BRITISH CHEFS

Scottish by birth, Gordon Ramsay was brought up in Stratford-upon-Avon, England. With an injury prematurely putting an end to any hopes of a promising career in football, he went back to college to complete a course in hotel management. His dedication and natural talent led him to train with some of the world's leading chefs, such as Albert Roux and Marco Pierre White in London, and Guy Savoy and Joël Robuchon in France.

In 1993 Ramsay became chef of Aubergine in London, which within three years was awarded two Michelin stars. In 1998, at the age of 31, Ramsay set up his first wholly owned and namesake restaurant, Restaurant Gordon Ramsay, which quickly received the most prestigious accolade in the culinary world - three Michelin stars. Today, Restaurant Gordon Ramsay is London's longest-running restaurant to hold this award, and Ramsay is one of only four chefs in the UK to maintain three stars.

Now internationally renowned, multi-Michelin-starred Ramsay has opened a string of successful restaurants across the globe, from Italy to the United States. These include two ventures in Doha, Qatar, that opened in 2012; five restaurants in Las Vegas (Gordon Ramsay Hell's Kitchen at Caesars Palace, Gordon Ramsay Fish & Chips at The LINQ Promenade, Gordon Ramsay Steak at Paris Las Vegas, Gordon Ramsay Pub and Grill at Caesars Palace, and Gordon Ramsay Burger at Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino), Gordon Ramsay Pub and Grill in Atlantic City, Gordon Ramsay Steak in Baltimore and Bread Street Kitchen in Hong Kong, Singapore and Dubai. In the UK, the Gordon Ramsay Group has opened Union Street Café, London House, Heddon Street Kitchen and two further maze Grills, one of which is located on the former Aubergine site on Park Walk, Chelsea.

His next-generation multi-media production company Studio Ramsay has a joint venture with All3Media to develop and produce both unscripted and scripted television shows, creating new formats and innovative programming that includes a scripted arm focused on food-related themes, and development of new talent on a global front. The catalogue of programs that Ramsay has worked on historically with All3Media via One Potato Two Potato, together with new original content he's currently developing, make for a unique and dynamic production and distribution partnership. Its first daytime cooking series, ""Culinary Genius,"" premiered in the spring on ITV in the U.K. was syndicated on FOX stations in the U.S. this past summer. Seasons 3 and 4 of "Matilda and the Ramsay Bunch," starring Tilly Ramsay for U.K. children's channel CBBC, are also produced by Studio Ramsay

Renowned for highly successful and award-winning original programming, Emmy-nominated, multi-Michelin-star chef Gordon Ramsay produces TV shows on both sides of the Atlantic (in the U.S and the UK) seen by audiences worldwide, including his FOX shows ""24 Hours to Hell & Back,"" ""Masterchef,"" ""Masterchef Junior,"" ""Hell's Kitchen,"" and ""Masterchef Celebrity Showdown,"" as well as Bravo's "Best New Restaurant" and Food Network's competition series "Food Court Wars." In the U.K., he's produced "Gordon Ramsay Behind Bars" and "Gordon Ramsay's Great Escape" for Channel 4; food biography and nostalgia series "My Kitchen" for UKTV's Good Food Channel; two instructional cookery series, "Ultimate Home Cooking" and "Ultimate Cookery Course" for Channel 4; and the first two seasons of "Matilda And the Ramsay Bunch," all under his One Potato Two Potato banner.

Ramsay has a global partnership with WWRD (Waterford, Wedgwood, Royal Doulton), which offers quality home and lifestyle products.

In 2014, Ramsay and his wife, Tana, set up the Gordon and Tana Ramsay Foundation to make a meaningful difference to charities that are important to them. The Foundation is currently partnered with Great Ormond Street Hospital, one of London's most respected Children's Hospitals.

Ramsay received an OBE (Order of the British Empire awarded by Queen Elizabeth II) in 2006 for services to the industry.

