A NURSE from York has narrowly missed being crowned winner of MasterChef 2011.

Sara Danesin Medio, 40, finished as a runner up in the final of the hotly-contested BBC television show last night.

Sara, a critical care sister in the intensive care unit at York Hospital, has lived in York since 1994.

She beat 20,000 applicants to reach the televised knock-out stages of the show and then impressed judges with Mediterranean-style cooking from her native Italy.

The final of the show saw her travel to Australia and New York and the final task for competitors was to prepare a three-course meal for judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace.

Her competitor, 26-year-old Tim Anderson, was crowned the youngest ever winner of the show.

Sara, who lives with her husband David and 14-year-old daughter Emma, told The Press during the series that once MasterChef is over she would like to launch a dining club, where people can meet and enjoy each-other's food and wine. "Something like that doesn't exist in York yet."

She'd also like to run cookery classes. "I believe I have a talent when it comes to cooking that I need to prove," she said.