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Appearing on MasterChef was such an honour. I still pinch myself as I find it hard to believe that I was chosen out of so many applicants. Naturally, there was no shortage of Tweeters dismissing my acceptance onto the show as being based purely on my looks and not on my cooking ability. But the majority of comments were undeniably supportive, which is really quite something, reflecting the enormous amount of effort we all put into the show.

As we got through the rounds, exhaustion began to take its toll, though I always had the overwhelming temptation to get stuck into a cookbook and do more research ready for each new challenge. Every day we were asked to create and develop new menus. At times my brain was awash with a variety of ideas and flavour combinations.

There was always that desperation to do something very different or outrageous to secure a place in the next round, but you never know how early on in the contest to unveil your most precious ideas. I treated every day as potentially my last, so I tried to pull complex techniques out of the bag whenever I had the chance - in case that chance was my last. When I decided to do my 'whisky balls' in the circus challenge, part of me wondered if it was too early on to be demonstrating this type of , but it ended up paying off as mine and Annie's dishes were voted as the best that day.Ìý

I was disappointed to leave the contest when I did. I thought I stood a good chance at winning, especially after having such a strong round the previous week. I now hope to pursue a career in TV and with food. I enjoyed filming so much and feel blessed to have worked with and met such amazing chefs along the way. The contestant who surprised me the most was James. For a guy who's a little rough around the edges, he is technically one of the most competent cooks I've met and possesses a huge amount of food knowledge. With regards to flair, it goes without saying that Tim has this natural ability to draw you into his dishes. He has an artistic personality and he was also an absolute pleasure to be around. The contestant who I find the most intriguing is Tom. His is love of offal and his knowledge of how to treat ingredients is phenomenal; he's a very skilled cook indeed.

I have decided to give up the modeling after the final. I will also forfeit my Miss Swansea title as of next month as I am getting married to my fiancé Christopher, father of my little boy Charlie. Chris is himself a grocer, owner of the largest independent chain of supermarkets in Wales.

John and Gregg have been great to work with. They were a couple of tough cookies though. You didn't get away with anything if you slipped up. You would pay the price. No exceptions...

Alice Taylor is a contestant on ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ One's MasterChef.