A Leeds chef who is competing for a place in the final of Masterchef: The Professionals has issued a rallying cry ahead of his appearance on the BBC show tonight (Thursday).
Father-of-one Jonathan Hawthorne, who is the head chef at Leeds city centre restaurant Vice and Virtue, is one step away from earning a place in the final of the prestigious cooking programme.
Earlier this week, he told LeedsLive he has put "years of hard work, sacrifice and dedication" into his career - and now he has delivered a message to his army of fans in Leeds.
Posting to more than 100,000 people in the Facebook community group, leedsplace, he said: "So this is it, all the marbles, all the chips thrown in, I’m going for broke.
"I’m going to do my best to get Leeds/Yorkshire in to the finals. Let’s go get this."
There are two challenges for tonight's semi-finalists.
First, they are given an invention test, in which the contestants must cook up two dishes to serve up to Michelin-starred chef Andrew Wong.
Only one of the four chefs will be given a straight pass to the final, as the others will be tasked with coming up with a two-course signature menu of an exceptional standard.
As intense as the experience has been so far, Jonathan - more commonly known as Jono - has remained laid back.
He said: "I’m just having fun and being myself. What you see is what you get, I’m just Jono from Leeds that can cook a few bits and pieces."
Masterchef: The Professionals is on BBC One at 9pm on Thursday.
