| MasterChef | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Created by | Franc Roddam |
| Original work | MasterChef (British TV series) |
| Owner | Banijay Entertainment |
| Years | 1990–2001, 2005–present |
| Films and television | |
| Television series | MasterChef (independent international versions, see below and other versions) |
| Miscellaneous | |
| Genre | Cooking show |
| First aired | 2 July 1990 (original format) 21 February 2005 (revived format) |
| Last aired | 3 July 2001 (original format) |
MasterChef is a competitive cooking show television format created by Franc Roddam, which originated with the UK version in July 1990. The show aims to discover the culinary talent of chefs of varying skill levels, through a series of cooking challenges, watched over by various acclaimed food critics and chefs. Dave Ross commissioned the show for the BBC and gave it the name; he had already produced Masterteam, a quiz with Angela Rippon, and worked on Mastermind, and so the name was a continuation of that. The format was revived and updated for the BBC in February 2005 by executive producers Roddam and John Silver with series producer Karen Ross.
The revived format is sold internationally by Banijay. Its first international adaptation was MasterChef Australia, which began in 2009. The show has since been adapted in several other countries.