Kitchen NIGHTMARE!

Call the Midwife’s CLIFF PARISI on miraculously avoiding disaster on Celebrity MasterChef…

Best known as Call the Midwife’s versatile odd-job man Fred Buckle, Cliff Parisi turns his hand to a new challenge this week as he shows off his culinary skills on BBC1’s Celebrity MasterChef.

Joining Cliff in the kitchen for the second heat are choirmaster Gareth Malone, former boxing champion Chris Eubank, All Saints singer Melanie Blatt and reality star Queen MoJo. They’re all hoping to impress judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace with their mouth-watering meals.

In an exclusive interview with TV Times, Cliff, 62, talks cold baked-bean sandwiches, ideal dinner guests and his dream of appearing on Strictly…

What made you want to take part in Celebrity MasterChef? I’ve always cooked but my wife Tara is a better cook than me and since I’ve been married [Cliff and Tara tied the knot in 2010], I haven’t really cooked that much. She says I make too much mess, but I’ve missed creating stuff. So I thought I could get in the MasterChef kitchen and make as much mess as I like!

How would you describe your cooking style? I would say I’m a BIG cook. My food is big, bad and filling – I like bold flavours, and really earthy, homely meals. That’s me. I don’t like particularly healthy foods – but if you want a tasty curry, come and see me!

Do you have a signature dish? I have a few. I do a mean shepherd’s pie and I’m fabulous with a Sunday roast and a cooked breakfast.