A Bristol bricklayer who has just appeared on Masterchef said his workmates had no clue he was about to star in the nation’s top TV cookery programme, and now jokily ask him what’s for lunch on the building site.
But Adam Ball hopes his success on the programme will propel him into Bristol’s foodie world, and says he has dreams of showing off the culinary skills that impressed judges Greg Wallace and John Torode at food festivals, restaurants and private dining bookings.
The 34-year-old told Bristol Live how he managed to keep it a secret that he is starring in the show, which was filmed last year, and none of his workmates had a clue he was going to be on.
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The brickie from Barrs Court, on the South Gloucestershire side of Bristol, said the first day back after his heat aired last week was hilarious. “It was so funny. Everyone loved it. They were leaning over the scaffolding calling down ‘Oi, Masterchef, what’s for lunch, then?’ A lot of them knew I’m into cooking, but none of them had any idea I’d actually got onto Masterchef,” he said.
“Everyone’s been supportive. It was hard to keep it a secret - you’re really not allowed to tell anyone except for family. I think I only told my wife and I had to tell my boss to get the time off. It’s been really exciting waiting for the programme to come on, and know that you’ve got this really great secret,” he added.
Viewers of the top BBC show, which has all episodes so far available on iPlayer, were introduced to the father-of-one in Heat 2 of the programme. On the face of it, Adam seems an unlikely top chef, having left school and gone straight into bricklaying - he didn’t even do Home Economics or Food Tech past his Year 10 options.
“It’s something I’ve always loved, but when it came to it with my options, I chose business studies, because my granddad was in business. I went straight into bricklaying when I left school, and you have to work hard and you can get to the level where it’s good money.
"Once I’d done that, it would have been too much of a drop to try to get into the food industry. So I never could. But I’ve always kept cooking and love it so much, it’s a passion. I remember baking cakes with my gran when I was younger, although I’d eat most of the cake mix before it was baked. I had a very sweet tooth as a child and still do now,” he added.
Adam’s passion for cooking is in part inspired by his wife Lesley, who is coeliac and so Adam gets creative with gluten-free dishes. “I love to cook all styles of food, I really love making food that people like to eat! My wife was diagnosed with coeliac disease a couple of years ago,” he explained. “We found it really hard finding certain foods that she loves so this spurred me on to experiment even more with my dishes. I really try to make food that tastes good and looks good, and am constantly developing recipes that look eye-catching,” he added.
Viewers watching the second heat saw a very nervous Adam at first. “The whole day was just absolutely crazy. There’s so much going on all day, with filming and meeting people and sorting stuff out, and then late in the afternoon they were like ‘right, start cooking from now!’ and suddenly I was in there,” he said. “It is absolutely real that the time they say you’ve got is the time you have, there’s no stopping the clock for filming or anything.
“The first dish I didn’t really do myself justice. I was so nervous. A few friends who saw it said they could tell I wasn’t myself, they even said my voice was different. I watched it back and thought ‘I don’t sound like that normally’, it was the nerves getting on top of me,” he added.
The first dish he created was a steak with butter potato, carrots, salsa verde and red wine sauce. It was ok, but not amazing, so he was asked to go again with an ‘invention’ test, from which only a few survive to qualify for the knock-out round. “I was so happy with how the steak and verde turned out. The other elements were not perfect so I knew full well I was going into that invention test,” said Adam.
“I had this moment right there where I realised I had one chance, this was it, and I just went for it. I had a word with myself and decided to enjoy it, and the nerves disappeared. I was filled with fear to start with, then I thought ‘right, let’s do this’,” he added.
Faced with random ingredients, Adam went with a lemon and ricotta-filled cappelletti - a sort of tagliatelle-style pasta - with a white wine sauce and dill oil. “I was so happy with my cappelletti. John and Gregg both loved it, so what more can you ask for. I got myself one of those bright shiny aprons and I couldn’t be happier.”
“It is such a strange and insane moment when you’re standing there presenting your food to John Torode and Gregg Wallace. I’ve watched and loved Masterchef for years and it was just so exciting. There’s a moment where you present it and just have to stand back and think ‘it’s out of my hands now, I’ve done all I can’, and then you watch them eat it. It was just such a great feeling when they said they liked it.”
Viewers will be able to see how Adam gets on in the knock-out rounds later this month, but Adam hopes the people of Bristol will love his cooking too.
“I would love to get into the Bristol foodie scene. Bricklaying’s a good job, but in the winter it can be horrendous. It’s a job, but cooking is my passion. I’d love to do private dining, I’d love to do expert presentations at food festivals, guest slots at restaurants. I’ve got a lot of plans, and until the show has actually aired and finished, you’re not allowed to start anything, but there’s so many amazing places for food in Bristol, and I want to get out there, and also cook in people’s homes,” he added.
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