Marco Pierre White was born in Leeds in 1961. After learning his trade at the Box Tree in Ilkley, Le Gavroche, Tante Claire and Le Manoir, he opened his first restaurant, Harveys, in 1987. He went on to open several more restaurants before becoming the first British chef to win three Michelin stars at Hyde Park Hotel. More honours followed before, at 38, he retired from the kitchen and began to build a career as a hugely successful businessman.