Neighbours’ fury over chef Gino’s bid to close path
hE might be the chirpy celebrity chef who brings a bright smile to breakfast cookery shows.
But Gino D’Acampo has cooked up a storm with residents near his £1.25million home after a bid to close a ‘vital’ footpath to the public.
The Italian chef claims his family are ‘harassed’ by fans, who turn up at his hertfordshire mansion to ask for photos and autographs.
he wants the path next to the Grade IIlisted house in hoddesdon to be closed at the weekend so his family can feel ‘secure’.
But locals say the ‘historic’ footpath provides access to a GP surgery and pharmacy, and accused the celebrity chef of acting like ‘he owns the town’.
Mr D’Acampo, 43, told the MailOnline: ‘I don’t know what all the fuss is about. I only want to have it closed at weekends when it’s not being used.’
The TV personality has lived at the property with his wife Jessica and their three children since 2016. The family claim they have seen fans in the garden taking pictures – and once found a stranger standing in their hallway.
The couple first applied to have the footpath closed entirely two years ago, but later withdrew the application. They have now applied to have the path closed at weekends only.
Yesterday Mrs D’Acampo said: ‘It is dangerous for members of the public to treat the driveway effectively as a public space. There are frequent knocks on the door with people asking for pictures of Gino.’
Nick Brown, a 72-year-old retired groundworker, said: ‘That Gino thinks he owns the town. The lane is a historic walkway. It’s the best way to get to the surgery.
‘It takes about five times longer to walk around to the surgery.’