James Tanner

Tanner began his catering career, preparing salads and starters, in "Brookers Oast" a Whitbread Brewers Fayre in Kent in the early 1990s After studying hotel management[2] he worked in the kitchens of several restaurants, often with his older brother, fellow celebrity chef Chris Tanner.

[2] Tanner worked his way up the ranks and on returning to England took a job under Martin Blunos at the two Michelin-starred restaurant Lettonie in Bath before a Head Chef role at Right on the Green in Kent.

Tanner's television career began in 2002 when he and his brother made their first TV appearance on a competition called Chef Stars, a promotion run by UKTV Food and broadcast predominantly on their now cancelled Great Food Live.

Tanner became a semi-regular guest on Great Food Live which was shot at the same studios as Ready Steady Cook.

At the heart of his style during his TV appearances is the repetition of his catchphrase "like so", used to make various culinary techniques seem easy, encouraging members of the public to give them a try, and also to assuage viewers' fears of unfamiliar ingredients, as well as "dig down deep".