Marco Pierre White

White has been married thrice. His first marriage was to Alex McArthur in 1988. With her, he fathered a daughter Letitia. The relationship turned sour within two years as the two headed for splits.

Following his divorce from McArthur, White became interested in Lisa Butcher, a model. The two met at a London nightclub and hit it off instantly. Engaged within three weeks of their first meeting, the two took their wedding vows at the Brompton Oratory in August 1992. However, things soured almost immediately as White began a relationship with Matilde Conejero.

With Conejero, White fathered two sons and eventually married her at Belvedere in April 2000. However, things weren’t smooth between the two. His alleged extramarital affairs caused Conejero to file for a divorce. Though they withdrew the divorce proceedings in 2011, in October 2012 White and Conejero separated again.

Marco Pierre White was born on December 11, 1961 to English chef Frank White and Maria Rosa Gallina in Leeds. He was third of the four boys born to the couple.

White, who was studying at Allerton High School, dropped out of the same without earning any degree to train himself as a chef. He first apprenticed at Hotel St George in Harrogate and later at Box Tree in Ilkley.

At the age of 16, Marco Pierre White left for London with just a bag full of books and clothes and little money. In London, he trained as a commis under Albert and Michel Roux at Le Gavroche. After La Gavroche, White apprenticed under several known chefs including Pierre Koffman at La Tante Claire, Raymond Blanc at Le Manoir and Nico Ladenis of Chez Nico at Ninety Park Lane.

Having gained training from some of the best chefs, White began working in the kitchen at the Six Bells public house in Kings Road with assistant Mario Batali.

In his mid-20s, White became the Head Chef and joint owner of Harvey’s with a kitchen staff that included the then-unknown Gordon Ramsay. In 1987, he won his first Michelin star.

Within a year of winning his first Michelin star, White was awarded his second Michelin star in 1988 and the third one followed soon after. At the age of 33, White became the youngest chef to be awarded three Michelin stars, in addition to being the first British chef to be awarded the honour. The honor came at a time when he was serving as the chef-patron of The Restaurant Marco Pierre White.

Following his stint at The Restaurant Marco Pierre White, he moved to the Oak Room at the Le Méridien Piccadilly. In 1999, White cooked the final meal as a professional chef for a paying customer on December 23, at Oak Room. He put a final full stop to his 17 years of career as a chef.

Marco Pierre White reached the peak of his cooking career when he headed Harvey’s. With a group of talented kitchen staff, White embarked on a journey that spun magic on the plate during each of his stint in the kitchen. In 1987, White earned the first of his three Michelin stars to become a renowned chef worldwide. The other two came in almost immediately thus catapulting his fame to greater heights.

Cooking apart, White’s writing tryst earned him glory with his influential cookbook ‘White Heat’ that changed the panorama of British cooking. He changed the way the world looked upon British food through his innovative approach and ‘magical’ touch.