James Martin admits his one regret about the time he met the Queen

(Image credit: Getty Images)

By Aleesha Badkar 2020-09-25T14:20:51Z

James Martin has revealed the one regret he has about when he met the Queen.

TV chef and This Morning regular James Martin has opened up about the time that he met Queen Elizabeth II, revealing that he has one regret about the Buckingham Palace meeting.

"Apparently once a month they do it,” he told HELLO! Magazine. “They pick random people, some in the public eye, some not. There was only eight of us for lunch; it was magical.

"I have total respect for the Queen and the royal family,” he continued. “Would you want to do it? No, would you hell. I wouldn't want to do that in a month of Sundays.”

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Revealing his one regret about the meeting, James continued, “the only thing I regret is that my grandmother wasn't alive to witness it because she was a huge fan.”

Opening up about the overwhelmed experience, James added, "I thought I was going over there for one of those garden parties or 300 people in a room but when I got there the corgis walked in and in came her Majesty, and sat opposite me. It's one of those pinch-yourself moments you'll never forget for the rest of your life.

"We chatted about dogs, about life. She's very polite, it was great. You don't remember what you said because you were so nervous – you can't believe you're having a one on one conversation with the Queen for 45 minutes."

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The TV chef also opened up about being recognised from his TV appearances, saying, "Well, I've been doing this a long time, 28 years on TV.”

Speaking about his fans he added, "They've always been very loyal to me. I don't see it as a fan base, I don't see myself as famous at all. I just cook what I like to cook and am just privileged to be doing this for a living.

“As other people try and find fame, I kind of can't be bothered. The problem with that is the more it gets."

Aleesha Badkar

Aleesha is digital shopping writer at woman&home - so whether you're looking for beauty, fashion, health or home buys, she knows all the best places to splash your cash. She earned an MA in Magazine Journalism from City, University of London in 2017 after graduating from University of Leeds in 2014 with a BA in English and Spanish (which took her to Madrid for a fun Rioja and tapas-packed year). Aleesha has worked for woman&home since 2019, when she joined the team as their digital news writer. A year on the news team gained her quick and reactive writing skills and a love for breaking stories, invaluable insight into where to get the best lifestyle releases first, an AOP awards nomination and the nickname ‘crazy watch lady’ after she became so obsessed with the royals that she followed breaking news alerts on her Apple Watch.

Before joining the woman&home team, Aleesha wrote for their sister site GoodtoKnow, where she covered celebrity news, health advice and where to snap up the cheapest lifestyle buys. With a background in beauty, Aleesha has also written for Stylist and Women’s Health where she developed an understanding into what makes a stellar product and which brands are worth paying attention to. She never leaves the house without a slick of lip balm and a good slathering of SPF, cannot live without an eyelash curler by her side and is always on the hunt for new lipsticks to add to her ‘Lipstick of the Day’ Instagram story highlight (and color-coordinated collection).

But it’s not just beauty buys Aleesha can help you with. Social media savviness, strong PR relationships and a need to stay in the know mean she’s all about the latest fashions, clever gadgets and reliable lifestyle buys too. She loves indulging in an interior craze (with a bedroom drowned in prints, plants and pink), is a regular visitor to the Missoma and Edge of Ember 'New In' pages and can’t resist the allure of a kitchen gadget—just ask her three coffee machines.

When she’s not playing around with new products and testing anything she can get her hands on, Aleesha spends most of her time with her head in a current bestseller, catching up on the latest Netflix craze with her sister, trying out new recipes, drinking wine with her bestie and (in non-COVID times) has been known to be a bit of a jetsetter amongst her friendship group. Oh and she makes the most of her Disney+ subscription by watching the Marvel films on repeat (definitely not just for Chris Evans...).

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