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'''John Torode''' (born 23 July 1965) is an Australian [[celebrity chef]]. He moved to the UK in the 1990s and began working at [[Conran Group]]'s restaurants. After first appearing on television on [[ITV1]]'s [[This Morning (TV programme)|''This Morning'']], he started presenting a revamped [[MasterChef (UK TV series)|''MasterChef'']] on [[BBC One]] alongside [[Gregg Wallace]] in 2005. He is a restaurateur; owner of [[The Luxe (restaurant)|The Luxe]] and a second restaurant, 'Smiths of Smithfield'. He has written a number of [[cookbook]]s.
'''John Douglas Torode''' (born 23 July 1965) is an Australian [[celebrity chef]]. He moved to the UK in the 1990s and began working at [[Conran Group]]'s restaurants. After first appearing on television on [[ITV1]]'s [[This Morning (TV programme)|''This Morning'']], he started presenting a revamped [[MasterChef (UK TV series)|''MasterChef'']] on [[BBC One]] alongside [[Gregg Wallace]] in 2005. He is a restaurateur; owner of [[The Luxe (restaurant)|The Luxe]] and a second restaurant, 'Smiths of Smithfield'. He has written a number of [[cookbook]]s.


==Early life==
==Early life==

Revision as of 21:02, 5 September 2013

John Torode
John Torode at Masterchef Live in 2010
Born23 July 1965 (1965-07-23) (age 58)
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia[1]
NationalityAustralian
Occupation(s)Broadcaster, celebrity chef, restaurateur
Years active1990s–present
EmployerBBC
Known forMasterChef
SpouseJessica (2000–2012)
Children4

John Douglas Torode (born 23 July 1965) is an Australian celebrity chef. He moved to the UK in the 1990s and began working at Conran Group's restaurants. After first appearing on television on ITV1's This Morning, he started presenting a revamped MasterChef on BBC One alongside Gregg Wallace in 2005. He is a restaurateur; owner of The Luxe and a second restaurant, 'Smiths of Smithfield'. He has written a number of cookbooks.

Early life

Torode was born in Australia and was brought up in Maitland, New South Wales by his grandmother after his mother died when John was four. His father was frequently away from home because of work.[2] He attended school in his home town of Maitland. He said that the food in his childhood was fairly normal, and roast chicken remains one of his favourite dishes because of the connection to his childhood,[3] although his favourite meal as a child was crumbed lamb cutlets.[4] He has said that one of the first books he enjoyed at school was To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee.[5] He was taught to cook by his grandmother.[3]

Career

He began his cooking career at the age of 16,[6] after leaving school to attend catering college.[7] He moved to the United Kingdom in 1991.[8] A year later he began working at Le Pont de la Tour and Quaglinos's as a sous chef for the Conran Group under Terence Conran.[1] When he first met Conran, Torode asked his fellow chefs who that "nutter" was,[6] as he'd arrived in the kitchen wearing a coffee stained shirt and clutching a bag of figs asking for them to be put on the menu. In later interviews, Torode described Conran as a "genius".[6] Whilst working at Quaglino's, Torode first met Gregg Wallace, whose company supplied the vegetables for the restaurant.[9]

Torode with Gregg Wallace

He cooked on ITV1's This Morning in 1996, and continued in that role until 2000.[10] Torode later described the reason for his departure as "because they wanted me to cook cheap food. I said that’s not what I do. I cook good food that is accessible. I made a decision that I would never cook on television again. I didn’t want to be “the celebrity chef”."[11] In 1998, his cookbook The Mezzo Cookbook won the James Beard Foundation Award for "Best Food Photography".[12] He opened his own restaurant in Smithfield, London in 2000, called Smiths of Smithfields.[13] After a year, he opened a second restaurant, called Cafeteria, near Notting Hill Gate which closed after eight months. In 2005, the BBC television show MasterChef was re-launched with an updated format and with Torode and Wallace as presenters replacing Gary Rhodes.[2][9] Torode was chosen instead of food critic AA Gill.[13] By 2011, the show had been sold to 25 countries and what the Daily Mail called "the biggest" food-related television show worldwide.[9] Torode has said in interviews that he enjoys that the show is unscripted and that the cameras are just there to capture the genuine interactions between the judges and the contestants.[3] The show subsequently spawned a spin-off, also hosted by Torode and Wallace, called Celebrity MasterChef.[13] In October 2009, Torode opened a restaurant near New Spitalfields Market in London, called The Luxe (but has since closed).[1][14] Turnover on his two restaurants reached £9.2 million in 2010.[14]

