HE came, he saw, he cooked.

But Winchester-born chef Sven-Hanson Britt couldn’t conquer as he crashed out at the final stage of MasterChef: The Professionals last night.

Millions watched as the 26-year-old channelled his Hampshire upbringing to wow the judges of the BAFTA-winning competition for professional cooks.

He has seen off dozens of pretenders over seven weeks of challenges but lost in the final round to St Andrews chef Jamie Scott.

Mr Britt, who cut his teeth as a plate-washer at Banks Bar Bistro in Bishop’s Waltham, is now a sous chef at London’s world-famous Ritz hotel.

He went back to his roots in last night’s final with three dishes inspired by his upbringing with ingredients taken from his own allotment.

His mouth-watering offering included woodland quail with a herb-infused ‘twisted nose’, steamed cod fillet with curds, whey and pickled marigolds and Madeira cake filled with hand-picked blackcurrant jam.

The judges – double-Michelin star holder Marcus Wareing, senior sous chef Monica Galetti and MasterChef’s own Gregg Wallace – drooled over the “divine” dishes and their Hampshire heritage.

It wasn’t enough as they crowned 27-year-old Jamie their 2014 champion for his crab and cheese doughnuts and glazed beef main.

Previous winners have gone on to run some of the world’s top kitchens, but Mr Britt’s dream of running a country restaurant where he can grow vegetables and rear his own animals is far from over.

The former Swanmore Technology College and Peter Symonds student said competing in the show has opened his mind to new forms of cooking and helped him find a personal touch.

“Doing this has reignited the fire inside of me,” he said. “I know what I want to do – now I just need to find a way of doing it. I need to think about everything I’ve done and everything I’ve learnt. It’s been a massive experience.”