Latest news with #SaturdayMorning


Daily Mirror
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
ITV's James Martin halts cooking show to make phone call after major mistake
James Martin was back on screens on Saturday morning to present his ITV cooking show, Saturday Morning, which was a repeat of an earlier episode James Martin halted his ITV cookery programme, Saturday Morning, to allow his guest chef to telephone her father. During Saturday's repeat of James Martin's Saturday Morning, the television chef welcomed guest Nigel Havers and featured recipes from chefs Dipna Anand, Tony Tobin, and Jonathan Phang. Nevertheless, the programme took an unforeseen twist when Dipna informed James she needed to ring her father to display what she had prepared. The incident occurred after James made a culinary blunder whilst attempting to assist Dipna in the kitchen. Prior to the telephone call, Dipna cautioned viewers preparing the dish at home: "Okay, so when you're cooking this at home, do not put two on the tava, like James has done," reports Gloucestershire Live. "But we're gonna just have to continue this now, and we're going to be ready to present really soon." While Dipna continued serving the dish, James chuckled at his error and remarked, "Dad is overhead watching as well. "Yeah, we have to ring him and show him this dish," she clarified as James questioned: "We have to ring him? Can we ring him now?" "Yes," Dipna responded as she paused the cooking segment to retrieve her mobile. When Dipna's father picked up the call, she described how the preparation had gone: "It was really good. James followed all of my instructions, and Dad, the Keema peas came out so good. Look at this. "And it's the perfect texture, the sauce is good, just like you'd eat it." When James took the phone, he jested that Dipna had made the cooking blunder, not him. "No, no," the guest chef interrupted as James teased, "She got the heat of the pan wrong." Dipna retorted: "No, I didn't, tell the truth." James confirmed last month that he was taking a summer break and would return in September. As he concluded the show, he announced: "That's all we have got time for today, a massive thank you to all of my guests. "My food team, you can sleep better now. Daniel and Sally, and of course, Harry Redknapp and Carly Paoli. "That is also for the series. Me and the crew are heading off on sunny holidays. Different climates," he added.


Scottish Sun
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Scottish Sun
BBC star reveals shock plans to leave TV as he reveals major career move
CELEBRITY chef Nick Nairn revealed he's swapped pans for pots — to plant and grow his own produce. The famous cook, who spent 30 years in showbiz, said he doesn't miss a TV career. 4 Nick Nairn is focusing on his gardening. Credit: Andrew Barr 4 He's taken a step back from TV work. Credit: Andrew Barr 4 The cook school has been training chefs for 25 years. Credit: Andrew Barr 4 The TV star teaches two classes a week. Credit: Andrew Barr And he admitted: 'If I never stood in front of a camera again, it wouldn't bother me.' Nick, who found fame on Ready, Steady Cook and Wild Harvest in the mid-90s, suffered a bitter blow when his Nairn's restaurant in Bridge of Allan, Stirlingshire, closed last year. But as part of his lifestyle overhaul, he is now reinvesting in his famous cook school and ploughing his efforts into cultivating his own ingredients. Nick — who co-hosted The Great Food Guys with Dougie Vipond for four series until 2021 and often guested on pal James Martin's shows, including STV's Saturday Morning — says: 'When I was younger, I was ambitious. I liked the money. 'I liked the fame. I liked the whole lifestyle thing. But my whole philosophy has changed. I've been there and done it and honestly, if I never stood in front of a camera again, it wouldn't bother me. 'Because there's a huge amount of time travelling and hanging about with television. Don't get me wrong, I was very lucky. 'Filming's taken me all over the world to Australia, New Zealand, America and Canada, and I've enjoyed it immensely, but I'm 66 now. I'm an old age pensioner. 'So now I do three days a week in my garden and two classes a week in my cook school and I absolutely love it.' Former merchant seaman Nick, from Port of Menteith, Stirlingshire, couldn't even boil an egg until he was 24. But he taught himself to cook on a four-ring electric stove before going into the hospitality trade in 1986. He earned his first coveted Michelin star in 1991, at the age of 31, making him the youngest Scots chef to be awarded the culinary accolade at the time. In 2000, he opened the Nick Nairn Cook School by the Lake of Menteith, which boomed when financial institutions started using it for team-building exercises. But his first major crisis struck with the credit crunch in 2008, as panic in the banking markets swept the globe. 'Devastated' Gregg Wallace FIRED by BBC over MasterChef sexual comments He recalls: 'We're fully booked for six months ahead, and the next minute the phone was going every five seconds with companies cancelling their bookings.' Unperturbed, Nick decided to branch out and open a second cook school in Aberdeen in 2012. He ploughed hundreds of thousands of pounds into the venture, later opening Nick's Pizza Bar in the Granite City, too. He says: 'Aberdeen was still very buoyant as oil and gas was doing really well. 