Interior design queen and former Dragons’ Den star Kelly Hoppen has revealed how taking part in ITV’s Cooking with the Stars forced her to confront a lifelong challenge - and may have sparked a behind-the-scenes shift in the way cooking shows are made.
Hoppen, 66, is one of the celebrities competing in the new series of the hit reality cook-off, which premiered last night, alongside stars including Jack Osbourne, actress Natalie Cassidy, former Love Island star Ekin-Su Cülcüloğlu and comedian Hugh Dennis.
But the designer says it wasn’t the time pressure or competition that proved toughest - but the recipes themselves.
“My dyslexia made reading and following recipes almost impossible,” she tells The Standard. “Most recipes separate the method from the ingredients, and for someone with dyslexia, that’s a complete nightmare.
“You end up flicking back and forth, and it’s so easy to get lost. I’ve always found it so much clearer when everything is together - step by step, with the ingredients right where you need them.”
Hoppen, whose clients include the Beckhams and Boy George, adds that previously “I never learnt to push myself in the kitchen with difficult dishes. I had to learn to cook by making up recipes and going by taste alone.
“I said yes [to the show] without really thinking it through, and it wasn’t until I was actually driving to the first day that I thought, what have I done? At the start, my cooking skills were practically zero.”
She adds: “I learned to rewrite recipes in a format that made sense to me, and suddenly, it clicked. That was such an empowering moment. Michael [Caines, her chef mentor on the show] and I wrote everything together as a team, and that made all the difference.”
The businesswoman says that the show, which is produced by South Shore Productions, could soon be adapted to accommodate people with dyslexia or other learning difficulties.
“The amazing production team told me how they might change the way they write in the future from seeing my experience.
“There is so much room for improvement. If I were to create a cookbook, I’d bring in other elements to make it sure it was accessible for people like me - watch this space!”
Hoppen, who was made a CBE in 2021 for her services to the government’s GREAT campaign backing British creativity, business, and commerce globally, says she’s emerged from the series with a newfound confidence in the kitchen - and a handful of unexpected friendships with her fellow contestants.
“Everyone was so amazing - we quickly became one big family,” she says. “There was competition, of course, but it was always in the best spirit.”
She admits her friends were “horrified” when she told them she’d signed up to the show: “They laughed - everyone knows cooking has never been my thing. But they cheered me on too, and I think they were as surprised as I was by how far I came.”
Hoppen, whose former partners include hairdresser Nicky Clarke and former US banker Ed Miller - father of actress Sienna Miller and designer Savannah Miller - is in a long-term relationship with retired businessman John Gardiner.
She says she’ll “happily” try out her newly learned recipes with him at home – “mainly because I’d no longer have that terrifying countdown clock! The only thing I might skip would be the salmon dish, purely because of peeling those tomatoes. That step nearly drove me mad.”
