In the world of culinary television, James Martin has been a familiar face since the 1990s, amassing a loyal following while his star status continues to rise.

But the chef surprised fans with the revelation of his incredibly simple two-ingredient diet after losing an impressive three stone. During his chat on the Spooning with Mark Wogan podcast, James made it clear that his passion for motor racing was the catalyst for his weight loss.

He explained: “It comes down to the fact that I race cars, or I still try and race a few cars and I actually struggle to get out of them now. Getting in them, you kind of fall in them, but then you’ve got to get out of them and it just doesn’t look very good.”

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Not only does James hold down his beloved Saturday morning slot on ITV, but he’s also profoundly changed his eating habits post-weight loss. He shared this gem: “I’ve decided that I maybe need to stay clear away from these (picks up a Twix bar) and stuff like that and maybe eat fish, and it’s worked.”

In fact, fish is such a staple for Martin that it constitutes a whopping 80 per cent of his current diet, reports Gloucestershire Live. But it’s not all seafood; butter remains firmly on the menu for James. He revealed that when he’s not indulging in aquatic cuisine, he takes pleasure in savouring butter, the second component of his distinct dietary regime.

His affection for the dairy product culminated in the publication of a comprehensive 517-page tome titled ‘Butter: Comforting, Delicious, Versatile – Over 130 Recipes Celebrating Butter’. He joked: “When everyone brought a book out about healthy food about five years ago, I brought out a book on butter.”

James has credited his enviable weight loss to simple food and great ingredients, rather than hitting the gym. He reminisced about his roots, stating: “I’m a farmers kid, I like pure food, I like simple food and just love great ingredients.

“I like simple cooking, but also bringing out the flavour of the ingredients is more important than anything else.” However, James’ journey hasn’t been without its struggles, having dealt with facial cancer since 2018 which required consistent treatment.

Moreover, despite owning an array of restaurants and bakeries, James confessed he has never been keen on exercise, highlighting: “I don’t go to the gym, (his weight loss) it comes down to the fact that I can get my a**e in and out of a car.”

Cooking prowess runs in the family even though James is the only one who pursued it professionally; he learned from ‘excellent’ home cooks before honing his craft in France and eventually gracing UK television screens on BBC and ITV culinary shows from the mid-90s.