My life through a lens: Chef and TV presenter Michel Roux, 61, shares his favourite snaps

Chef and TV presenter Michel Roux, 61, shared the stories behind a selection of his favourite snaps 

1962: That’s me sitting at a full monty dinner table in our cottage in Shipbourne, Kent, where my father, Albert, was a private chef for the Cazalet family, the Queen Mum’s horse trainers. It would have been a special Sunday lunch they wanted me to join. I was a big eater and not fussy at all. I played with pastry like other kids played with plasticine – my career could’ve only gone one way, really

1982: Here I am in my 20s with my dad’s mum Grandma Roux, a formidable woman whose couch I slept on for six months when I was 16 and an apprentice in Paris. It was a great time – even when she told me off for coming in late. Her secret to a long life was to mush stale baguette, a sugar cube and red wine into a paste and take it every day – she called it her booster

1993: Lenny Henry takes everything he does seriously and he spent a couple of fun days in the kitchen with us at Le Gavroche as research for Chef! – his TV show. He took to it like a duck to water, and he was full-on in the kitchen. My dad had a cameo appearance in the show, he was having lunch and Lenny’s character was terrified of what the great chef Mr Roux would think of his food. He went out shaking to ask if he’d enjoyed it, and the answer from Dad was ‘the cheese was wonderful’

2002: Dad was very proud to have me, my daughter, Emily, and himself – three generations– in this photo. Emily’s now 31 and runs Caractère, a restaurant in London, with her husband Diego. It was one of Dad’s favourite places to eat. Emily has a son, Julian, and after two really awful years, first losing my uncle in 2020 then Dad last year, and Covid, looking at a picture of my beautiful grandchild makes me happy

2004: I’ve run 21 marathons, 13 of them in London. This was the one year that Gordon Ramsay beat me, and he still won’t let me forget it. But I was running with a stress fracture and really shouldn’t have taken part. Gordon is one of the most talented and naturally gifted chefs I’ve had in the kitchen. I love running to keep fit and also to escape the pressures of work. When I run, I don’t have music on – I just run. It’s a lovely way to clear your head

2010: I was surprised by the high and the low standards when I was a judge on MasterChef: The Professionals. Here is the team at the BAFTAs, where we won an award for series two. It’s a huge gamble for the chefs to come on television, to risk messing up and then go back to where they work. I remember an amazing banana cake with Guinness ice cream by Steve Groves, who went on to work for me, and a sea trout starter by 2010 winner Claire Lara which was pure perfection

2013: Before the France v England rugby match, there was a ‘Legends Game’ and I was asked to play for the French team. I kicked off and then ran off the pitch – I think there was an issue with insurance! I did a quick cameo appearance five minutes from the end as, by then, they were all knackered, and it was easier for me to keep my distance. England [including Martin Corry, far left, and Jason Leonard next to him] won, but the French didn’t take it seriously – a bottle of brandy went round the changing room at half time

2015: This really is the most beautiful photo with my dad Albert and uncle Michel, bless them, and my cousin Alain. They were judging for the prestigious Roux Scholarship, a chef competition which I’m very proud of. Dad’s probably just told a corny joke or Michel has said something cheeky. They were inseparable and admired each other but also clashed heads. Just before my uncle died, I was able to see him and whispered in his ear that he had two lovely nurses looking after him. His eyes lit up and he raised two thumbs and started giggling