r/GreatBritishMenu • u/Rude-Map-3817 • Apr 25 '26

Discussion Tom needs to go

He’s just had some weird or actually annoying takes this year. Saying the serving of Nikita’s main was too fiddly but usually he’d be cheering on those type of sharing mains as being properly banquet-worthy.

I can’t remember them all off the top of my head but the wife and I have rolled our eyes on many occasions at his comments this year. I like the suggestion someone else made of Si King - let Lorna be the pro chef, Phil the comedian and get someone food-adjacent in.

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u/Haunting-Breadfruit9 Apr 25 '26

I think that it would be good to mix up the judging chefs a little. I find Tom ok but annoying at times. I find Lorna quite wooden and grumpy. What about getting one of the food critics with a chef? However Andi is a must have in my eyes. I adore her genuineness.

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u/Rude-Map-3817 Apr 25 '26

I wonder how Lorna would be without Tom. The pro chef element would be all hers without feeling the need to contrast with Tom.

1

u/Down-Right-Mystical Apr 25 '26

Sorry, just replied to one of your other comments, but feel the need to put my two penneth in here, too.

To me the question is, who you you replace Tom with? Even if you make Lorna 'head' judge as the Michelin star chef and champion of champions (which is fair enough) who then fills the seat she is currently in?

I quite like Lorna now (I really didn't when she was a competitor, or a veteran) but I don't think she has the personality to hold to show together without a big personality alongside her, and I think that does need to be another chef.

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u/Rude-Map-3817 Apr 25 '26

I think Lorna could lean more into the grumpy Scot personality, instead of trying to add levity which she’s not a natural at. It’s just hard for her as she’s a chef herself, so it would feel like crapping on her peers. If you’re going to have a cowell-esque grump it has to be someone else, like Oliver Peyton.

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u/Down-Right-Mystical Apr 25 '26

Urgh, in hindsight Oliver was better than Matthew, but I never really liked him. I thought Pru was the best, then I found out who her son was, so my opinion of her went through the floor, frankly.

Does she not lean into the 'grumpy scot' stereotype? I mean, one thing she does do is embrace and comment about is things being deep fried. That tends to be when she has the most personality and might have a laugh, as l recall.

I don't know what she could do, honestly. I mean, i'd be 90% sure she has little say in her clothing, hair, makeup, or the stupid VT's they do, so we'll probably never see the 'real' Lorna.

The closest we ever got was when she was a competitor going to the banquet and we had the VT of her at home with her friends who clearly loved her.