John Torode was among the high-profile names honored during an investiture ceremony at Buckingham Palace on Thursday.
The 57-year-old celebrity chef earned an MBE for services to food and charity after a career that has made him widely known for his role as a judge on MasterChef.
John attended the ceremony with his wife, actress-turned-TV cook Lisa Faulkner, 50, who he was later photographed with celebrating the occasion.
John has written several cookbooks and appeared on ITV’s This Morning in the late 1990s before taking over as a judge on the BBC cooking show in 2005 alongside Gregg Wallace.
John is also a restaurateur and former owner of The Luxe restaurant. He has written several cookbooks, including some with Judge Gregg.
John looked dapper as he dressed for the occasion in a navy suit and tailcoat.
High honor: John Torode was among the high-profile names to receive honors during an investiture ceremony at Buckingham Palace on Thursday.
Good spirit: The celebrity chef, 57, was named an MBE for services to food and charity after a career that has made him widely known for his role as a judge on MasterChef
The chef smiled after collecting his award at the palace.
John and Lisa share five children between them: Lisa’s adopted daughter Billie, 16, and John’s adult children Casper and Marselle, and teenagers Jonah, 18, and Lulu, 16.
The couple recently they celebrated their third wedding anniversary, after meeting for the first time when he judged his food in BBC‘s Celebrity MasterChef.
Lisa took to Instagram to celebrate the milestone with a gushing tribute to her husband.
The actress also gave her 322,000 followers a glimpse of the big day with a candid snap of the couple enjoying a kiss after exchanging vows.
She wrote: ‘Happy anniversary my @johntorodecooks… 3 wonderful years married to you.’
‘What a beautiful wedding. I sat and watched our wedding video and the happiness on everyone’s faces. You bring me so much joy. I love you a lot. Thank you for being my husband.’
The TV judge ran to the comments section and replied, “I love my wife.”
Love: John attended the ceremony with his wife, actress-turned-TV cook Lisa Faulkner, 50, who he was later pictured with celebrating the occasion
Achievement: John has written several cookbooks and appeared on ITV’s This Morning in the late 1990s before taking over as a judge on the BBC cooking show in 2005.
Dapper Guy: John looked dapper as he dressed for the occasion in a navy blue morning suit and tailcoat
The couple tied the knot at posh Aynhoe Park in Banbury in October 2019 with a host of famous faces on the guest list, including Amanda Holden and Tamzin Outhwaite.
Lisa was previously married to EastEnders actor Chris Choghill, 47, from 2005 to 2011 and with whom she shares daughter Billie, 16.
John separated from his wife Jessica in 2011, with whom he shares Jonah, 18, and Lulu, 16, and is also the father of two older children from a previous relationship.
in a with sunday times Earlier this year, John admitted that there has been a “black mark” on when the couple first met.
The Australian explained how, in his version of events, they met when Lisa was a contestant on Celebrity MasterChef in 2010.
Good news: His wife Lisa Faulkner, 50, took to Instagram to celebrate the milestone with a gushing tribute to her husband.
Proud: the chef smiled after collecting his award at the palace
Prize: Lisa gave John a fond look as they enjoyed a meal after the main event.
However, footage unearthed from This Morning in 1996 showed John being introduced as the new chef, while his now-wife was being interviewed on the sofa.
For the London-born Lisa, their initial encounter on the ITV daytime show had not escaped her memory, as she recalled praising one of her dishes and her curt response.
She said she thought he was arrogant, but that soon changed when their friendship they soon found after MasterChef turned into something more.
On how he was prompted to ask the Brookside actress out on a date, John divulged: “I split up with my wife (Jessica), which was horrible, and I was reluctant to approach Lisa face-to-face because I didn’t like her.” the prospect of him saying no, so I wrote him a letter.
If he hadn’t gotten an answer, it wouldn’t matter. Cowardly? Shit yeah. I’m just as cowardly as they are.
John explained that she had agreed to a date and everything fell into place from there, saying that “we really, really like each other”.
Private Life: Outside of his hugely successful career, John is married to actress-turned-TV cook Lisa and they share five children between them.
