John Torode's journey from 'cowardly' love letter to blissful marriage with Lisa Faulkner

John Torode, the Australian-British chef, may be a whizz in the kitchen but when it comes to matters of the heart, he's less assured.

MasterChef is to thank for introducing him to his wife Lisa Faulkner, who competed on the celebrity version of the show in 2010. At that time, both were involved with other people and their relationship was purely friendly.

However, a few years later, when they were both single, John mustered up the courage to ask Lisa out via a letter. He later confessed this approach was somewhat 'cowardly', but it worked - the couple got hitched in 2019.

Both John, 58, and Lisa, 52, have been married before. Lisa, an actress, was previously married to Chris Coghill, known for his role as Tony King in EastEnders, and together they adopted a daughter named Billie.

On the other hand, John was married to a woman named Jessica in 2000, with whom he had two children, a son and a daughter. John and Jessica parted ways in 2011 but didn't officially divorce until 2014, when their marriage was reportedly dissolved in mere seconds at the High Court, reports the Mirror.

John met contestant Lisa back in 2010 on the set of his popular show, sparking an instant connection that evolved into a cherished friendship long after the cameras stopped rolling.

Reflecting on their initial chemistry, Lisa reminisced: "He was a judge on a show I loved and I was petrified of him. He was brilliant and gave us all tips so you didn't want to let him down," adding with candour, "All I could think was, 'That sauce hasn't worked'. I didn't see anything but food for three months. After I won, we did The Good Food Show and stuff. John and I always got on, but I never thought about me and him."

Lisa shared with Daily Mail in 2013 the pivotal moment when their platonic relationship blossomed into romance. She unveiled emotion recalling, "John and I were friends. Neither of us thought of it as anything else until..." and explained the subtle shift in their dynamics: "I don't know how things change, but something does. He asked me on a date. We went out for dinner. Then it was slightly different. I'm really, really happy. John and I are having such a nice time but we're taking things slowly. There are lots of other people to consider."

John has openly admitted that his method of expressing his feelings to Lisa through a letter might have been an act of evasion. Confronting his actions, he expressed to the Daily Mail: "I'd separated from my wife [Jessica] which was awful, and I was reluctant to approach Lisa face to face as I didn't fancy the prospect of her saying no, so I wrote her a letter. If I'd got no response, it wouldn't matter. Cowardly? S***, yeah. I'm as cowardly as they get."

However, fate intervened, and the couple started dating before eventually getting married. In the past, John revealed his secret to a successful marriage, attributing it to a well-made bed.

When questioned about the key to their happy marriage, John replied: "A really well-made bed. You spend lots of time in it! Honestly, the bedroom - having that sanctuary of a place to go to, I think that's really important. And nice towels... Looking after yourself is as important as looking after each other."