Inside James Martin's explosive family rift that saw TV chef vow to 'never speak to his father again' - as he prepares to wed Kim Johnson after making a U-turn on marriage plans

James Martin is seemingly set to get hitched, as his girlfriend Kim Johnson appeared to confirm their engagement following reports of a Christmas proposal. 

The culinary whizz, 53, has been dating the personal trainer, 39, for two years and they now look set to tie the knot despite his previous claims he'd never get married.

However, it is not the first time that James has had a complete volte-face, having also gone through several rollercoasters with his family over the years.

The former Saturday Kitchen star previously steadfastly declared that his father, Ian, would 'never be a part of his life', following a bitter family rift. 

He appeared to suggest that their relationship had been rocky for some time, after he revealed that his dad had given him some very harsh parting words when James left for London after graduating college, to embark on a culinary career.

In 2024, he recalled how he got his start working in the top restaurants, finding work at a kitchen in Kensington only a day after his arrival in the capital.

However, James said Ian was far from encouraging as he bid his son goodbye, telling him to 'b****r off' after dropping him off.

He told to Visor Down: 'The day I finished college I said to my dad that I wanted to go and work in London, so he took me home where I packed a bag, then he drove me to the train station and told me to bugger off and have a good time.

'I came to London with 50 quid in my pocket and not a clue what to do. 24 hours later I was working in a kitchen in Kensington.'

But it wasn't until 2008 that relations between the father-and-son reached boiling point, with the pair having an explosive fall-out after James penned several vitriolic passages about Ian's ex-wife in his autobiography.

His former stepmother, Sarah Briggs, took exception to certain passages in the original version of the book that suggested she'd destroyed keepsakes from James's childhood during her marriage to his father Ian. A legal action resulted in the book, Driven, being pulped, damages paid and an apology issued. 

His former step-mother was left shocked and 'hurt' by the blistering remarks and successfully sued for libel.

She told York Press at the time of her legal win: 'My jaw dropped as I read the extraordinary accusations. It was graphically depicted, but wholly untrue. I had never destroyed anything belonging to James.

'Reading on, I became even more perplexed. I was doomed to be the ‘wicked stepmother’ – effectively labelled from the outset, and seemingly never allowed to become anything else.'

'I am still left wondering why it ever happened. I feel hurt and disappointed,' she admitted. 'If such unpleasant and untrue statements are a way of boosting book sales, it makes me rather sad. James has far more interesting things to say.

'I hope the revised edition of the book will allow him to do so without causing as much upset and damage to other people as he has done to me.'

The original edition of the book was pulled from shelves and James apologised to for his comments, later branding the autobiography his 'biggest regret'.

Yet even after the dust had settled on the autobiography controversy, the father and son were still as estranged as ever.

James conceded they were both 'too stubborn' to make amends and said he'd accepted that Ian would 'never be a part of his life'.

But far from being regretful about their rift, he instead claimed the 'only good thing' to have come from the legal drama was 'the realisation I would never speak to my father again'. 

'I spent 12 years trying to get on with him,' he told The Sun in 2010. 'You never knew what was around the corner. It was always something like getting divorced or remarried, or a new woman. 

'It was just relentless. I thought, I’ve had enough of this. I’m just going to separate completely.'

But despite his staunch declaration that their relationship was irreparably ruined, last year James revealed that he and his dad had managed to bury the hatchet at last.

While he even recalled the poignant moment that he had been brought to tears when Ian attended one of his live shows, almost a decade earlier.

He proudly recounted to Candis magazine how he'd treated his father to stay at the luxury Ritz Hotel and had been able to see his astonished reaction to seeing that his son had 'made it'.

'I got him a night at the Ritz – I think he was worried he'd have to pick up the bill! – and I took him backstage at the Palladium,' James reminisced. 'He couldn't believe his son's name was in lights outside the theatre.'

'When I stepped on stage that evening and stood on the cross below which Bruce Forsyth's ashes are buried, I looked into the audience and the first face I saw was my dad's.

