Celebrity chef Marco Pierre White has revealed the truth behind his name after a DNA test uncovered a family secret. Born in Leeds to Yorkshireman Frank White and his Italian wife Maria-Rosa Gallina, Marco was just six years old when his mother died from a cerebral haemorrhage.
Speaking to Irish broadcaster Ryan Tubridy, Marco was asked about the Italian side of his family. In an answer that shocked the host, he said: “I will confess something to you today actually. I’ve never confessed it but I will. I don’t mind. They are all dead now so I can.”
Letter from his aunt
Marco revealed that his mother came to England with her sister in 1953 to learn English. They stayed with friends in Yorkshire, where she met his father, who was a chef at the Griffin Hotel. Marco said he later found out his mother, who married his dad after getting pregnant, was suffering from a broken heart and was in love with another man.
She came to England to “assist with the pain”. Marco continued on The Bookshelf podcast: “But what’s interesting, about 13 years ago, my mother’s sister wrote to me. And she sends me a letter. I open the letter and inside the letter is a photograph. And my auntie tells me that this was the love of my mother’s life. His name was Marco. So what that automatically told me is that my mother never told my father otherwise I would never have been called Marco.”
DNA test results
The 64-year-old said he knew “what my auntie was saying to me”, but he asked: “Why turn that stone?” However, he said the story got “really interesting” when his daughter, Mirabelle, decided to have her DNA checked. It revealed that she was 89% Italian-Spanish and 9% Portuguese-French.
Marco told Ryan: “So I said to Mirabelle,’ You know what this tells you? It tells you your grandfather on your father’s side is not your real grandfather.”
After remembering the letter he had received from his aunt, Marco had his DNA tested, which revealed he was 89% Italian. Speaking to Ryan, he said: “And you are the first person in your world that I have ever confessed that to.”
Emotional impact
Ryan, taken aback by the bombshell, remarked “what a confession” before asking how Marco coped with knowing there was no English blood in him. He replied: “Because I had the letter I knew. Mum is dead. Father is dead. It is fine. Not that important. But when my daughter gets her DNA done, then I have to then share with her. She has no English in her.”
Ryan pointed out that “neither have you” before he responded: “No that’s true. It doesn’t change anything does it?” He then conceded that “emotionally” it changed things and acknowledged that it took him a “long time” to express the truth about his background publicly.
Earlier in the interview, he spoke about watching his mum die, and how he still has “extraordinary memories” of her, despite being six when she passed. He said she was sensitive, clever and would catch butterflies before releasing them. He also said she made toys to give to poor children.
Speaking about the difference between his parents, Marco, the youngest chef ever to win three Michelin stars, said: “I grew up to love my mum, I grew up to respect my father.” He described his dad as a “gambler, drinker, fighter and not a kind man” and added: “Mum showed you affection, no affection from the father. He was a man who went to work, came home, put the bread on the table. Mum was at home keeping everything warm and nice.”
