Two Lake District chefs will compete in the 2026 BBC series of Great British Menu.
Jack Bond, head chef and co-owner of Michelin-starred The Cottage in the Wood in Whinlatter, near Keswick, and Paul Leonard, of the Forest Side in Grasmere, will compete in the popular TV series’ North West heats.
They are competing alongside Daniel Heffy from NORD in Liverpool and Exose Grant, of Exose at Home in Manchester, for the chance to show off their skills during finals week and ultimately cook at a banquet for Britain’s movie industry.
The North West heats begin on February 24 at 7pm on BBC Two and iPlayer.
It is Jack’s second appearance in the competition. He won the North West heat last year, but missed out on a place at the banquet.
This year’s theme is movies. With a specific focus on British movies and movie makers, the chefs competing must cook dishes that pay tribute to their region, or film makers and actors from their area.
Andi Oliver presents the series and judges are Tom Kerridge, Lorna McNee and comedian Phil Wang, who replaces Ed Gamble.
Jack, 34, said: ‘’I was really chuffed to make it through to finals week in 2025 as winner of the North West heat.
“I’m hoping to make it through again this year, though I’m sure it won’t be easy, especially being up against three other seriously talented chefs from the region.
“As you can imagine, I was pretty disappointed not to make it through to the banquet, but this year’s a fresh start with a theme that gives us all plenty of options to showcase our creativity, so we’ll just have to see where we end up at the end of the week.’’
Paul said: “It really is such an honour to represent North West England on Great British Menu.
“The region has a really strong identity with incredible produce, and I’m proud to showcase that on a national stage.
“The theme this year was really good fun and definitely got the cogs turning in terms of new and creative ways to present my food.”
