A HEREFORDSHIRE celebrity is among the new crop of famous faces who will be hoping to win the Celebrity MasterChef trophy.

Coronation Street actress Melissa Johns, who got her first taste of acting in the Ledbury Amateur Dramatic Society panto when she was eight will be joining Happy Mondays star Bez, Strictly Come Dancing professional Johannes Radebe and actress Su Pollard to take part in the upcoming series of Celebrity MasterChef, it has been announced.

Writing on social media, the actress – who is also the co-founder of Triple C, a collective of disabled and non-disabled creatives, focused on changing access to the arts for everyone with a disability and working towards better representation of artists/performers with disabilities in the industry – said she makes a "BANGING crisp sandwich."

Joining them in the BBC One show are TV star Joe Swash, Blue singer Duncan James, Britain’s Got Talent finalist and comedian Nabil Abdulrashid and The Great British Sewing Bee judge Patrick Grant.

Broadcast over six weeks, the celebrities will also tackle a new series of cookery challenges, with renowned chefs including Tom Kerridge, Nisha Katona, Nieves Barragan Mohacho and more appearing as special guest judges.

This year’s crop of 20 celebrities, joined again by MasterChef judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace, also includes comedian Munya Chawawa, Melanie Sykes, former EastEnders actress Rita Simons, singer and reality TV star Megan McKenna and Penny Lancaster.

The Repair Shop’s Will Kirk is also among the contestants, along with TV star Katie Price, ex-England footballer Dion Dublin and journalist and author Gavin Esler.

Hoping to impress with their culinary skills will also be Paralympic champion Kadeena Cox, Love Island star Kem Cetinay and actress Michelle Collins.

Series editor Katie Attwood said: “This year’s line-up promises a huge amount of humour and entertainment. Lockdown has proved productive for our famous faces’ culinary skills and we are set to see some exceptional talent and astonishing dishes as the celebrities swap their day jobs for a spot in the MasterChef kitchen.”

Sarah Clay, commissioning editor for the BBC, said: “Celebrity MasterChef is one the highlights of the British summertime schedule and this series is as entertaining and charming as ever.

“The 20 brave celebrities are joined by a host of chefs at the top of their game in brand new tasks which makes this year feel extra special. The standard of cooking is like nothing we have seen before.”

The 2020 series of Celebrity MasterChef was won by Irish-Iraqi broadcaster and YouTube star Riyadh Khalaf.

Celebrity MasterChef, produced by Shine TV, will return to BBC One this summer.