With London and the South East flexing its culinary muscles last week, it's time to head to the north of England and see what gastronomic delights this week's chefs can come up with. In this year's Great British Menu competition, two of the chefs actually work in the North East while the other is originally from there, but now heads up a restaurant in London – all three are new to the competition too. Take a look at how they got to where they are today and see which one you think will make it to the final week.

Samira has worked at a number of different restaurants across the UK during her career, and she's risen through the ranks quickly thanks to her culinary skills. She was a sous chef at The Idle Rocks in Cornwall before moving to Alimentum in Cambridge. After a brief stint as head chef there before the owners decided to close it, she was recommended by Daniel Clifford to Simon Gueller, who was looking for a head chef at The Box Tree in Ilkley, Yorkshire. That's where she's been cooking since late last year, where she continued to serve up her accomplished dishes in a bid to regain the restaurant its Michelin star. Samira announced she was leaving The Box Tree in March 2019, without any news of where she'll end up next.

Originally from Durham, Tom Anglesea has been making waves in London's food scene ever since he opened The Laughing Heart in Hoxton a few years ago. The trendy wine bar vibe is bolstered by some fantastic cooking that takes inspiration from all over the world, attracting serious foodies from across the capital (and beyond). Before The Laughing Heart, Tom worked at Per Se in New York, Rockpool in Australia and as part of the Gordon Ramsay Group, so he has some serious pedigree behind him.

Michael is Yorkshire born and bred and until recently was the head chef at the highly respected Restaurant 92 in Harrogate until it closed in January this year. Before then, he rose through the ranks of the Gordon Ramsay Group, was part of the team that won a Michelin star at Driftwood Hotel in Cornwall and worked at Alyn Williams at The Westbury. Back in his native Yorkshire, he made his name at the acclaimed Van Zeller.