Two guests who appeared on James Martin's Saturday Morning show have revealed what the celebrity chef is truly like when the cameras stop rolling. Actors Will Mellor and Ralf Little recorded an episode of the programme last year, during which they chatted about their recent work and sampled some of the chef's culinary creations.
Yet away from filming, the duo said they were treated to an unexpected insight into James' world. Describing his initial reaction to the chef's residence, where filming takes place, Will described it as "a lovely place". In what producers dubbed "the green room", the pair said it bore no resemblance to anything they'd experienced before, instead discovering an area containing a pool table, arcade machine, guitars, memorabilia, two of three Ferraris, plus an old Bentley.
The pair were particularly impressed by James Martin's car collection. "This man is a collector, and one of his cars, I asked him and I said, 'Am I alright to tell people?' and he said 'No problem', he bought a car, I think it was a Ferrari for £500,000, it's now worth 16 or 17 million," Will revealed. "He had this collection, he's showing us around and I'm going, 'I just thought he cooked up some food', unbelievable."
Ralf proceeded to describe the 53-year-old as "a great man", with Will adding on their The Two Pints podcast: "He's a great guy, a really top guy." The former Death In Paradise actor continued: "But he was really sound and when he was showing us all that stuff it wasn't like... you know some people like to show you their stuff and it can feel a bit like 'Alright mate, turn it in', and they're being a bit showing off, but he didn't have that at all. He was like, 'If you're interested, you can have a look' and we were like, 'Of course are!'."
Revealing more about their behind-the-scenes conversation, the duo said James discussed how he became so successful. "There were little bits that he was telling us, which isn't for public consumption, but about like what a smart businessman he is," Ralf shared. "He said he turned up in London in the early 2000s with £20 to his name, literally £20 in his pocket and he's hustled and invested and taken chances and just gone I'm just going to go for it," Ralf added.
In a closing remark, Will said he has "loads of time" for James, stating: "We really liked him, we had a good laugh," and also mentioned that the chef gave them some wine. This follows chef Tom Kerridge also praising James on Red Richardson's podcast. He said: "Everyone who does cooking on television has got their own different skill set for different reasons. Like James Martin is so good live and he's brilliant at that, holding a conversation, listening and cooking. He's a really good cook as well." James Martin's Saturday Morning airs weekly from 9.30am on ITV and ITVX.
