Chris Evans, 53, gave a touching tribute to TV chef Gary Rhodes, after his sudden death at the age of 59 sparked a frenzy among grieving fans. The radio host referred to the famous cook as a “hugely affable human being”.
During a segment of his show, Chris reminisced on his time meeting the chef after interviewing him on several occasions.
“I met [him] a couple of times, a hugely affable human being,” he said.
“Very much a pioneer, very much a trail blazer for changing the way we think about food in Great Britain, as Jamie Oliver has said over the past 24 hours.”
The healthy food advocate took to Instagram yesterday, writing: “Gary was a fantastic chef and incredible ambassador for British cooking, he was a massive inspiration to me as a young chef. He re-imagined modern British cuisine with elegance and fun. Rest in peace Chef.”
Hell’s Kitchen’s Gordon Ramsey also led the tributes on Wednesday, tweeting to his official Twitter page: “We lost a fantastic chef today in Gary Rhodes. He was a chef who put British Cuisine on the map. Sending all the love and prayers to your wife and kids. You’ll be missed.”
Other top TV cook’s such as Ainsley Harriet and Tom Kerridge continued to pay their respects to their fellow restaurateur throughout the day, saying they were “deeply shocked” and “saddened” to hear the tragic news.
Gary moved to Dubai eight years ago with his wife, where he ran two restaurants.
He appeared on MasterChef, Hell’s Kitchen and starred in his own series, Rhodes Around Britain.
His family later released a statement that read: “In order to end painful speculation surrounding the sudden passing of our beloved Gary Rhodes OBE, the Rhodes family can confirm that after a successful day shooting with Rock Oyster Media for ITV here in Dubai, Gary returned home in a very happy mood for a peaceful evening with his wife Jennie.
“After dinner, Gary unfortunately collapsed in their residence and was rushed to hospital but unfortunately passed away due to subdural hematoma.
“At this time, there are no other details and the family would again request privacy around this very tragic loss and again, thank friends and family for their ongoing support at this time.”
