Inside Rick Stein’s Cornwall controversy - restaurant blaze to furious locals

03 February 2024 , 11:00

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Rick Stein has come up against Cornish locals in the past

Rick Stein has sparked anger in recent years.

The 77-year-old chef - whose popular show Rick Stein's India airs today - had a handful of and also owns a home in Padstow, however, he’s not always been welcomed with open arms by locals.

In 2022, Stein announced that he’d be driving across England’s southwestern tip for the third instalment of his popular BBC Two series Rick Stein’s Cornwall, which spotlights Cornwall's best food offerings. However, Cornish residents were quick to express dismay over Stein’s show, with some pointing out that he would inadvertently “spoil” the area.

Stein's not always been welcomed with open arms by locals (BBC/Shine TV)

In response to news of a third series, in which Stein promised to “be out and about meeting fishermen, farmers, cider makers, tea growers, artists, writers, musicians and more,” one person wrote on Facebook, according to the : “Unfortunately this will just inspire more rich people to buy second homes in Cornwall leaving less and less housing for the real people of Cornwall and thus spoiling the very place Rick claims to love so much.”

Someone else added: “I’m fed up with these so called celebrities telling the world about ‘their’ Cornwall,” while another social media user echoed: “There is no such thing [as] a ‘Rick Stein’s Cornwall’, even though he does seem to think he owns it.” Years earlier, similar worries were expressed by a Porthleven fisherman named Gary Eastwell.

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Speaking to , Eastwell took issue with the fact that despite him being a local fisherman, Stein allegedly didn’t buy his produce, instead opting to serve fish from a fish merchant at his restaurant. “He doesn’t buy any fish from us. We get beautiful lobster, pollack, line-caught bass, monkfish, everything you can think of,” Gary fumed, adding: “He could walk over here and buy it but he doesn’t. He gets it from a fish merchant instead. It winds me up. He hasn’t bought one fish from me.”

One of Stein's Cornish restaurants caught fire (SWNS)

However, the outlet did note that not only has Stein had Cornish connections family-wise for almost a century, but that over the years he’s brought millions to the Cornish economy.

Meanwhile, in 2017, a police probe was launched in a bid to determine whether one of Stein’s Cornwall restaurants was targeted by an arsonist. The celebrity chef was celebrating his 70th birthday nearby when a blaze broke out in his Portleven eatery.

Katherine Billing of Cornwall Fire and Rescue said at the time: “Whether it was arson or not is being investigated­. There were cylinders involved so we made the decision to be more aggressive. We knew if we didn’t they could start to explode and the restaurant could have been destroyed.” Meanwhile, the restaurant's official Twitter page tweeted: “Huge thank you to [fire crews] Most importantly no-one hurt. Currently assessing damage and update to follow.” Police were also quick to rubbish claims militant group the Cornish Republican Army was to blame. They added that an electrical issue was likely the cause.

The Mirror has reached out to Stein’s reps for comment.

Aisha Nozari