James Martin, the ex-Saturday Kitchen maestro, shared a cringeworthy moment from his live TV past that had him wanting to "find a hole to cry in".
Last year, James revealed that within 15 minutes of a comical on-screen blunder, culinary legend Rick Stein sent him a text thanking him for what he called the "ultimate compliment".
The TV chef recounted how BBC bosses chuckled in his earpiece over the gaffe, leaving James with no option but to soldier on with the show. In a toe-curling moment during Saturday Kitchen Live back in 2012, James tripped up on his words while introducing Rick's "dish".
Chatting on the Travel Diaries podcast in 2023, James, who has dyslexia, reminisced: "I was doing my old show on the BBC, and Rick Stein... I was coming out of a Rick Stein VT, and usually I sort of, I'm reading the autocue thinking I can't spell that, I can't say that, so I've got to change this."
"But for some reason, I didn't because I was too busy getting prepped with bits and pieces and chatting to my guests, and I remember just looking up - James, we're coming to you in five, four, three, two, one, and I read it." He continued: "And for some reason, I just got all my words mixed up. What it was supposed to say was, 'what a delicious looking dish, Rick; now I'm going to do spotted dick and custard, and now I'm going to show you what to do'."
"What I said was, 'what a delicious looking d**k, Rick', and before I even got the apology out, they're laughing in my ear. I've got the BBC laughing in one ear, producers wetting themselves. I just wanted to find a hole to cry in, and I had to carry on - you had to carry on for 12 minutes live, knowing full well that all the while you're doing this, and the producers are in my ear going, 'it's gone viral, it's gone viral', and you're trending all over the place. It's in the national newspaper, and I was still on air! There's nothing you can do about it."
The TV chef explained how minor slip-ups can quickly snowball when you mix the stress of live television with "someone who is dyslexic", like himself. He's been in the live TV game for around three decades but noted how times have evolved. About 15 years ago, it "never really mattered" if he made a mistake as there was no way to trace them. The BBC doesn't keep a "record" of them, according to the chef, who lamented that these days, it's "all over bl**dy Instagram by the time you've "got to the changing rooms".
When asked about his friend's reaction, James revealed that Rick Stein texted him within 15 minutes from Australia to say "thank you very much" for the "ultimate compliment."
The star has been a staple on our screens for more than two decades, penning over 20 cookbooks and selling millions of copies worldwide. He was the face of BBC's Saturday Kitchen for more than a decade and launched his own eateries before taking the helm at ITV's Saturday Morning with James Martin, among other programmes.
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