Fans of Saturday Kitchen were left confused as they noticed Matt Tebutt absent from the studio during the latest instalment of the BBC cookery show.
The chef, 50, has been regularly hosting the show after the departure of James Martin and has been known for presenting shows including Food Unwrapped and Drop Down Menu. Despite many regular viewers tuning into the show this morning, May 18, hoping to be amused by his kitchen antics, Matt was nowhere to be seen. Much to the disappointment of some fans, it was revealed that he had been replaced by Irish television personality Donal Skehan.
Opening the show, Donal said: "I have been handed the keys to the best kitchen in the land and it's filled with brilliant food, drinks, and guests all ready to get the party started."He was joined in the kitchen by Sabrina Ghayour, Jack Stein, Eddie Izzard, and Olly Smith.
While Matt's absence wasn't explained to viewers this morning, the TV star later revealed to his Instagram followers that he has taken a short break from the show to headline the Ballymaloe Food Festival this weekend, which runs from May 17th to 19th. The food festival is packed with fun activities for food lovers - including a mix of guest chefs, cooking demos, and pop-up dining events. Just this morning Matt shared a picture of the grounds at Ballymaloe House and in the caption wrote: "Calm before the storm. If you know you know."
However, viewers were left baffled after noticing Matt's disappearance from the studio. Taking to X, a confused fan wrote: "#Saturdaykitchen Where's Matt today." Meanwhile, another person penned: "Well that’s ruined my Saturday morning #saturdaykitchen sorry I have to turn off ."
Others were left delighted at the change to the show. One viewer said: "Great to see the lovely @SabrinaGhayour on @SaturdayKitchen #SaturdayKitchen Looks like we have an amazing feast in store as she is celebrating 10 years of her first best-selling cookbook Persiana." A second added: "The gorgeous Donal Skehan on #SaturdayKitchen now. With the amazing @SabrinaGhayour."
Last week, the show was in chaos after fans were alarmed when a guest slipped up with their approach to handling raw meat. While preparing a duck, viewers were left sickened after former Hakkasan chef Tong Chee grabbed a dishcloth to dry the skin of the meat while it was still raw and uncooked. He then left the dishcloth on top of the kitchen counter - and reached for it later to dry his hands in between preparing ingredients for other recipes.