Other television work

He has also co-presented Junior MasterChef, initially along with Nadia Sawalha, the former winner of Celebrity MasterChef, and more recently alongside Donal Skehan.[6]

He has also presented a show for the Good Food channel in the UK alongside former Celebrity MasterChef contestant Hardeep Singh Kohli, called New British Kitchen. The show aimed to feature the impact of imported cuisines in Britain.[15] Other television work has included an appearance on the BBC's The Magicians, which saw Torode and Wallace participate in a stunt by magicians Barry and Stuart which hanged the pair off the side of the Tate Modern in London.[16]

Personal life

He has said that he generally avoids the American version of MasterChef but has featured in a few episodes of MasterChef Australia.[17][relevant?]

Published works

  • Torode, John (1997). The Mezzo Cookbook. London: Conran Octopus. ISBN 9781850299226. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthor= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  • Torode, John (1999). Relax - It's Only Food. London: Quadrille. ISBN 9781902757162.
  • Torode, John (1999). Torode's Thai Trip. London: Granada Media. ISBN 9780233996493.
  • Torode, John (2005). MasterChef Goes Large. London: Ebury. ISBN 9780091905576.
  • Torode, John (2007). Good Mood Food. London: Quadrille. ISBN 9781844004485.
  • Torode, John (2008). John Torode's Beef. London: Quadrille. ISBN 9781844006236.
  • Torode, John (2009). John Torode's Chicken and Other Birds. London: Quadrille. ISBN 9781844007158.
  • Torode, John (2011). Everyday MasterChef. London: Dorling Kindersley. ISBN 9781405394352.
  • Torode, John (2011). MasterChef Kitchen Bible. London: Dorling Kindersley. ISBN 9781405394178. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthor= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)

References

  1. ^ a b c "John Torode, Esq". Debrett's. Retrieved 14 September 2012.
  2. ^ a b Wallaston, Sam (2 September 2009). "John Torode: the Master". The Guardian. Retrieved 14 September 2012.
  3. ^ a b c Whittle, Natalie (19 March 2012). "FT Foodies: John Torode". Financial Times. Retrieved 14 September 2012.
  4. ^ Dixon, Rachel (21 October 2008). "Table talk". The Guardian. Retrieved 14 September 2012.
  5. ^ "My Six Best Books: John Torode". The Daily Express. 8 June 2012. Retrieved 14 September 2012.
  6. ^ a b c d Syson, Damon (17 January 2010). "This much I know: John Torode". The Guardian. Retrieved 14 September 2012.
  7. ^ Lander, Nicholas (19 June 2010). "John Torode: 'I got everything wrong'". Financial Times. Retrieved 14 September 2012.
  8. ^ Torode, John (5 May 2008). "John Torode's heaven on earth". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 14 September 2012.
  9. ^ a b c Johnston, Jenny (30 December 2011). "Cookery shows don't get bigger than this! MasterChef presenters John Torode and Gregg Wallace reveal how they turned it into the world's biggest food show". The Daily Mail. Retrieved 14 September 2012.
  10. ^ "John Torode-Biography". BBC Good Food Show Summer. Retrieved 14 September 2012.
  11. ^ Wilson, Benji (6 September 2008). "In a taxi with John Torode". The Daily Mail. Retrieved 14 September 2012.
  12. ^ "Cookbook author Kamman, N.Y. chef win top awards". The Deseret News. 11 May 1998. Retrieved 14 September 2012.
  13. ^ a b c Sewards, Lisa (28 January 2011). "The eat is on! Gregg Wallace and John Torode spill the beans on the new MasterChef". The Daily Mail. Retrieved 14 September 2012.
  14. ^ a b Hall, James (6 April 2011). "Masterchef star John Torode gets Barclays facility". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 14 September 2012.
  15. ^ "John Torode Interview". Good Food. Retrieved 14 September 2012.
  16. ^ Fletcher, Alex (3 February 2012). "'MasterChef' John Torode hangs off Tate Modern on 'Magicians' - video". Digital Spy. Retrieved 14 September 2012.
  17. ^ Wightman, Catriona (13 January 2012). "'MasterChef' Gregg Wallace, John Torode Q&A: 'Auditions made us sick'". Digital Spy. Retrieved 14 September 2012.

External links

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