Heston Blumenthal: ‘My bipolarity didn’t really expose itself in the kitchen’

Chef Heston Blumenthal has confessed the intensity of working in a kitchen could have masked his bipolar disorder.

In a recent interview with Newsnight, the chef revealed he worked 120-hour weeks for a decade because he felt he had “no choice” but to invest everything into his three-Michelin-starred restaurant the Fat Duck.

Blumenthal first opened the restaurant in a run-down pub in the village of Bray in 1995. It then became famed for its snail porridge, nitro-scrambled egg and bacon ice-cream and salmon poached in liquorice gel.

Four years later, in 1999, he won his first Michelin star, and three years later, he had his second. The chef reached three Michelin stars in 2004, aged 37.

“Because the restaurant was young and I was getting up at 5am, going into the kitchen and leaving at midnight, it didn’t really expose itself – my bipolarity – when I was in the kitchen,” he said.

Blumenthal discussed this further in his interview with The Times last week, in which he stated: “I don’t know how much my bipolar contributed to that 20 hours a week sleep. Because one classic thing with bipolar, when you’re in the manic stage, it’s like vomiting ideas. Everything’s so exciting and fantastic and you don’t want to stop.”

"The first couple of years, the restaurant was open at Christmas. One year it was closed for Christmas and I had a back operation, so I was with my son. He said, ’This is the first time we’ve done this together,’" he added.

He also told Newsnight his wife Melanie “saved [his] life” by seeking medical assistance on his behalf.

Melanie added: “During the first meeting with the doctor she said all of his vitals were through the roof; three or four years later he would pass away, that was the first thing she told me.”

Having now had some time to process things, Blumenthal sees his diagnosis as a surprise “but [also] a kind of relief”.

The couple revealed they have not watched the televised kitchen drama The Bear because of concerns it would “trigger Heston’s condition”.

Blumenthal told Newsnight: “I just don’t want that. There’ll be lots of connections between me, the Fat Duck and that show, particularly because there’s a couple of the big chefs that I know – friends of mine – who have been involved in the consulting of it. I’m hoping one day I will be able to watch it. Now is just too soon.”

Posting on Instagram following his interviews with Newsnight and The Times, the chef said: “I have been very moved by the outpouring of support, kindness, and understanding from so many of you. Sharing my journey with bipolar disorder, and the challenges I’ve faced along the way, is something I feel passionate about, and knowing it reaches and resonates with others is both humbling and inspiring.

“Whether it’s cooking or other ways of engaging with the world, I’ve always been determined to explore, discover and share what I’ve learned. It is now part of the mission of me and my team at the Fat Duck Group to help raise awareness about mental health and neurodiversity.”