'I held it all together throughout the show but I welled up at the end. I completely lost it. The farmer's kid had made it.'

In contrast to his relationship with his dad, James has always remained very close with his mother Sue, previously saying she was the always the first person he calls for advice that his priority has always been to take care of her.

He previously told the Mail in 2016: 'Mum is my biggest fan and the most honest person I know. We talk on the phone two or three times every day. 

'You're taught values as a farmer's kid and that includes looking after your family, respecting your elders and staying close to one another.'

He became choked up as he recalled how she'd voiced her pride for his success only a few weeks earlier, saying: 'She hadn’t said anything at all until the other month, she came down to see me.'

Welling up with tears, he continued: 'It’s really weird. She turned around to me and said, “The boy’s done good.” That’s the first time ever she’s said I’ve done all right.’

While in 2024, the restaurant owner said that his 'greatest achievement' to date was buying his mum a house. 

He also shared a very close bond with his late grandmother, revealing that she always tuned in to watch him on TV and was the one who inspired him become a chef, saying: 'None of my family were chefs, but my granny was the most amazing cook.'

James explained that grandma, Marjorie, encouraged his talents and supported him when he took a job in a local kitchen, before heading to culinary school.

Recalling how he would help out on his grandparents' allotment as a youngster, he told the Mirror in 2011: 'My grandmother was a huge influence in my life and inadvertently inspired me to be a chef.

'As a boy, my most vivid memories are of helping her dig up potatoes fresh from her allotment, then boiling them up with some mint. 

'She baked and cooked, and she was just wonderful. If I could be 10 per cent of what she was, I'd be a lucky man.'

However, he lamented that she had missed out on seeing him appear on her favourite TV show, Strictly Come Dancing, where he reached the semi-finals with partner Camilla Dallerup.

He said: 'My granny, Marjorie, also watched everything I did. She was a huge fan of Strictly but sadly she didn't live long enough to see me take part in it in 2005.'

James has admitted that one regret he does have is not taking the opportunity to settle down and raise a family of his own.

The restaurateur previously said his 'biggest low' was that he'd 'given up everything' to devote his life to building his career, including becoming a dad.

In an interview with Prima in 2020, he admitted: 'The biggest low of my career is that I’ve given up everything for it.

'I look at my mates and they’re all married with kids, and that’s not the case for me because I’ve been so focused on work. The level of commitment it requires and the choices you have to make have a huge impact. 

'But would I do the same thing again? Probably, because it’s made me who I am. And why does everybody have to follow the norm anyway?' 

However, it seems that James has decided to follow the norm after all, now that he is thought to be engaged to marry Kim.

The couple's romance was first revealed when they were spotted shopping for jewellery at Tiffany's in Mayfair back in April last year.

And they appeared to take the next step in their relationship in October, when she moved into his country home in Hampshire.

Last month the chef was said to have popped the question before gifting his bride-to-be a £150,000 Land Rover, which was said to have been an engagement present. 

And according to The Sun, Kim confirmed the new on Instagram as she shared a snap of one of James' latest dishes alongside the caption: 'So proud of my fiancé'.

The proposal marks a sharp U-turn for James, after he previously insisted that he had no desire to ever tie the knot. 

Speaking to the Sunday People in 2019, he said: 'Marriage doesn’t interest me in the slightest, mainly because I’ve catered for so many weddings, really.

'I admire people who do it, that’s fine, but I’m quite happy. I don’t need to spend 60 grand on a day, no, I’m more than happy thanks.'

His engagement to Kim comes exactly two years after James's split from long-term girlfriend Louise Davies after 12 years together.

The chef and the TV producer first began dating in 2011 after they met on the set of Celebrity Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? and lived together at his Hampshire pad.

In December 2023, a spokesperson for James confirmed that he and Louise had parted ways, but that they remain good friends.

Meanwhile, Kim was previously married to businessman Arun Nayar, 61, after striking up a romance in 2011, following his divorce from Elizabeth Hurley after four years of marriage.

After five years of dating, Arun and Kim tied the knot in July 2016, but their marriage was short-lived and they divorced the following year.