The chef, 36, on never getting hitched, being ‘thick’, and why women are not his top priority…

How is your new show, James Martin’s Brittany, different to other cookery shows you’ve done?

James Martin: It’s the first series I’ve done abroad. I remember going to France as a kid and being taken out to restaurants and food markets. Then I went there when I was training as a chef when I was 14. I’ve gone back to see the markets and they’re fantastic. The idea of a market in the UK now is almost like a gimmick, a tourist attraction. Over there it’s a way of life. In France there’s no supermarket culture, they’ve stuck with their tradition.

What is your favourite French food?

JM: Veal. It has a bad reputation over here. In the UK we’re obsessed with everything being clean and pretty, it’s got to be packaged right. Whereas in France you buy a chicken and the head’s still on it. It’s proper food.

How do you manage to keep in shape filming all of your cookery shows?

JM: I don’t really. I don’t exercise. I just work at 100 miles an hour.

Did you always want to be a celebrity?

JM: Definitely not. My goal was to be head chef and I achieved that when I was 21. If anyone asks me what my biggest achievement is, it’s that, not anything to do with television. I’m a chef by trade. That’s where I started and that’s where I’ll end up.

Do you like the showbiz aspect of your job?

JM: Some people get carried away with media exposure, but I’ve never been like that. When I shut my door, that’s it. This is home, private. I don’t do the premieres and parties, or look for publicity. I’ve kept my feet on the ground, and if the TV shows go pear-shaped, I’d go back to being a chef full-time.

When did you realise that you wanted to be a chef?

JM: When I was eight. I remember racing my skateboard around the house, and my dad saying, ‘What do you want to do when you grow up?’ And I said, ‘I want to be a head chef when I’m 21, have my own restaurant when I’m 35, and a Ferrari when I’m 40.’ They all thought I was bloody stupid.

What’s your dream job?

JM: If I gave it all up tomorrow, I’d pay for myself to train as a vet. It must be one of the hardest but best jobs in the world. Although at secondary school I realised very quickly I wasn’t going to be a vet – I wasn’t clever enough. The word ‘thick’ comes to mind.

Who’s been your favourite guest on Saturday Kitchen?

JM: The one person I remember more than anyone is Jackie Collins. She was just amazing. Everything you thought she would be, she’s not. Jackie is ‘Hollywood’, don’t get me wrong, but she’s just a down-to-earth person. And she’s the only person who’s actually written to me after the show to say, ‘Thank you very much’. She attached a little picture of me and her on the show to the letter as well.

What’s your guilty pleasure?

JM: Diet Coke. I’m absolutely obsessed with Diet Coke. I can’t live without it.

Since appearing on Strictly Come Dancing in 2005, do you still bust a groove?

JM: You’ve got to be joking, haven’t you? No way. Once it’s over, it’s over, you just move on. Those days have definitely gone.

Do you still speak to your dance partner, Camilla Dallerup?

JM: I spoke to her yesterday. She normally asks me for food tips more than anything else.

Do you cook at home?

JM: Yeah, I do. I’ve got my own veg garden and I get fresh fish delivered. So I’ll pick some carrots and have them with fresh fish.

Do many people recognise you in the street?

JM: I get the odd woman who pulls her top down and asks me to sign her left breast, which is quite amusing. Do I oblige? Of course. Why not?

You’ve become a bit of a pin-up now. What’s your secret?

JM: My mate said, ‘It’s because you’re not bothered.’ I don’t play hard to get. Food’s always been my life. When I was 16, people my age were going out and enjoying themselves, but I went straight from school to the kitchen and worked like a nutter. I didn’t even have a girlfriend until I was 21. Does food come before women? Yes. Then cars. Then my dog Fudge. I can go further down the list…

Are you dating at the moment?

JM: I am, yes. We’ve been together about a year. But she’s not famous.

Have you ever been in love?

JM: I dunno. Once, I think. I just reckon anyone who gets married has bigger balls than me. Marriage frightens the hell out of me. I’m not being big-headed or rude, I just want to do my own thing. Anybody who’s with me has to live with it.

What makes you think that?

JM: I don’t understand what the fuss is about. I’ve catered for weddings most of my life and everyone argues on the big day. And it costs them a fortune.

What does your girlfriend think of you being anti-marriage?

JM: She’s used to it. We cancelled our holiday to Cuba, so I could spend a week at home. For about eight years I haven’t had a week off – I want to spend time at my house. She wasn’t happy, but that’s what I want to do. I don’t enjoy holidays. I can go away for five days, but any more and I get bored. Sat on a beach? Oh God, it does my head in.

You’ve no plans to settle down then?

JM: I’m settled down now. I’ve got my house and my dog. I’ve never done what everybody else has done. The standard thing to do is find someone, get married in your 20s, have two kids and be boring for the rest of your life. Most people who are married look at me and think, ‘You lucky b*****d.’ I look at them and think, ‘Why?’ You all had the option to do it, and you’ve chosen that.

What’s your pet hate?

JM: Poor room service gets me very impatient. And not washing up. I can’t bear to leave dirty pans soaking in water.

Who would you like to cook your last meal?

JM: My late grandmother. She passed away nine years ago. I’d have a bacon sandwich from her, she made the best. Marks & Spencer white sliced bread, Lurpak butter, and bacon from the butcher’s cooked on an old gas grill.

• James Martin’s Brittany starts on Monday 1 September on UKTV Food, weekdays at 9pm

JAMES’S REALITY CHECK

What have you always got in your fridge?

Diet Coke, Mars Bars.

When was the last time you used public transport?

I take the train to London on Mondays and Fridays when the traffic is horrendous.

What’s your must-have kitchen appliance?

A big American-style fridge freezer.