'Gordon Ramsay was the best man at my wedding and then I fell out with him'

Celebrity chef Marcus Wareing said his friendship with Gordon Ramsay was so close he actually asked Ramsay to be the best man at his wedding. However, despite their personal and professional history they ended up falling out.

Michelin-starred chef and Masterchef judge, Marcus Wareing was in Merseyside yesterday visiting Maghull High School in Sefton, to participate in a talk with students, discuss his career story and offer insights into the world of hospitality.

The event was organised by the UK’s leading social mobility charity Speakers for Schools and designed to inspire state-educated young people to ‘dream big’ and explore career paths they may never have considered.

During the session, Marcus Wareing shared his journey from humble beginnings to Michelin star success and TV fame, and offered practical advice for students keen to follow in his footsteps.

Wareing said: “Inspiring young people is one of the most rewarding things I can do. I want them to realise that no dream is out of reach, no matter where you start from. It’s about hard work, resilience, and staying curious about what’s possible.”

Nick Brook, CEO of Speakers for Schools, added: “For many years, talks from eminent people have been a prized part of education in top fee paying schools in this country. They are seen as a powerful tool to inform and inspire, helping young people to discover new opportunities and understand how to achieve their goals.”

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After giving a speech to students at Maghull High School and participating in a panel discussion, Wareing fielded some questions for the pupils gathered in the assembly hall.

Responding to a query about the most famous person he has cooked for, Wareing said: “Well, the Queen, Princess Diana, Johnny Depp, Robert De Niro, quite a few people, quite a lot of royalty and various different people. I think the most iconic person I cooked for was Princess Diana, if I’m honest with you.”

However, pupils were especially delighted by his answer to one young person questioning if he knew Gordon Ramsay, he said: “I know him very, very well. I worked with him. I was business partners with him. He was the best man at my wedding and then I fell out with him.”

Wareing added he was the first person Gordon Ramsay ever employed and started off a long and fruitful professional relationship. However, in 2008 and almost ten years after they opened a restaurant together.

The restaurant was opened in 1999 and was called Pétrus, but Wareing eventually wanted to go solo and take over the Pétrus lease, which led to a public feud and legal battle. After the dispute, Ramsay kept the Pétrus name, while Wareing opened Marcus Wareing at The Berkeley.

Despite the feud, Wareing is still very complimentary of his former partner, he added: “[Gordon Ramsay] is a brilliant chef. He has conquered the globe.

“I can’t think of any chef off top my head[…] that has won three Michelin stars and has probably won every accolade that there is in the UK, opened tons and tons and tons of restaurants and gone over and done exactly the same in America.

“He’s had three, three shows in this country, and three to four shows state side. You know, the guy’s Mick Jagger.”