Gino D’acampo Wife: Things You Didn’t Know About The TV Chef
From Gino D’acampo’s wife to his time spent behind bars, we bet you didn’t know these things about TV’s favourite chef!
There’s no TV chef quite like Gino D’Acampo; in fact, there’s no one else in the world quite like Gino D’Acampo. Whether he’s cooking up his gran’s infamous Carbonara or ensuring laughter with his broken English, our beloved Gino certainly knows how to entertain an audience.
It all started with some guest appearances on a few cookery shows, before the UK fell in love with his wit, charm and – quite frankly – bizarre behaviour whilst appearing on I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! This, of course, lead to regular spots on ITV’s This Morning, as well as his slot as a panellist on Keith Lemon’s Celebrity Juice.
So, what else is there to know about the cheeky chappy? Turns out A LOT…
Image Source/Instagram
He’s Held SIX Guinness World Records
Over the years, many famous faces have attempted to set various records, and very few have actually been successful. But our Gino is one who has.
He holds/has previously held the record for:
- “The most amount of ravioli made in two minutes” (with 32 parcels)
- “The most chocolate truffles made in two minutes”
- “Running across custard for the longest time”
- “Most bottles of champagne opened in one minute”
- “The most Christmas crackers broken in one minute by a team of two”
- “The most jumpers put on in one minute”
He’s Been With His Wife For Over 16 years
Because of his overtly flamboyant personality, viewers often assume that Gino is homosexual. However, despite his camp persona, Gino has been happily married to his wife, Jessica Morrison, since 2002!
Gino and Jessica were only 19 when they first started courting – and now they have three (adorable) kids together: Luciano, Rocco and Mia.
Image Source/Instagram
He’s Been Behind Bars
It sounds like a joke, right? But Gino’s genuinely been locked up before. Believe it or not, in 1998, Gino was convicted of robbing Paul Young’s house – an ’80s singing icon. Apparently, Gino made off with a guitar collection as well as a platinum disc when he robbed the singer’s house.
He was arrested quickly after investigators found DNA on cigarette butts in the musician’s bedroom.
But the burglary was a LOOONG time away now, when Gino was just twenty-one years old and working as a waiter.
However, it did make for a pretty awkward sitch when Young was a guest on ITV’s This Morning – Gino was the show’s resident chef at the time…
Still, Paul seemed to forgive Gino:
‘I don’t hold it against him. He said it was bad and he apologised, and I did get most of the stuff back.’
‘Maybe he needed his wrist slapping and he got that. He said he was in a terrible place at that time and wanted to turn his life around.’
Image Source/The Mirror
Gino’s Got Two Doggies
We all knew that Gino had an adorable Newfoundland pup – who was absolutely huge at 10 months years old. But not many of us knew that he also bought a Great Dane. Yep, we’re imagining Gino with a Great Dane RN too. He really does want his house to be taken over by giant dogs Orio and Duke, doesn’t he?
My puppies are getting big 😳 GDx pic.twitter.com/V3I8J2hIlZ
— Gino D’Acampo (@Ginofantastico) January 3, 2019
Image Source/Twitter
He Moved TO The UK When He Was A Teenager
Gino was only nineteen when he moved from Italy to London. When he arrived he bagged a job in the The Orchard Restaurant in Hampstead – a small village just outside of the capital.
Image Source/Instagram
He Went On To Start A Business
In 2003, three years after leaving prison for burgling Paul Young’s home, Gino established the company Bontà Italia – along with his pal, Marco Silvagni. The company’s aim is to allow people in the UK access to authentic Italian food and Gino is heavily invested in the company, involved in day-to-day running.
He Was Inspired By His Granddad
Gino is open about being inspired by his grandfather, who was a chef on a cruise ship:
“Everyone used to go to my grandfather’s house, it was the main focal point for all of the family’s activities… He loved making it (pizza). I remember he had a beautiful, round, wooden pizza oven which he’d use to make fresh bread and pizzas.”
Image Source/Gino D’acampo Website
He Won I’m A Celeb
You might’ve forgotten but Gino was actually crowned King of the Jungle in the 2009 series of I’m A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here!
The Italian TV host beat Kim Woodburn to the title after spending weeks in the jungle.
After eating rotten egg, cockroaches and beetles to win a dinner for the campers in the final few days of the competition, Gino revealed he’d struggled with the task:
“That was disgusting, you people are crazy. The worst was the egg.”
On winning the show, he said:
“It feels great, I know that I’m going to get into some kind of civilisation very soon.
“These three weeks have been crazy, up and down. I don’t think there’s ever been a day when I’ve thought, ‘what am I doing here, I should be at home doing something else’ – I really enjoyed every bit of the experience.”
Image Source/Instagram
Gino D’acampo’s Net Worth
He’s been cooking on our screens for 15 years – and had countless TV appearances outside of chef-ing. He’s also got a chain of restaurants, as well as co-owning Bonta Italia LTD. The Italian’s net worth is a whopping £10million.
Image Source/Instagram
What Was Gino’s First Gig?
Gino’s first taste of fame came from the TV show Great Food Live hosted by Jeni Barnett on UKTV, running from 2001 to 2007.