Martin's family were farmers on the Castle Howard estate in North Yorkshire, where he helped his mother in the kitchen, igniting his interest in cuisine.

He then returned to the UK and spent two years as a Pastry Chef at Chewton Glen Hotel[4] in the South of England.

Martin joined the judging panel, along with fellow celebrity chefs including Rick Stein, Raymond Blanc and Angela Hartnett.

In October 2014, Martin presented a new daytime show for BBC One called Meet the Street, which aimed to unite communities and reduce loneliness.

[12] In 2015, while attending the BBC Good Food Middle East Awards in Dubai, Martin witnessed the death of magazine boss Dominic De Sousa, whom he had been speaking with just moments before the tabloid mogul stood up and suffered a fatal heart attack.

In 2009, Martin wrote in his column that he hated cyclists, and deliberately took pleasure in scaring them by driving an electric Tesla Roadster (2008) in a manner that startled a cycling group, forcing them off the road.

In June 2013 it was reviewed by food critic Jay Rayner for The Observer, who described his meal there as "three beautifully poised, close to faultless dishes".

[20] There are branches of James Martin Kitchen bakery and cafe located airside at Stansted and Glasgow airports, and at Manchester Piccadilly Railway Station.

[22] In September 2021, Martin launched a range of premium French wines, which are produced in the village of Névian, near Narbonne in the Corbières region.

[24][25][26] On 28 July 2023, Martin released a statement saying that he had been suffering from facial cancer at the time of the 2018 incident and has needed regular surgery.

Knowing they wouldn't hear me coming, I stepped on the gas [sic], waited until the split second before I overtook them, then gave them an almighty blast on the horn at the exact same time I passed them at speed.

Professional cyclists such as Bradley Wiggins and Robbie McEwen publicly condemned Martin's actions on their Twitter accounts,[28] and his remarks provoked outrage on cycling forums.