Ulrika Jonssons' Swedish meatball mission

Ulrika Jonsson is fronting a new show on Swedish cookery in a bid to prove it is about more than just meatballs.

The former Gladiators host - who is Swedish by birth - will front a new segment Ulrika’s Swedish Kitchen on ITV’s Lorraine.

Jonsson, 51, said: “I obviously have a very strong passion for Swedish food because it's what I grew up with and now I've created recipes that take things up a notch and make them really, really special.

Read more: Ulrika Jonsson: 'I'm free to marry again' as third divorce granted

“Due to the climate in Sweden, we are great picklers and preservers; we eat a lot of fish and have a great, great tradition of baking.

“It's been really lovely to share my recipes with the Lorraine show and hopefully it will inspire people to explore Swedish cuisine, safe in the knowledge that it's not all meatballs.”

The Shooting Stars star - who competed in Celebrity MasterChef in 2017 - revealed that while she is proud of Swedish cuisine, it wasn’t until she moved to England that she really learned to love food.

She said: “My love of food started the minute I was born, but my love of cooking really started when I moved to England to live with my mum and stepdad and I started to have some semblance of continuity in terms of meals in my life.

Read more: Ulrika Jonsson splits from third husband after 11 years of marriage

“My stepdad was an excellent cook, self-taught, but inspirational because he constantly talked about cultures and where food came from and he introduced me to all sorts of different cuisines.”

Jonsson - who has four children - formalised her divorce from American advertising executive Brian Monet earlier this year.

The TV presenter told her Instagram followers how she was celebrating her freedom after being trapped in a “sexless” marriage for 13 years.

Jonsson has been married twice before. In 2003 she wed Lance Gerrard-Wright, who she met while presenting a TV dating show Mr. Right in 2002. She was previously married to cameraman John Turnbull from 1990 to 1995 and famously had an affair with then England manager Sven-Göran Eriksson.

Lorraine airs on weekdays on ITV from 8.30am to 9.25am. Ulrika’s Swedish Kitchen starts on Friday July 5th.