Television presenter and chef Matt Tebbutt has opened up about the pressure of replacing long-standing hosts, including fellow TV chef James Martin. Speaking to Yours magazine, the 52-year-old admitted that stepping into a new role is never straightforward, especially when taking over from someone else.
Matt Tebbutt on Replacing James Martin
Matt took over from James, 53, on BBC's Saturday Kitchen in 2017 after the Yorkshire-born chef moved to ITV to host his own show, James Martin's Saturday Morning. Reflecting on the transition, Matt said: "Stepping into a new job isn't easy especially when you're taking over somebody else's gig on TV like I did with MasterChef: The Professionals."
He added: "I did it under totally different circumstances, when James Martin left Saturday Kitchen. I always just try and make my own mark without making too many waves in a new job. And I won't. Never mind a safe pair of hands, I'll be as safe as houses!"
From Chef to TV Chef
This is not the first time Matt has discussed his career shift. Earlier this month, while appearing at Jeremy Clarkson's FarmFest, he told the Express that he now considers himself a TV chef rather than a working chef. "I think it is fair to say now I am probably a TV chef. I originally started as a working chef doing all the hours for 14 years. That's a tough game. TV cookery isn't. It comes with other pressures. There are time pressures. Conformity. I mean I've always been a chef but I think now it's veered into 'TV chef'," he said.
MasterChef: The Professionals Role
Matt recently confirmed he would not return as a full-time judge on MasterChef: The Professionals, a role he took over from Gregg Wallace. Gregg was sacked after a review upheld 45 of 83 allegations against him. Matt addressed his exit on Instagram, saying: "A lot of lovely people have contacted me about not doing the next series of MasterChef: The Professionals. I was only ever doing one series and I loved judging on it and will continue working with MasterChef."
However, in a later interview on BBC Radio 4's The Food Programme, Matt admitted he was upset by the decision. "It was, yes, of course it is [difficult]. I mean, I'm not going to say I wasn't upset. I was really upset. And it could have been handled a lot better. You know, there's worse things going on. You've got to be pretty resilient. It's part of the game, really. I guess it's like if you're a politician, you're going to get knocks. So it's just par for the course, I think. Walking into such an established show, whatever had happened before, you don't want to be that guy that turns up and steamrollers everything. To then go in and get to know the personalities of Monica and Marcus, and get to know the crew and still do your job and deliver, it was a lot," he said.
Matt returns to Saturday Kitchen today at 9am on BBC One, while James Martin's Saturday Morning airs at 9.30am on ITV1.
