Celebrity MasterChef left you with a newfound respect for Domino’s but slightly worried about the NHS.

In the second heat, Gregg Wallace and John Torode set up a pizza-making challenge for the week’s five contestants: Alex George (the A&E doctor from Love Island 2018), Jenny Ryan (The Vixen from The Chase), Dom Parker (known from Gogglebox), comedian Josie Long, and Mim Shaikh (a BBC Radio 1Xtra presenter who made a surprising exit when the judges controversially chose to retain a Love Island alum).

A&E doctor Alex George came across as a friendly guy (as he did on Love Island), though his professional competence occasionally seemed questionable (again, as on Love Island).

Novice: With an overuse of tomato puree and opting for cheddar over mozzarella… it appeared that Love Island’s doctor Alex George was unfamiliar with the pizza-making process on Celebrity MasterChef.

Admittedly, nothing compared to his most alarming trait in the villa last summer: his propensity to get sunburn. This went on for weeks – leaving his shoulders and face in particular consistently so sore he was literally painful to look at and virtually glowing.

If you were rushed into A&E on Friday night with a medical emergency, would you really want to be treated by a doctor who couldn’t operate a bottle of Factor 50?

To be fair at least Alex took the show in his stride, remaining calm even working in the kitchen of London’s Baptiste Grill. 

Unlike a lot of contestants, he (commendably) never suggested the ‘pressure’ of cooking on Celebrity Masterchef was worse than his job.

On the down side, the pizza he made was… weird.

Problems: To be fair at least Alex took the show in his stride, but the pizza he made was… weird

It seemed like a relatively straightforward challenge but the way Gregg Wallace and John Torode acted, you’d think they had invented pizza, or were at least connoisseurs.

‘A pizza is an absolutely adored meal isn’t it?!’ bellowed Gregg at the five bewildered chefs. ‘It’s pretty much universal.’

Yes we know. 

‘We want something that’s not sloppy in the middle,’ explained Torode. ‘With toppings that go together.’

I’m pretty sure literally everyone watching at home knew what a pizza should look like, and what you could – or couldn’t – put on them.

Nonetheless, Torode raved about Mim’s as if it were haute cuisine.

Relaxed: To be fair at least Alex took the show in his stride, remaining calm even working in the kitchen of London’s Baptiste Grill

Trust: A&E doctor Alex George seemed like a nice bloke (as he did on Love Island) but didn’t always inspire complete confidence when you thought of him professionally (ditto)

‘The cheese across the top is quite salty and sharp!’ he pontificated, which was funny because when he asked what type of cheese had chosen, Shaikh didn’t know.

Gregg Wallace went even further.

‘I LIKE the richness of the tomato puree!’ he cried, even though it was straight out of a tube.

As for Dr. Alex George’s creation, you had to wonder if he’d seen many pizzas before.

The size and depth of his dough was more like a Frisbee than even the cheapest abomination from a supermarket freezer.

Alex then, inexplicably, covered this with far too much passata but hardly anything else.  

The worst: Alex’s effort was definitely better than Josie Long’s effort, a ragged mess that resembled something she’d fished out of the bin

His topping consisted of only two or three mushrooms and a few weedy slithers of pepperoni that looked decidedly lonely stuck in the red sea of tomato, which was clearly dry and over-cooked.

Worst of all, when it came to the type of cheese for his topping, Alex had selected cheddar, which had a crumbly quality that only made it even dryer. 

The fact Alex didn’t know/work out that pizzas have mozzarella seemed bizarre and possibly didn’t speak volumes for his decision-making.

Perhaps he liked cheddar cheese and passata on his pizza, but it didn’t look very appetising. It was definitely better than Josie Long’s effort, a ragged mess that resembled something she’d fished out of the bin.

‘I like your ingredients !’ roared Wallace, referring to Alex’s completely standard selection of mushroom, pepperoni, and (cheddar) cheese.

Loser: ‘I like your ingredients !’ roared Wallace, referring to Alex’s completely standard selection of mushroom, pepperoni, and (cheddar) cheese, as Josie Long’s (pictured) effort flopped

On the down side, the judges reiterated his dough and puree were terrible.

‘I think mixed reviews, wasn’t it?’ suggested Alex with optimism that was admirable but entirely unfounded.

He repeated this trick at the end of the final round too – when it transpired that the middle of his coq au vin wasn’t.

‘It’s just annoying,’ sighed Alex. ‘Because otherwise it would have been a good dish.’

True but Gregg Wallace pointed out one significant minor detail: he couldn’t actually judge the chicken properly – because it wasn’t really safe to eat.

You‘d think that, as a doctor, Alex would have made that his priority.

Reaching: ‘I think mixed reviews, wasn’t it?’ suggested Alex with optimism that was admirable but entirely unfounded