Three of the UK’s most renowned chefs are going back to catering college. Tom Kitchin, Theo Randall and Michel Roux Jr are each looking for a young student to take under their wing, someone they can mentor and inspire, who can eventually become their protege.

The fourth episode continues with Michelin-starred chef Tom Kitchin’s search as he takes his four shortlisted students from his old catering college in Perth to cook at the exclusive venue just outside Edinburgh, Melville Castle.

The castle, which used to be Mary Queen of Scot’s hunting lodge, will see the aspiring young chefs really be put to the test as Tom introduces them to his favourite ingredients – Scottish game. With rabbit, duck, wood pigeon and wild fruit on the menu the students are inspired by Tom’s enthusiasm about the local produce but with rival chefs Michel Roux Jr and Theo Randall arriving for lunch their excitement soon turns to nerves.

In the kitchen the students begin creating their four-course lunch but when cooking for two of the most distinguished chefs in the UK preparing pasta and putting together a salad can seem more daunting that it would normally. Despite the pressure the hopeful apprentices are buoyed by Tom’s words of advice and they do their best to rise to the occasion.

With Tom’s reputation on the line, he can only hope his chosen four impress and that Theo and Michel’s scrutiny of the competition gives them food for thought for their own search.

Come the end of the day Tom must make the hard decision as to who has impressed the most and lived up to his expectations as one student will be going home – only three students will stay on in the hope of becoming his protege.

Three of the UK’s most renowned chefs are going back to catering college. Tom Kitchin, Theo Randall and Michel Roux Jr are each looking for a young student to take under their wing, someone they can mentor and inspire, who can eventually become their protege.

Tonight, Michelin-starred chef Tom Kitchin continues his search. In his last day at Perth College in Scotland where he himself trained, Tom puts his five chosen students through their paces as he decides who will continue under his tutelage.

Tom’s own mentor was world famous chef Pierre Koffmann who taught him that a protege not only needs skill but the ability to take on board what the mentor is trying to teach. With this in mind Tom asks the hopeful students to cook their favourite dish before suggesting how he would improve them.

Showing that flavour and seasoning can make the difference between good and outstanding food and why too many ingredients can over complicate a dish, Tom gives the young chefs food for thought. Fondant potatoes are ditched, carrots replaced with parsnips and red berries given preference over caramel in attempt to refine their food.

Inspiring with his Michelin-starred standards, the ambitious five must take on board Tom’s comments and amend their dishes before cooking their improved creations for customers in service at the college training restaurant.

At the end of the show Tom must decide which student will leave and which four he will take through to the next stage.

With over 100 shops closing a week, is it high noon for the high street? Mary thinks not, so took on the challenge of coming up with a 28-Point Plan, the Portas Review, to help breathe new life into the high street. She always knew there was no quick fix and it would be far from easy – the task at hand is just too huge – but she knew that getting communities involved in Town Teams, and passing some power back to local people, was at the heart of any possible solution.

In this episode, the quintessential seaside town, Margate, is the focus. They received a £100,000 Government grant to help its high street…and, boy, does it need it.

Margate’s high street has suffered terribly in recent years with 1 in 4 shops closing down. However, it’s not all doom and gloom. The 17 million pound Turner Gallery has been a roaring success, attracting up to 10000 visitors a week. Mary believes there might be an opportunity to capitalize on this existing footfall – if only visitors could be encouraged up the high street – but from the off things don’t go smoothly.

Margate, like many British seaside towns, has been in decline since the advent of package holidays. As a consequence, it lost some of its main entertainment attractions – Dreamland and Butlins. Mary believes the fun needs to come back to Margate, and thinks one idea might be for the high street to become a centre for socializing and fun activities that really makes the most of its seaside location, and the increased footfall could mean new businesses could spring up off the back of it.

Travel to the seaside town has to be taken into question though and Mary recognises that is can be expensive to get to Margate from London. With this in mind she strikes a deal for cheap train travel, encouraging the rail company to slash the price of the London day-tripper ticket.

Mary also focuses her attention on local shop owner, Billy, whose sweet shop has lost some of its shine over the years. But with its prime location, Mary believes that by transforming Billy’s shop into a souvenir shop that really captures the spirit of Margate, it could also encourage visitors leaving the Turner gallery to travel up the High Street. Calling upon Margate’s most famous artist, Tracy Emin, to assist in coming up with the shop’s new branding, Mary hopes the creatively emblazoned souvenirs at Billy’s new gift shop will hopefully also appeal to the Turner visitor, but only time will tell.