He resides with his wife, Tana, and children, along with their two dogs, two cats and a tortoise. He divides his time between Los Angeles and London.

Nigella Lawson was born on 6 January 1960 in Wandsworth, London, England, UK. She is a writer and producer, known for Modern Family (2009), Nigella Express (2007) and Simply Nigella (2015). She was previously married to Charles Saatchi and John Diamond.

Marco Pierre White was born on 11 December 1961 in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, UK. He is a writer, known for The Devil in the Kitchen, Feast or Famine: The Quest for the Michelin Star and Gordon Ramsay: Beyond Boiling Point (2000). He has been married to Mati Conjero since 7 April 2000. They have three children. He was previously married to Lisa Butcher and Alex McArthur.

Jamie Oliver's cheeky manner, constant use of the word 'pukka', and down to earth personality have won him legions of fans around the world. He has sold millions of cookery books, opened a restaurant, starred in several TV shows and revolutionised UK school dinners.

He was born May 27th, 1975 and brought up in Clavering, Essex, where his parents, Trevor and Sally, ran a pub called 'The Cricketers'. It was there that the young Jamie began to cut his teeth as a chef and would practice daily in the kitchen and by the time he was 11, the young protégé could cut vegetables as well as any of the kitchen staff. He later attended Newport Free Grammar School and left at age sixteen with two GCSE qualifications going on to attend Westminster Kingsway College, formerly Westminster College. He then earned a City & Guilds NVQ in home economics.

His first foray into the cheffing industry was as a pastry chef at Antonio Carluccio's Neal's Yard restaurant, where he first gained experience with preparing Italian cuisine, and developed a relationship with his 'mentor' Gennaro Contaldo. Oliver then moved to The River Café, Fulham, as a sous chef.

Also around this time he began attending the Westminster Catering College at the age of 16. Later, he worked in France, immersing himself in the culture and learning as much as he could before returning to London. His first job back was working for Antonio Carluccio as Head Pastry Chef at The Neal Street Restaurant.

Here Jamie worked alongside Gennaro Contaldo (of 'Two Greedy Italians' fame), who Jamie considers one of his mentors. After The Neal Street Restaurant, Jamie worked 3 1/2 years at the famous River Cafe in London, a position that would change his life forever. It was here, Jamie says, where he learned "all about the time and effort that goes into creating the freshest, most honest, totally delicious food." Not only that, it was also during his time at the River Cafe that he was noticed by the BBC in 1997 after making an unscripted appearance in a documentary about the restaurant, "Christmas at the River Cafe". That year, his show The Naked Chef debuted and his cookbook became a number one best-seller in the UK. That same year, Oliver was invited to prepare lunch for then Prime Minister Tony Blair at No. 10 Downing Street!

In July 2000, Oliver married former model Juliette Norton. The couple met in 1993 and have four children: Poppy Honey Rosie Oliver (born 18 March 2002), Daisy Boo Pamela Oliver (born on 10 April 2003), Petal Blossom Rainbow Oliver (born on 3 April 2009) and Buddy Bear Maurice Oliver (born on 15 September 2010).

In 2000, Oliver became the face of the UK supermarket chain Sainsbury's through an endorsement deal worth $2 million a year. After 11 years the partnership between Oliver & Sainsbury's ended. The final television advertisement was for Christmas 2011.

Oliver created Fifteen in 2002. Each year, fifteen young adults who have a disadvantaged background, criminal record or history of drug abuse, are trained in the restaurant business. Oliver conceived and established the Fifteen charity restaurant where he trained fifteen disadvantaged young people to work in the hospitality industry. Following the success of the original restaurant in London, more Fifteens have opened around the globe: Fifteen Amsterdam opened in December 2004, Fifteen Cornwall in Newquay opened in May 2006 and Fifteen Melbourne opened in September 2006 with Australian friend and fellow chef Tobie Puttock.

