Gordon’s been at the porky pies
HE PRIDES himself on a honed physique kept trim with gruelling triathlons and daily work-outs. But Gordon Ramsay has undergone a total transformation for his latest US TV show, thanks to four hours in the makeup chair and a fat suit that boosts his 14-stone frame to 20 stones. The celebrity chef, who admits using botox to keep his wrinkles at bay, goes undercover in the American version of his hit Channel 4 show The F Word, which begins next week. Worried US TV bosses have insisted the live show has a built-in threesecond time delay, in case the notoriously foul-mouthed star blurts out a trademark ‘f’ word.
‘The show airs live but I’ve been given a three-second delay, so if any naughty words do fall out they’ll bleep them out,’ the 50-year-old star said last night.
‘The fat suit lets me go undercover. I’ve snuck into restaurants to see what other chefs are up to. It’s amazing to walk around incognito.’
To don his disguise for the pre- recorded segments of the show, Ramsay spent several hours in the make-up chair every morning having prosthetics applied to his face. A greasy dark wig, fake facial hair and custom-made fat suit completed the look.
‘No one recognised me, it was brilliant,’ Ramsay added. The father of three is well practiced at keeping in shape. After moving to the US in 2012, the 6ft 2in chef dropped from 16st 2lb to 14 stones, which he has maintained ever since.
He also completed the Kona, Hawaii triathlon in 2013 in 14 hours and four minutes, an accomplishment he called ‘one of the proudest days of my life,’ and has completed three ultramarathons since. ‘Training is my release,’ he said. ‘I would be lost without it. I need to stay fit.’ But while US success may be on the menu, TV watchdogs in the UK are investigating complaints from viewers after an expletive-laden episode of his Channel 4 show, Gordon Ramsay’s Hotel Hell, was accidentally aired at 11am. The repeat, screened in April, was first screened after the 9pm watershed.