'But opening the cook school was a lot of hard work and business was slow to start with. 'Then it really took off in 2013 and we had two amazing years where we were packed out seven days a week. 'Of course, in 2015 we had the oil price crash. Oil went from $110 to $28 a barrel overnight, and our businesses came to a shuddering halt.' But worse followed in 2017, when Nick was injured in a street attack by oil worker Scott Smith. Thug Smith was later fined £900 after admitting the assault, which left Nick with two black eyes and a bloody nose. He says: 'As well as getting assaulted by some drunk in the street, I then tripped in a hotel and broke my ankle and finger.' The chef decided to make a real go of the restaurant business, opening Nick's in Bridge of Allan in February 2020 — a month before Covid saw the entire world grind to a halt. Then, in August 2021, a faulty fryer caused a huge blaze in the packed restaurant, gutting the premises. Incredibly, no one was hurt. Nick, who lives with his third wife Julia, explains: 'One of the chefs screamed, 'Get out'. 'I think everybody thought it was a terrorist attack, so they jumped up and left their phones and coats. 'I was cooking in Port of Menteith so my wife headed off to Bridge of Allan. She could see a big plume of smoke from miles away — that was literally our business going up in smoke.' After a full refurbishment, Nick's reopened as Nairn's in July 2023. The whole sorry saga ended last year amid an alleged 'bitter row' with the restaurant's landlord. Amid the upheaval, Nick's Port of Menteith cook school had also flooded in 2021. So it's little wonder the chef is enjoying a quieter life. He is focusing on his beloved first cook school, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary. Nick, who also runs The Kailyard in Hilton's Dunblane Hydro, says: 'Everything has come full circle. I'd almost become a full-time telly chef and my work took me away from home a lot of the time. 'But Lake of Menteith is kind of like paradise. I have a big polytunnel covering 100 square metres and I have my raised beds outside and just love growing my own produce. 'We cook everything from scratch. I love it. TV got in the way of this before, but it won't again.' For more information on Nick Nairn's Cook School or restaurant, visit


Daily Mirror
19-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
ITV Midsomer Murders star Neil Dudgeon reveals one storyline he thought 'went too far'
Midsomer Murders actor Neil Dudgeon has shared his thoughts on the long-running ITV crime drama and admitted that there was one occasion where he thought the show had "gone too far" Neil Dudgeon has shared the one Midsomer Murders plotline where he felt ITV chiefs might have pushed the crime drama "a bit too far". ITV broadcast a rerun of James Martin's Saturday Morning on July 19, with the celebrity chef welcoming the actor into his kitchen. The 64-yea- old is best known for his role as DCI John Barnaby in the crime drama since 2010, and James was keen to hear Neil's candid thoughts on the show. James queried Neil: "Do you ever look at some of the storylines and think 'it's a bit far-fetched'? Neil responded: "The only time I did think that a bit was when I was first reading the script and a UFO crashed and then me and the sergeant turn up and examine this site and I thought 'even we've gone too far'. "You can say here's a place where all the people believe that there's UFOs and 'oh there's lights in the sky what does that mean?' but you can't actually go 'oh look i think there's a alien' it's just that bit too far", reports the Manchester Evening News. Inquiring about the secret to enduring TV success, James asked: "What do you put it down to? Because we were talking about successful shows and 'successful' nowadays is about three or four years? "I can't put my finger on this one, to be honest. 18 years I've been cooking on Saturday mornings. What would you put it down to?" Neil jested: "If I may say so, the success of your show is even more of a mystery than the success of our show! James shared a laugh with Neil as he succinctly responded: "Precisely." Neil then quickly elaborated: "The reason I say that is because, I think the great thing about Midsomer Murders is... the people who originally created the show. "Neil offered an insight into the enduring series' structure, explaining: "I mean the formula of Midsomer is something - not necessarily a murder - happens in a rural location and two policemen turn up to see what's going on." He further commented on the creative leeway given to writers, which allows for continuous narrative innovation within the show's straightforward yet adaptable format. Discussing the charm of the series, Neil remarked: "You've got this wide formula for what the story of the show could be," highlighting that "You can have endless variety within it and - always there's something people find comforting about seeing the same thing over again - but the same thing is so different!


