'Grandad inspired my Masterchef-winning dish'

Dan Merriman, who works in Blackburn, was named the show's 2024 winner

Masterchef: The Professionals winner Dan Merriman has said his final dessert was inspired by his late grandfather.

The senior sous chef at Black Bull Inn Old Langho, Blackburn, was named the show's 2024 winner on Thursday night.

Mr Merriman, who lost his mother and father at a young age, was brought up by his grandparents.

He said if his grandfather were alive to see him win - in part with the blackcurrant cassis mousse he inspired - he would have been "sitting on the sofa singing his heart out".

The 29-year-old said: "Everything I've been though has made me the person I am today."

He added: "[My grandfather] would be incredibly proud."

Mr Merriman, who lives in Accrington, said his final main course - ex-dairy beef cooked in beef fat and smoked butter - was inspired by fellow Blackburn chef Lisa Goodwin-Allen from Northcote's.

With the win under his belt, Mr Merriman said he felt it was his "time to fly" and that he wanted to establish "his own space" with "his own team".

He added: "I've worked in the industry for 13 years, I've really put in the hours.

"I feel like it's my time to do my own thing and see where I can take myself."