TV’s cheekiest chef Gino D’Acampo could also stake a claim as the most famous Italian in Britain.
He may have lived in the UK, off and on (notwithstanding the second villa at his vineyard in Sardinia), since he was 19, but he wears his heritage triumphantly, and often hysterically, especially when he has one of his lost-in-translation moments on air.
No-one could be more proud of their background, culture and language than Gino, a point underlined by the fact he named his three children Luciano, Rocco and Mia.
He says he taught his British wife Jessica Italian – and she, in turn, taught him English – when they started seeing each other, although, being Gino, he is rather risqué in his joking about this.
‘We met when I was 18, working in a restaurant in Spain. I taught her Italian and she taught me English, but there were a lot of hand gestures to begin with – you, me, eat.’
He mimes a questionable gesture. ‘Once I asked her for a doughnut and she thought I wanted something completely different.’
Gino D’Acampo with his son. He winces when his children mispronounce…