Otago Daily Times
19-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Otago Daily Times
Writing a wish list to go with your will
Talking about what we want after we die is a difficult conversation for many, and a Taupō mum and her 15-year-old son have come up with an idea to make the whole process easier. Suzanne Stevenson and her son Quinn have created a list of wishes, in the form of a book, that can sit aside a will and give families a clearer idea of the deceased's preferences before it is too late. The wishes book goes into the details of what a person would wish for their funeral, things a legal document like a will wouldn't cover, Stevenson told RNZ's Saturday Morning programme. 'Once you've gone through the passing of someone that's died quite suddenly, you don't know what to do, you're in that fight or flight mode, and the will doesn't give you any information about funeral arrangements and things like that.' As well as funeral arrangements the book can also document where family treasures will go, anything that someone might like to be passed on through the generations, she says. Two sudden deaths in her own family, inspired the idea, she says. 'My father died suddenly, and he had always joked and talked about what he wanted. A song would come on the radio and he'd go, 'I like that song, I want it played at my funeral. 'And he was a big advocate for wanting to be an organ donor. So he passed really suddenly of an asthma attack, and we knew what he wanted because he'd talked about it'. When her father-in -aw died suddenly the family had much less idea of his wishes, she says. 'There were question marks about if he was going to be cremated, where he was going to be scattered, the funeral itself, there wasn't really much clarity around it.' The book takes the form of a worksheet, she says. 'So, it's got questions: where would you like your funeral or celebration of life to be held? Are there any songs or poems that you would like? "It details what you'd like for your funeral first.' The idea is the family can then pass this to a funeral director, she says. 'Once you've got through the funeral, then you can start looking at family treasures, if there was like a teacup or something that you want your cousin to have, because it reminds you of a great aunt or if there's any artwork.' While not legally binding, she hopes because it would be written in the deceased's handwriting there would be little chance of families contesting it. She and Quinn have also created a board game The Wishes End Game . 'It's for people who want to have a conversation about death with family members but don't know how to start it. So, it's supposed to be fun. It's supposed to get people laughing. You talk a lot about what you don't want. 'And what I found is while you're laughing about things that you don't want, you talk about things that you do want.'


