The new Celebrity Masterchef judge revealed she cut one thing out of her life after eating around 4,000 calories by 10am
Grace Dent made a major lifestyle change before her gig as a judge on Celebrity MasterChef. The 52-year-old food critic is joining the 2025 season of the cooking show, which kicks off on 17 November, as a regular judge. But more than a year before becoming the new face of MasterChef, Grace revealed she made a change behind the scenes after eating around 4,000 calories by 10am.
"Being a restaurant critic means your body doesn't belong to you, it belongs to the newspaper really. There is always thousands, and thousands, and thousands of calories coming," the star explained on the Glad We Had This Chat podcast in July 2024. She continued: "Yesterday, when I was at the restaurant, I'd eaten at least 4,000 calories by 10am. It's perilously easy to do that, a big stack of pancakes, a really lovely latte and then trying another course, and then things in brioche, a little trifle, and there you go, 4,000. People who know me say it's either a feast or like being with a giant squirrel."
After years of dieting, the critic shared on the podcast that she had decided to give up alcohol. She said: "I'm three years sober. I think three years ago I realised I couldn't outrun my diet, no matter how much I walked." Grace said that shortly after giving up alcohol her weight had "started to drop right off".
Grace will be the new judge of MasterChef season 22 alongside Anna Haugh. The duo will replace John Torode and Gregg Wallace. Grace opened up about her new role as a judge on Masterchef on HELLO!'s official podcast, Second Act. "I can't believe that I'm presenting MasterChef, because this isn't just a TV gig," Grace told podcast host Ateh Jewel. "This is one of the most important shows in British television - on primetime, on BBC One. That changes people's lives."
"I've always dreamed of presenting. It's been incredible. We've filmed one season, we filmed a season of Celebrity MasterChef. I had so much fun. I can't believe they're paying me." She continued: "Look, I've been watching that show and all of its different forms since I was a little girl, so to now be standing there when all those contestants walk in, it's a dream come true. I'm quite emotional. Gosh, I never get emotional."