'Come Dine With Me' launches first professionals series

Come Dine With Me has launched its first professionals version of the cooking contest, visiting a number of different UK cities to check out what their chefs have to offer.

The Channel 4 competition usually sees amateur cooks host their idea of the perfect dinner party at home, with each contestant taking their turn over a week and the winner, voted for by their competitors, handed a cash prize on the final night.

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Come Dine With Me: The Professionals features pairs of restaurateurs from three different eateries in each city it visits.

They'll host the others at their restaurant and try to convince them that they provide the best eating out experience in town, with a £1,000 prize up for grabs each time.

Locations included in the first professionals series include Glasgow, Cardiff, Newcastle, Nottingham, Bristol, Leeds, Liverpool, Birmingham, London and Manchester.

Contestants will get to show off their own cuisine and entertainment, with contestants including a disco-themed restuarant, Lebanese street food, gastro pubs, Italian menus, Indian dishes and tapas feasts.

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As fans of the main Come Dine With Me series will know, the drama rarely ends in the kitchen as the show is known for its contestants developing rivalries over the course of the week.

In one notorious episode from 2016, a contestant called Peter prompted an awkward silence when he told his rival Jane after she won: "What a sad little life, Jane. Enjoy the money. I hope now you will spend it on getting some lessons in grace and decorum, because you have all the grace of a reversing dump truck without any tyres on."

The series is narrated by Dave Lamb, who provides witty comments about the cooking and hosting skills on show.

Other versions of the contest have included a number of popular celebrity episodes, and Couples Come Dine With Me.

Come Dine With Me: The Professionals is currently airing from Monday to Friday at 5pm on Channel 4.

Watch: Come Dine With Me contestant serves up deep-fried caviar starter