British Live Fire Cooking Championships 2025: A Weekend to Remember

This year marked the second edition of the British Live Fire Cooking Championships, hosted in the spectacular setting of Ludlow Castle as part of the Ludlow Food Festival. From the 12th to the 14th of September, our three finalists, David Hill, Adam Lloyd, and Nick Smith, went head-to-head live on stage to compete for the title of British Live Fire Cooking Champion.

Hosted by the ever-charismatic DJ BBQ, the judging panel across the weekend featured some of the UK’s most exciting food talent, including TV chef Jeremy Pang, Matblak, Murf from The Beefy Boys, Mike Warner, and Sam & Shauna of Hang Fire BBQ. Regular judge Adam Purnell (Shropshire Lad) joined all three rounds, bringing his experience and passion for fire cooking to the table.

Meet Our Finalists

Round One – Signature Burger

We kicked off with a live fire staple: the Signature Burger. A fierce round, especially with burger royalty Murf from The Beefy Boys on the judging panel, joined by Mike Warner, a passionate advocate for British seafood.

David Hill served up a Thai green king prawn and lobster burger, a unique seafood twist in a meat-heavy round.
Nick Smith presented the bold and inventive Bombay Boti Burger: spiced Suffolk hogget, Bombay potato hash, banana chutney, and a masala waffle bun, served with tandoori corn and a kachumber salad.
Adam Lloyd took the classic route with a homemade ribeye cheeseburger, hand-minced and paired with a dirty onion & marrow chutney, pickles, and homemade ketchup.

Contestants had 15 minutes to light their fires, followed by 30 minutes to cook. With the sun setting over Ludlow Castle, the atmosphere was electric as the crowd counted down to the start. The tension peaked in a nail-biting finish, with dishes landing on the judges’ table just in time.

Round Two – Surf & Turf

The pressure ramped up in Round Two: Surf & Turf. Scores from Round One carried over, and the contestant with the lowest total after this round would be eliminated. Judged by the legendary Matblak, Jeremy Pang, and Adam Purnell, this round demanded flavour, finesse, and timing.

David & Louise Hill paid tribute to Kadai’s heritage with a fire-cooked Indian Surf & Turf: king prawns and steak served with a silky tikka sauce.
Nick & Luis went Thai-style with Gai Yang spatchcock poussin, mussels, clams, and black tiger prawns in a red curry, served with jasmine rice and a samphire Som Tum salad.
Adam Lloyd & Tom Atkinson created a trio of Surf & Turf tacos: Denver steak, grilled monkfish, and smoked mushrooms, all with homemade tortillas pressed and grilled on the fire.

After another race against the clock, the judges deliberated, and with just a few points between them, Adam & Tom were sadly eliminated, placing 3rd overall. The crowd erupted in support as David & Nick advanced to the final.

Round Three – The Final: “One Country, Two Dishes”

The final round took place under dramatic skies and heavier rain. With parts of the festival evacuated due to the weather, Ludlow Castle became a moody but magical backdrop. Only those in the Inner Bailey remained, creating what might just be the first-ever Castle Lock-In! Judges Sam & Shauna joined Adam Purnell for the final round, while DJ BBQ kept spirits high with his signature energy and crowd work.

David & Louise took a big swing with a Sunday Roast and fire-cooked apple crumble, even using the Kadai Rotisserie for the first time. Their trio of meats, rotisserie chicken, pork, and sirloin, were served with Yorkshire puddings, cauliflower cheese, and all the trimmings.
Nick & Luis stayed local with two dishes inspired by Britain:

Cumberland Tatie Pot: pork neck, smoked black pudding, fire-roasted veg, and milk stout gravy.
Toffee Apple Crumble: cider-glazed Pink Lady apples with pine nut crumble and Maldon sea salt butterscotch.

Despite having a full hour to cook, the tension was intense. As the crowd counted down the final 10 seconds, David was still plating, just making it to the table in time.

After a final round of scoring, the total points across all three rounds were tallied. Nick Smith was crowned the British Live Fire Cooking Champion 2025, earning the golden ticket to compete at the World Food Championships in America this October.

Thank You

Huge congratulations to Nick & Luis for taking the title, and to David & Louise and Adam & Tom for claiming 2nd and 3rd place respectively. Each finalist brought incredible energy, creativity, and passion to the stage.

To everyone who came along, cheered, cooked, judged, filmed, supported, and stood in the rain with a pint in hand, thank you. This is just the beginning of something special.