Celebrity chef James Martin has reportedly made a dramatic U-turn on his long-held views about marriage, with news emerging of his engagement to personal trainer Kim Johnson. The 53-year-old TV star is said to have proposed over the Christmas period, gifting his new fiancée a £150,000 Land Rover.
A Surprising Proposal
This development marks a significant shift for the chef, who for years publicly declared he had no interest in tying the knot. Back in 2019, he told the Sunday People that marriage "doesn't interest me in the slightest," adding, "I don't need to spend 60 grand on a day." His new stance comes after a 12-year relationship with TV producer Louise Davies, which ended in December 2023 without any talk of weddings.
Kim Johnson, 39, appears to have confirmed the news herself on social media, referring to James as her "fiancé" in an Instagram post. She was previously married to Liz Hurley's millionaire ex-husband, Arun Nayar.
A Painful Family Divide
While his romantic life takes a joyful turn, Martin's personal history is marked by a deep and painful rift with his father. The conflict stemmed from scathing remarks made about his father's then-girlfriend in the original 2008 edition of his autobiography, 'Driven'. Martin reportedly wrote she was "the ugliest woman he had ever met" and accused her of destroying childhood mementos, including baby pictures.
Following serialisation in the Mail on Sunday, Martin apologised and the book was withdrawn. A statement confirmed he accepted it was untrue to say the mementos were cruelly destroyed. He later called the book his "biggest regret," but the damage to his relationship with his father, Ian, was severe. For years, Martin stated they were both "too stubborn" to make amends, and in 2010 he told The Sun, "The only good thing from it was the realisation I would never speak to my father again."
An Emotional Reconciliation
However, a poignant moment of reconciliation occurred nearly a decade ago, though it was only revealed last year. Martin movingly recounted in Candis magazine how he secretly booked his father into the Ritz hotel and brought him to a show at the London Palladium. "When I stepped on stage... I looked into the audience and the first face I saw was my dad's," he shared. "I held it all together throughout the show but I welled up at the end. I completely lost it. The farmer's kid had made it."
Despite this emotional breakthrough, Martin has spoken openly about the personal cost of his career success. He has admitted that missing out on fatherhood is the "biggest low" of his life, attributing it to being "so focused on work." In a 2020 interview with Prima magazine, he said, "The biggest low of my career is that I've given up everything for it," though he insisted he had no regrets.
James Martin has yet to publicly confirm his engagement to Kim Johnson. His journey reflects a complex blend of professional triumph, personal heartbreak regarding family, and a newfound romantic happiness that contradicts his earlier public declarations.