Daily Mail
16-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
TV chef James Martin brings 'guard dog' with him to London for protection after yobs broke his car windscreen on previous visit
TV chef James Martin brought his 'guard dog' to protect him while visiting 'broken London ' after his car was raided by thugs. The famed cook, 53, had vowed to 'bring the Malis' next time he ventured to the capital from his home in Hampshire - referring to his two pet Belgian Malinois. The breed of dogs have fearsome reputations and are used by the military and police to take down criminals and terrorists. Cook's decision comes weeks after he was rocked by a 'broad daylight' attack on his motor, which saw yobs smashing his rear windscreen in central London. Staying true to his word, ITV chef Martin shared a picture of one of his pet hounds wearing a black 'working dog' harness while sitting on the pavement. The James Martins' Saturday Morning host simply captioned the picture 'London' as he shared it with his 761,000 followers on Instagram. Speaking in 2022, Martin previously praised his two dogs, writing in a post: 'I have to say I have had dogs all my life but these two are unbelievably clever. Thanks to the trainer for doing all the work.' At the end of May, Martin revealed to his fans how he and some of his friends had been targeted by crooks while in the capital. The move came after he vowed to bring protection the next time he visited the capital following the vandalism of his car the last time he was in the city Sharing a photo of his smashed up motor, he wrote: 'So in a week two of my friends cars got stolen, one other mate got mugged and now I had this happen all in broad daylight all in central London. 'London is broken big time…next time I'm bringing the Malis.' The chef did not reveal whether anything had been stolen during the attack on his car. However, his fans were quick to show their support - as many sought to criticise London Mayor Sir Sadiq Khan over the capital's escalating crime rates. 'This is so sad, what once was an incredible capital city is now a centre for crime,' wrote one woman. 'Sadly our mayor turns a blind eye to it all, pretending it doesn't happen. Heartbreaking especially when you visit other countries and see clean, safe, friendly places.' Another person, who claimed to be living in the city, said the it was 'no longer safe for women', adding: 'I'm a cockney, James, and I hate what's happened to my city. 'I only go into London if I have to... [you] can't even get your phone out to answer it for fear of it getting snatched. 'London has become lawless as has most of the UK because the government is too soft on crime.' A third person simply added: 'Britain is broken. Not just London. Sorry this has happened to you.' The news comes as MailOnline revealed over the weekend that London's knife crime epidemic had reached a record-high for the second year in a row. In response to the spiralling figures, campaigners slammed mayor Sir Sadiq Khan as 'not fit for purpose' and accused him of 'undermining the Met Police at any opportunity '. Home Office data shows more than 16,800 knife crimes were recorded by the Metropolitan and City of London police forces last year, a 16 per cent rise on the previous record of over 14,500 a year earlier. The highest number of knife crimes occurred in several central London neighbourhoods, focused around the high-end areas of Mayfair, Fitzrovia, Soho, St James and the Strand. The most up-to-date figures are from 2023 as the Met stopped publishing data which breaks down weapons offences to this granular level of geographic detail early last year. MailOnline has asked if the force intends to start publishing this breakdown again. The number one area for crime was the neighbourhood – technically a 'lower layer super output area' (LSOA) named Westminster 013G – which features Regent Street, New Bond Street and a small section of Oxford Street. This Westminster suburb saw saw 141 reported knife crimes in 2023, according to Met Police data. A near-600 per cent rise on 2012, where 21 knife-related offences were recorded. Former Met cop and knife crime campaigner Norman Brennan, who was 25 when he was stabbed in the chest and nearly murdered by a burglar while on duty, told MailOnline: 'Under Sadiq Khan, London has no-go areas and the streets have become unsafe.' A spokesman for the Mayor of London told MailOnline: 'Making London safer is the Mayor's top priority. The latest ONS statistics show that the rate of violent crime with injury in London is lower than in the rest of the country. 'Gun crime, burglary and knife crime with injury for under 25s have all fallen since Sadiq become Mayor. The number of homicides recorded in London last year was half the number recorded in 2003, and we had the lowest number of teenage homicides in the capital since 2012. 'Knife crime overall has also been falling over recent months. 'But there's clearly still much more to do to tackle crime. One death is one too many and the Mayor is determined to continue being both tough on crime and tough on the causes of crime. 'The previous government took a wrecking ball to policing budgets and youth clubs in London, which has had serious consequences. In contrast, the Mayor has doubled investment in policing from City Hall and created 500,000 positive opportunities to divert vulnerable young Londoners away from criminal gangs and crime and towards training and employment.' A Met Police spokesman added: 'Tackling knife crime is at the heart of our determination to protect Londoners. 'Through stop-and-search and data-led policing, we are seeing results, with knife crime down this year compared to last. We have also seen an 18 per cent reduction in the number of victims injured by knives and sharp objects, and a 10 per cent reduction in personal robberies, including phone robbery, which makes up the largest proportion of knife crime.