In 2005, he initiated a campaign called "Feed Me Better" in order to move British schoolchildren towards eating healthy foods and cutting out junk food. As a result, the British government also pledged to address the issue. Delving into politics to push for changes in nutrition resulted in people voting him as the "Most Inspiring Political Figure of 2005," according to a Channel 4 News annual viewer poll.

Oliver then began a formal campaign to ban unhealthy food in British schools and to get children eating nutritious food instead. Oliver's efforts to bring radical change to the school meals system, chronicled in the series Jamie's School Dinners, challenged the junk-food culture by showing schools they could serve healthy, cost-efficient meals that kids enjoyed eating.

Jamie is represented in London, England by Useful Talent.

Heston is a self-taught English chef renowned for his experimental and scientific approach to cooking and gastronomy. He holds multiple honorary degrees in recognition of his scientific approach to cooking. He is the head chef of The Fat Duck, a three Michelin-starred restaurant voted the best restaurant in the world in 2005, and the best restaurant in the UK for a number of years. Additionally, it was voted best restaurant in the world in 2005 by Restaurant magazine. Since that date, it was awarded 2nd place in 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009, 3rd in 2010 and 5th in 2011, and 12th in 2012.

His reputation is based upon his constant and meticulous scientific examination of food. This includes both the chemical processes subjected to food structures during cooking, and also the inherent physical properties of foodstuffs. Blumenthal's famously experimental dishes include bacon and egg ice cream and snail porridge.

Heston Blumenthal regularly collaborates with scientists such as Dr Peter Barham, Reader of Physics at Bristol University and author of the book The Science of Cooking, and Dr Charles Spence, an experimental psychologist at the University of Oxford, with whom they experimented on the use of headphones whilst eating.

He has been a regular contributor to various BBC food programmes, has written a number of books on cooking and recipes, and contributes to newspapers such as The Guardian.

Blumenthal has had numerous books published. His first book was Family Food: A new approach to cooking in 2000. His second book was Heston Blumenthal: In Search of Perfection in 2006 (in which he attempts to find the best way of preparing classic dishes, including fish and chips and Black Forest gateau). Heston Blumenthal: Further Adventures In Search of Perfection was published in 2007 and The Big Fat Duck Cook Book in 2008 published by Bloomsbury. "Heston Blumenthal at Home" was published in late 2011 and is currently in the top 10 in the food and drink category on Amazon's bestseller's list.

The Big Fat Duck Cookbook is a 532 page cookbook written by Blumenthal and published in 2008.

Heston won the Food & Wine Personality of the Year Award - GQ Magazine, Glenfiddich Awards in 2004.

In 2005 he produced a series of six half-hour television programmes called Kitchen Chemistry with Heston Blumenthal which were transmitted on Discovery Science along with a book Kitchen Chemistry, published by the Royal Society of Chemistry and distributed to six thousand schools in the UK and Ireland. To date, it is the most successful book ever produced by the Society.

He opened his first London restaurant, Dinner, in the exclusive Mandarin Oriental Hotel where he has abandoned his experimental approach to food in favour of studied approach to classic English cooking. Heston is represented in London, UK by Useful Talent.

Delia Smith was born on 18 June 1941 in Woking, Surrey, England, UK. She is an actress and writer, known for Victoria Wood: With All the Trimmings (2000), Delia Smith's Summer Collection (1993) and Fantasy Football League (1994). She has been married to Michael Wynn Jones since 11 September 1971.

Prue Leith is an expert on gastronomy and one of the Country's foremost authorities on all things culinary. She is one of the UK's most renowned restaurateurs and caterers, a well known TV cook, broadcaster and cookery writer. She is also known for her formidable business acumen as a past winner of The Veuve Clicquot Business Woman of the Year. She has in the past been the cookery correspondent for The Daily Mail, Sunday Express, and The Guardian.

She was born 18th February 1940 in South Africa, though she has spent most of her working life in London. In 1960, she started a business supplying high quality business lunches, which grew to become Leith's Good Food, the party and event caterer. In 1969, she opened Leith's, her famous Michelin starred restaurant. In 1975 she founded Leiths School of Food and Wine which trains amateur and professional chefs.

