A MAN with only two years' cooking experience has spoken of his dream of opening a restaurant after finishing second in the BBC's Masterchef Goes Large contest.

Mark Todd, who comes from Darlington but now lives in Bath, was always the competition's outsider. But the 26-year old's passion and ability to improvise won over the judges and saw him survive two intense weeks of daily challenges against the clock.

Mr Todd, whose parents are builders Bill and Sandra Todd, of Cockerton, Darlington, lost out to freelance writer Thomasina Miers after a cook-off.

He said: "I learned so much about food and it has motivated me to do what I want to do. It was an amazing experience."

Now he is building on his reputation by working ten-hour Saturday shifts at Bath's Royal Crescent Hotel, as well as keeping up his full-time job as an international sales manager at magazine company Future Publishing.

He hopes to open a restaurant in a Northern city with his fiancee, Esther, from Bath; they met at Birmingham University.

He said: "I cannot afford to stop my full-time job at the moment, but I want to travel to gain experience of food in India, Thailand, America and Mexico."

Mr Todd went to Barnard Castle School and Yarm School, and is a former member of Middlesbrough Rugby Club.