Despite some local resistance, Mary comes up with the idea of an Inland Pier – bringing the traditional attractions of a pleasure pier into the heart of the High street. For one day she wants Margate to trial turning the high street into a destination of fun and entertainment, to try and draw footfall in including the Turner Gallery visitors. She believes that if people see what potential the high street has – it will encourage investment in the future.

Three of the UK’s most renowned chefs are going back to catering college. Tom Kitchin, Theo Randall and Michel Roux Jr are each looking for a young student to take under their wing, someone they can mentor and inspire, who can eventually become their protege.

Tonight, Michelin-starred chef Tom Kitchin continues his quest as he meets three more of his old catering college’s best students. Returning to where he trained, Perth College in Scotland, Tom sets each aspiring chef a simple test to assess their level of skill, their instinct in the kitchen and more importantly what kind of bond he can potentially develop with them.

Before making any further decisions Tom shows the three hopefuls how to cook a dish that reflects his core culinary principles – asparagus with a poached egg and an asparagus jus. Working under Tom’s tutelage the students recreate the dish before he decides who won’t be continuing through to the next stage.

Two of the students will go on to join last night’s successful three, as the five hopefuls move a step closer to becoming The Chef’s Protege.

Three of the UK’s most renowned chefs, Tom Kitchin, Theo Randall and Michel Roux Jr are returning to catering college. They’re each looking for a young student to take under their wing, someone they can mentor and inspire, eventually becoming their protege.

A cooking competition like no other, The Chef’s Protege, centres on the relationship between apprentice and master. Over 20 episodes the series shows the day-to-day reality of the cooking industry and how the masters of today can nurture stars of tomorrow.

Tom, Theo and Michel have all been helped in their careers by someone who believed in them; now they want to give someone the same chance. Each chef has a week to select and train up their strongest candidates before coming together to compete to see who has found the best protege.

With most of the students still in their teens, it is up to the chefs to find a way to teach, inspire and test them without destroying their confidence or ambition – a fine line to tread when the prominent chefs are used to working with resilient professionals in their own kitchens.

This week sees Michelin-starred chef Tom Kitchin begin his search as he returns to Perth College in Scotland where he himself trained. In this first episode he meets four of the college’s best students as he sets them a simple test to assess their level of skill, their instinct in the kitchen and more importantly what kind of bond he can potentially develop with them. Asking the students to prepare scallops using an array of ingredients, including fennel and orange, Tom quickly gets an idea of the type of chefs these youngsters have the potential to be.

The four chefs are then brought together as Tom shows them how to cook a dish that reflects his core culinary principles – maximising flavour with the best Scottish ingredients: a seafood ragout made with seven different types of Scottish seafood. Working under Tom’s tutelage the students recreate the dish before he decides which one will leave the process.

Three students will go through to the next stage, where they will continue to learn and develop their skills, in the hope of becoming The Chef’s Protege.

David Dimbleby chairs the programme from the historic Warwickshire city which sees Business Minister and Liberal Democrat MP for East Dunbartonshire, Jo Swinson; Conservative MP for Haltemprice and Howden and former Shadow Home Secretary, David Davis; Shadow Education Secretary and Labour MP for Stoke-on-Trent, Tristram Hunt; academic and feminist writer Germaine Greer, and former Conservative MP and criminal barrister Jerry Hayes, face questions from the audience.

To apply for a seat in the audience you can register your question at www.bbc.co.uk/questiontime

After an incredible eight weeks of seriously intense challenges Natalie Coleman was awarded her title of MasterChef Champion 2013 by judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace.

Natalie said: “It’s a dream come true! This is probably the best thing that’s ever happened to me in my life. It’s like a fairytale really, the girl from Hackney done good!”

John Torode said: “I think Natalie is destined for great things.  She not only understands finery of great food but she cooks for the people, food that people want to eat. She makes people smile. And she’s not fazed by a thing.

He continued: “She also has a great palate and understands flavour combinations. Natalie’s got it, she is a very very clever woman and her food is fantastic.

Gregg Wallace added: “Natalie is an incredible talent who grew in stature day after day. I don’t think she is fully aware of how good she really is. I love her food because it comes straight form the heart.”

