the cooking. I wouldn’t work in the kitchen, it would be
a nightmare. We’re not good at working together. It
annoys me when he gets messy. If I’m honest Neil is
the better chef. Why not use your talent?Neil
People talk about Fergie time in football but we live by
Angela Hartnett time. She tends to be running late a lot
but she always makes it just in time. A few years ago we
were invited to Buckingham Palace and we only made it
in just before the Queen. Angela said to me, “If you tell
anyone about this we’re finished.”
When we met at the Connaught 21 years ago, it was
my first time in London and I remember Angela being
full of energy when she was showing me round the
kitchen. She probably thought, “Who’s this cocky little
Scotsman? Let’s knock him down a peg or two.”
We’re good together in a lot of ways. I always made
Angela laugh and she’s full of personality. Annoyingly
she’s pretty much always right. She’s a sharp cookie and
she definitely has her father’s strong Irish character.
She’s always juggling 101 balls at one time.
Angela’s an absolute sweetheart and when you want
to spend the rest of your life with someone you have to
pluck up the courage and ask. We got married in thePORTRAIT BY PAUL STUART
STRANGE
HABITS
Angela on Neil
Neil gets
distracted easily
and I’m impatient
so we wind each
other up. When
he says “patience,
babe” or “chill
out” it drives me
bloody insaneNeil on Angela
Angela loves a
binge watch.
It’s her way of
relaxing and she
always has a new
series on the go.
I’d rather watch
the cyclingchurch a few minutes from the house, partly because it
was the only church Angela would make it to on time.
Angela could not have been more supportive or caring
when I had a bad bike accident nine years ago. I’ll take
antiepileptic medication probably for the rest of my
life, but all in all, considering how close it was to being
the end, I’ve been very lucky. But I can’t be afraid to get
back on the bike. The main thing for me is to get out,
get the heart pumping and unwind from work stress.
I’ve only worked in one kitchen that wasn’t a happy
one. The owner was just a very angry man. In my own
kitchen I make sure I support everyone. One of the first
chefs I worked for told me, “If your staff are happy, your
customers are happy.” And he’s absolutely right.
Pasta is the nicest thing to have cooked for you and
Angela does make a fantastic bowl of it. We both like to
cook at home, but if I start taking the initiative it’s no
good. I do as I’m told to avoid a domestic.
London is great but it’d be nice to move to the
countryside one day. I think we’d be OK working
together again. We make a good team nInterviews by Hannah Swerling.
The Weekend Cook: Good Food for Real Life by Angela
CHARLOTTE HU Hartnett is published by Bloomsbury Absolute at £
The Sunday Times Magazine • 9