BBC MasterChef presenter Gregg Wallace is the latest addition to the menu of a New Forest food event.

The organisers of the first New Forest Food & Drink Festival (October 31-November 6) have announced that Gregg will be appearing at Rhinefield House Hotel, near Brocknehurst, on November 3.

Gregg, who started his career as a Covent Garden greengrocer, will be sharing the best stories from his Peckham childhood – he left school at 14 to start his career in fruit and veg – as well as giving the inside track on what it’s like to be a TV star.

In 1989 he started George Allan’s Greengrocers, which he built up to a business with an annual turnover of £7.5 million.

Based on his business success, Gregg was invited to co-present Veg Talk on BBC Radio 4 with Charlie Hicks.

From radio he made the move to TV and was the original presenter of Saturday Kitchen in 2002.

In 2005 he moved to primetime TV to present MasterChef with John Torode.

The series has spawned three spin-offs including Celebrity MasterChef which the pair also present.

His other TV projects include Eat Well for Less, also on BBC.

Anthony Climpson, chairman of the festival, said: “We are delighted that Rhinefield House is hosting an evening with Gregg Wallace as part of our Festival Week.

“We are all big fans of MasterChef and Gregg’s style in particular – we’re expecting the evening to be a lot of fun.”

Festival chiefs says the evening has been arranged so that Gregg can meet as many of his guests as possible, starting off with a welcome drinks reception and an opportunity to chat to him, and then a four-course dinner.

Gregg, 51, will discuss the course as it is served and answer any questions throughout the meal before taking questions and posing for photos.

The festival has 15 themes and the Rhinefield House evening goes under the banner of ‘Tastes of the Forest’.

Other themed meals include ‘Heritage’, ‘Artisan’ and ‘Charcuterie’ meal at the Lime Wood boutique hotel, near Lyndhurst, on October 31 when each will feature home cured and smoked meats or salmon from the hotel’s own smoke house.

The historic Master Builder’s Hotel on the Beaulieu River will be celebrating the area’s coastline and seafood with five-course lunch on the theme of ‘Forest Fish & Fruits of our Sea’ on November 4 and there will be ‘A Mad Hatters’ Tea Party’ to celebrate the ‘Future Forest Foodies’ theme at the Beaulieu Hotel on November 5.

For more information and to book tickets visit thenewforest.co.uk/newforestfoodfest.