The National Railway Museum in York hosted a massive 100-person banquet on television screens last night for the semi-final of BBC One’s MasterChef.
The episode, which was filmed in November 2025 and aired on Wednesday 27th May 2026, saw eight semi-finalists battle it out in the museum’s newly revamped Station Hall. Split into three teams, the hopeful chefs had to prepare a high-pressure, three-course celebratory menu designed by top chef and judge Anna Haugh. The food was served to a packed room of 100 railway workers, volunteers, and train enthusiasts under the historic roof of the grand hall.
Station Hall only recently reopened to the public in September 2025 following a massive £11m structural and architectural facelift, timed to coincide with the museum’s 50th birthday celebrations. The huge 6,000-square-meter building has housed the museum’s prized collection of six Royal Train carriages since 1990. It also features major historical exhibits, including a rare 1921 WH Smith bookstall originally from London’s Waterloo Station and the actual funeral wreath from the locomotive that carried Queen Victoria’s coffin in 1901.
Craig Bentley, Director of the National Railway Museum, was among the guests who got to sample the semi-finalists’ dishes on the night.
“It was a real once-in-a-lifetime experience – being served a stunning 3 course meal in such a special location, surrounded by TV cameras. It was a night none of us will ever forget! We were delighted to be given the opportunity to showcase Station Hall so soon after its renovation and bring its beauty and splendour to the MasterChef crew, presenters, chefs and of course audiences at home.”
For those who missed the action on BBC One, the full episode is now available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
