A mother-of-one will appear in a rebooted series of TV cookery show Come Dine With Me, comprised entirely of previous winners.
Polly Guy, 33, of Old Catton, was working as a glamour model when she claimed the prize money in her 2011 appearance on the Channel 4 show.
She has since had a daughter, which she said had made her a better person, and was surprised when she got a call asking her to be a contestant in Come Dine With Me Champion of Champions.
The new show sees former contestants cooking against each other in a series of challenges in a large country manor house.
Miss Guy, who is the landlady of several student properties near UEA, said her first appearance on the show was a key moment for her.
The former City College Norwich student had trained to be a chef, but not long after qualifying decided to give it up and go into modelling instead.
'Without meaning to sound theatrical, Come Dine With Me did me the world of good,' she said. 'Sometimes you need a challenge and it gave me confidence.'
She focused on food again, with ambitions to present a TV cookery show, and after the birth of her daughter Raphaella, aged one, her interest in health foods grew.
'Food was everything for me,' she said. 'I cook everything for my daughter and she has what we have.'
She got the call to be on the new show when she was out shopping, and said it came as a surprise.
'I thought I was really boring on my show,' she said. 'I thought I was quite neutral, and I think they chose me the first time because of the glamour modelling thing, and wanted me to be racy.
'I wanted to go on but I didn't want that perception of me.'
She said her selection this time around 'must have been about the food' and she was excited to take part.
Filming was done late last year, and she took Raphaella - 'my good luck charm' - with her.
While she did not get much sleep, she said that it was a fun experience and she was looking forward to the show airing.
'I'm really excited,' she said. 'I've had to keep this secret for such a long time.
'I'm hardly discreet, so there is pressure for me to do well.
'I want people to be proud not just of me but of Norwich.'
Her ideas for future projects include a baby food range, promoting the medicinal value of certain foods and promoting Norfolk ingredients.
She still has her sights said on TV presenting, and said her style would be like that of Nigella Lawson.
The first episode of the 20-part series airs at 5pm on Monday, February 1 on Channel 4.
Do you have a Norwich story? Email samuel.russell@archant.co.uk
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