Celebrity MasterChef hopeful Phil Daniels says John and Gregg "helped him" on show

Taking on the challenge this week is actor Phil Daniels, Kingdom Choir conductor Karen Gibson, Hockey star Sam Quek, Drag Race queen Baga Chipz and presenter Dominic Littlewood.

The celebrities will be making dishes in a bid to impress judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace.

But while we're used to seeing the two judges being pretty tough when it comes to dishing out criticism, it sounds like they might have had a little soft spot for Quadrophenia's Phil Daniels.

Speaking to RadioTimes.com, the actor revealed that the judges gave him "constructive criticism" and a little helping hand along the way if he needed it.

"They always helped out a little bit if you was doing it the wrong way and they saw you," he explained.

"John more than Gregg. All you’ve got to do with Gregg is know what he likes and then you’ve got half a chance. He likes puddings doesn’t he!"

Although he did get a little encouragement from the judges, Phil tells us it didn't last long due to the intense pressure in the kitchen.

"I mean the whole things designed to hang on their every word. It’s like you wait and wait and then they both have stoney faces and you think, 'Oh God!' and then they say, 'You done well' so that was good! I got a bit lucky, but it didn’t last long," he said.

Phil admits that he wasn't the best cook before taking on the challenge, saying: "I mean I’ve cooked for myself but I was hoping to take it to the next level. That’s kind of why I did it. I thought maybe they could teach me some things because I was getting a bit stale doing the same things all the time."

So did he learn anything from the MasterChef pros?

"Yeah just use more butter and fatty things. Put cream in everything!" he joked before adding: "It was good fun! It was quite a bit of pressure all the time. It wasn’t as easy, but it was good to sort of try out a new skill. I enjoyed that."

Celebrity MasterChef is on Wednesday July 8th at 9pm and continues on Thursday and Friday at 7.30pm on BBC One. To see what else is on, have a look at our TV Guide.