Gino D'Acampo reveals bizarre reason he turned down tea with the Queen

Gino D'Acampo turned down an invitation to tea with the Queen because cucumber sandwiches are his "worst nightmare", the star has revealed.

The 46-year-old TV chef told the Daily Mail that the menu on offer at the Palace was not to his taste and so he had to decline.

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"I was invited to the Palace for tea just before COVID, but a cucumber sandwich is my worst nightmare," said the star.

He added: "I don't like tea either, so I phoned my agent and said: 'I'd love to meet her, but I don't like tea and cucumber sandwiches, and I can't do either of those things'.

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"I'm also going to have to wear a tie, and the last time I did that was when I got married. I can't do that. But if I can have a plate of pasta and a cup of coffee, I'm in."

D'acampo has spoken previously about his disdain for picky eaters and said it often comes from parents who are unwilling to encourage their children to try new things.

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In an interview last year, he said: "[Parents] can't be bothered to have the argument at the table. They can't be bothered to see the children go to bed without having any food. I can."

If the recent sketch involving the Queen and Paddington Bear for the Platinum Jubilee celebrations is to believe, Her Majesty is far more partial to a marmalade sandwich anyway.

D'Acampo has become a constant face on British TV in recent years thanks to his charismatic and chaotic appearances in the This Morning kitchen.

He also appeared as a regular panellist on Celebrity Juice and won the 2009 series of reality series I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here.

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In 2020, D'Acampo took over from Vernon Kay as the new host of game show Family Fortunes, which returned to featuring ordinary members of public after being a celebrity edition throughout Kay's tenure.

The rebooted series has plenty of fans but, sadly, long-running Family Fortunes host Les Dennis is not among them.

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