BBC MasterChef’s Marcus Wareing opens up on heartbreak over dad’s death
Marcus Wareing has paid special tribute to his late dad, Raymond, in his upcoming new BBC series Simply Provence.
Marcus Wareing shares how to store tomatoes for best flavour
MasterChef star Marcus Wareing has paid special tribute to his late dad, Raymond Wareing, in his upcoming new series. The 53-year-old, from Southport, is soon to star in his latest show BBC's Marcus Wareing Simply Provence.
Each new episode will be devoted to one particular ingredient and packed with useful cooking tips from the Michellin star chef. In the first episode of the new series, which focuses on tomatoes, Marcus explains how he can't talk about food without bringing his dad, who he lost two months ago, into the equation.
He said that he learnt his culinary skills from the generation before him, as he declared his dad to be "the best" - Preparing him for work in some of the world's finest restaurants including the Grill Room at London’s Savoy, Gilbert Scott at the St Pancras Renaissance Hotel and Marcus at the Berkeley.
According to Radio Times, Marcus said: "He was a man of precision and discipline who purchased fresh produce, and lots of it. I was 11 years old when I went to work for my dad, packing potatoes. I had seven years with him."
Marcus added: "He worked incredibly hard. I never saw him at home. My father gave me something that not many people have – a work ethic.
"It means I will never be floored by any other chefs in the kitchen. I can work anyone to the ground. If you challenge me, I will do it. And that’s what has got me into the position I’m in today.”
He remembered: “As a young chef, I stood out from other chefs of my age, because I knew how to work harder and faster than them. I paid more attention to the job.
"When my fellow chefs were having their staff lunch or dinners, I was in my kitchen, preparing food and being ready for service.
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"I never really had much to eat. I learnt how to work on an empty stomach.”
Marcus added that he has made the new series to "educate himself" and to "take people on a journey". In the BBC programme, he makes a visit to a local school in France to see what they eat.
He said he got to film in "beautiful" locations over a six-week period.
