Heston Blumenthal has joined Channel 4 and for one of his first series will take over a Little Chef.

The television chef, signing from BBC Two on an exclusive two-year deal, will take his radical cooking techniques into a branch of the classic British fast-food restaurant.

Depending on the results, Little Chef may roll out the chef's changes nationally. There will be three hour-long specials with the working title Big Chef, Little Chef.

Channel 4 announced the signing at its spring and summer lineup today.

In another series, Feast with Heston Blumenthal, he will explore history and mythology "to discover if the future of food lies in the stories of our past".

The chef, who has a scientific approach known as "molecular gastronomy", said: "The opportunity to work with Channel 4 has presented some creative new projects that are extremely pertinent to the research and development work we are currently undertaking."

Sue Murphy, head of features, said the Little Chef project would be "a great clash of cultures". Blumenthal had respect for the "much loved chain" but would experiment with its classic approach, she said. "The question is whether Little Chef will roll that out."

> Click here for more on Channel 4's spring and summer 2008 season