She is a former director of British Rail, Safeway, Whitbread, Woolworths and the Halifax bank and a non-executive director of Orient Express Hotels Ltd.

She is former Chair of the Board of Governors of Ashridge Management College, the Restaurants Association of Great Britain, the R.S.A. (Royal Society of Arts) and U.K. Skills.

Prue has been seen on television as one of the judges on the BBC's successful series 'Great British Menu' followed by 'Best Of British'.

She has had an active career in charity and not-for-profit businesses, helping to found The British Food Trust (which promotes good food), Focus on Food (which teaches schoolchildren to cook), The Hoxton Apprentice (which trains long term unemployed people to be waiters and chefs), 3Es Enterprises (which turns around failing state schools).

She is also Chairman of the school Food Trust founded in 2007. The Trust oversees the quality of the food bought, cooked and served in our schools.

Prue is represented in London by Useful Talent.

Paul Hollywood was born on 1 March 1966 in Wallasey, Cheshire, England, UK. He is an actor and writer, known for The Great British Baking Show (2010), Paul Goes to Hollywood (2019) and The Great Comic Relief Bake Off (2013).

Mary Berry was born on 24 March 1935 in Bath, Somerset, England, UK. She is an actress and writer, known for The Great British Baking Show (2010), Mary Berry's Easter Feasts (2016) and The Great Comic Relief Bake Off (2013). She has been married to Paul John March Hunnings since 3 April 1966. They have three children.

Ainsley Harriott was born on 28 February 1957 in London, England, UK. He is an actor, known for Tabloid (2001), Davro (1990) and Red Dwarf (1988). He is married to Claire. They have two children.

Antony Worrall Thompson was born on 1 May 1951 in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England, UK. He is an actor, known for Emmerdale Farm (1972), Footballers' Wives (2002) and Daily Cooks (2007). He has been married to Jacinta Shiel since 7 September 1996. They have two children. He was previously married to Militza Jane Hamilton and Jill Thompson.

Michael is one of Britain's most acclaimed chefs. He was AA Chef's Chef of the Year in 2007, and was awarded an MBE in 2006 for services to the hospitality industry. He is an Operational Partner and Director of ABode Hotels and Michael Caines Restaurants, in overall charge of all food and beverage operations throughout the fast-growing group.

Michael Caines was born in Exeter in 1969 and adopted into a large and loving family. He gained his passion for food from his mother who he used to enjoy helping in the kitchen.

Michael attended Exeter Catering College where his precocious talent was already evident, earning him the accolade 'Student of the Year' in 1987. He subsequently spent a year and a half at the Grosvenor House Hotel, Park Lane in London, before embarking on three influential years under his mentor Raymond Blanc at Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons in Oxfordshire. From here he then moved to France for a further formative period of training, honing his profession under the guidance of such superstars chefs as the late Bernard Loiseau in Saulieu and Joël Robuchon in Paris.

Michael returned to Britain in 1994 to take up the position of Head Chef at Gidleigh Park.

Michael founded Michael Caines Restaurants in 1999 and the next year opened his first signature restaurant Michael Caines at The Royal Clarence in Exeter.

In 2001 he won Chef of the Year at the prestigious Cateys Awards.

Michael continues to cook regularly at Gideigh Park and alongside his Executive Chefs in ABode Exeter, ABode Glasgow, ABode Canterbury, ABode Manchester and ABode Chester.

His cuisine is truly original and brilliant, a fact recognised not just by appreciative visitors to Gideigh Park but by guidebook editors and those who give out awards and accolades. With his classical French training in some of the finest restaurants in the world, and utilising the best and freshest local and regional produce and products from the West Country, Michael has created a style that is uniquely his own, at once classic yet also highly innovative, a fact recognised with the award of a second Michelin star in 1999.