Natalie battled her way from 50 contestants through to the final three (all of whom are under 30 years old) and throughout the final week and alongside other finalists, Cardiffians Dale Williams and Larkin Cen, had to demonstrate her creativity, skill and utter determination as the finalists undertook serious and life changing challenges.

These included: travelling across Italy on a culinary odyssey – from the Amalfi Coast cooking with the legendary rustic cook Mamma Agata, to the world famous Enoteca Pinchiorri in Florence cooking three Michelin star food and delivering dishes that matched the exceptional standards required at this very highest level, then north to Fiesole to cater an elite lunch for the Florentine art world, and the most intimidating challenge set on MasterChef – The Chef’s Table – cooking an exquisite three-course menu designed by two Michelin-starred chef Simon Rogan, for four of the world’s greatest three starred chefs.

The final task was to prepare a three-course meal for judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace. Natalie’s winning menu consisted of a starter of Lobster Tail, accompanied by compressed Fennel, a Fennel puree and shavings, dressed with an Orange gel and Beurre Blanc, and Lobster oil; a main of Roast Pork Belly, Pork Tenderloin and a Black Pudding Quails Scotch Egg, served with a Pomme Puree, Caramalised Shallots and two sauces – an Apple sauce and a Honey Mustard; and a dessert of Vanilla Chocolate Panna Cotta topped with a tempered Bitter Chocolate Tuile with Caramelised Pears and a Trio of Hazelnut Crumble Biscuits.

Natalie, who is now planning her future in food, will first be appearing at the BBC Good Food Show Summer, along with Dale and Larkin, from 12^th- 16^th June.

She said: “I’m really excited that in a few weeks I’m going to be cooking live on stage alongside past winners including Shelina Permalloo, Keri Moss and Anton Piotrowski. My first time in front of a live big audience and to be doing so in front of such a foodie one, is a massive honour. See you there!

Natalie, 29, who calls herself a ‘proper cockney’, was born in Hackney, and then moved to Chingford where she lived with her younger sister and both parents.

“My mum was a housewife, she pretty much gave up most of her life for me and my sister just to look after us. My dad wanted to be a boxer, but now he’s a black cab driver.

Natalie has been cooking for as long as she can remember, helping her nan in the kitchen since she was a young girl.

She said: “From an early age I was brought up around food, I used to spend a lot of time in the kitchen with my nan – she was a fantastic cook. She came from a large northern family, so they used to make the most of what they had. She could turn nothing into something brilliant, she used to make the best corned beef hash pie.

She is also very close to her Irish granddad and has spent the last two years cooking for him.

“I spend a lot of time with my granddad. My nan passed away quite a few years ago and my granddad’s not much of a cook; so I just thought I’d feed him up a bit!

Natalie, whose two favorite things in life are food and music, has been working as a credit controller for 12 years and a DJ for five years, before deciding to pursue her dream of a future in cooking.

“I wanted to be a chef when I was 15, but then I went off the idea and wanted to be a PE teacher, then a fire fighter.. But my mum said as I was good at maths, I should go and do something in finance. I’m quite good at what I do, but it’s not what I love.

From the start of the series, Natalie’s beautifully simple but inspired style delivered stunning flavours and impressive dishes.

John Torode said: “Natalie walked into this competition and we saw the potential; there was a sense between Gregg and I about what Natalie could become.”

Gregg Wallace added: “She’s just full of surprises, she comes up with fantastic, stunningly beautiful dishes.”

Speaking on the highs and lows in the competition, Natalie said: “The low point for me was the Bond Girl challenge, it really stressed me out and sent me into a massive panic.

“Each round you learn something different about yourself and about food. There were just some amazing experiences; things that you never thought you’d get to do! It’s definitely been the hardest thing I’ve ever done. It really makes you believe that this is what I want to do for the rest of my life now.

Of dreams for the future Natalie said: “I want to learn as much as possible under great chefs and possibly go into food writing once I’ve learnt a lot more about food. Depending on how good I get, my own restaurant one day would be amazing….”

Natalie lives in East London.

For further information, pictures or interviews with Natalie please contact Beverly Comboy 020 8995 3936 or bev@plankpr.com

BBC Good Food Show Summer takes place at the NEC, Birmingham, this June. To book tickets to see Natalie, Dale and Larkin visit BBCGoodFoodShow.com call 0844 581 1341.

The new book – MasterChef: The Finalists – is published by Absolute Press in October 2013, £20.00, Hardback. Absolute Press is an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing Plc.