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Rylan Clark-Neal's 'Ready Steady Cook' reboot to feature blind contestant

Rylan Clark-Neal said he "learnt" from the contestant, Alex. (BBC/Endemol/ Graeme Hunter)
Rylan Clark-Neal said he "learnt" from the contestant, Alex. (BBC/Endemol/ Graeme Hunter)

The Rylan Clark-Neal fronted Ready Steady Cook reboot will feature a first for the show as it welcomes a blind contestant.

The host has shared that he and others on the show, which is set to broadcast next month, were able to "learn things" from participant Alex Pepper.

“Alex is fully blind and was just ­unbelievable in the kitchen," he told The Mirror.

Read more: Rylan Clark-Neal and Gary Barlow bury the hatchet

“He wasn’t treated any differently to any other contestant. The first thought I had was, ignorantly, how is he going to get on with the chopping? How is he going to get on with the gas hob? Is it going to be dangerous? Absolutely not, because there’s little things we learnt from him.”

Rylan Clark-Neal is fronting the cookery show's revival with help from new chefs. (BBC/Endemol/Graeme Hunter)
Rylan Clark-Neal is fronting the cookery show's revival with help from new chefs. (BBC/Endemol/Graeme Hunter)

The presenter has also added in a tweet that the contestant’s guide dog, River, "may have stolen the show".

The new crop of professional chefs on hand to help out the contestants through the challenges include Mike Reid, Romy Gill, Akis Petretzikis, Ellis Barrie and Anna Haugh.

It's been over a decade since the programme was on TV, then hosted by Ainsley Harriott who had taken over from Fern Britton in 2000.

Parts of the show have been updated to reflect modern concerns as the plastic bags used in the show's original run have been replaced with reusable tote bags.

There's a new crop of famous chefs to help out. (BBC/Endemol /Graeme Hunter)
There's a new crop of famous chefs to help out. (BBC/Endemol /Graeme Hunter)

The ingredients used by contestants will also have been sourced locally and sustainably and single-use plastic will also be avoided in favour of glass jar and bottles.

Clark-Neal said in a statement back in December: “One of the biggest sustainability issues we face is from food and packaging waste, so Ready Steady Cook is being brought bang up to date to play its part in tackling this. It’s going to be goodbye plastic bags and hello jute totes when we hit screens in the New Year. I can’t wait to get stuck in!”

Ready Steady Cook starts on BBC One at 4.30pm on 2 March.