TV reviews

The thing about Gordon Ramsay is that he’s a bit like a rubbish boyfriend (or girlfriend). Most of the time, you think he’s a bit of a waste of space and wonder what the hell you’re doing with him. Maybe it’s time to dump him, you wonder to yourself. Then he’ll do something really, really nice and you’ll remember why you liked him in the first place.

Last night’s The F-Word was a case in point. Normally, he’s an absolute git to the amateur chefs who turn up in his kitchens, wanting to show him what they’ve got. All he does is shout at them and tell them how rubbish they are. Last night, he had troop of doctors. And he was actually pretty nice to them at times.

He loved all the main courses that they prepared, so much so that when a number of diners complained about the chicken being fatty, he sided with the chefs and told the diners they were wrong.

Then, come the dessert, something even more lovely happened. Ramsay, of course, has another show: Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares. In that series, he goes to struggling restaurants, tells them what they’re doing wrong, and sets them on the path to recovery. At one of those restaurants, he came across this little old waiter who could do the most exquisite flambé s.

The big surprise of last night was that without explanation, without bigging himself up, Ramsay brought in this waiter to teach the amateurs how to make his speciality, introducing him as the maker of the best flambé s in the country.

It made him seem like a nice person for a change, which was something much to be welcomed. Next week, judging by the trailer, he’s back to coming in late, drunk, and throwing up on the sofa. Or the TV equivalent, anyway.