Chef James Tanner undergoes surgery after ‘horrific accident’
Chef and TV personality James Tanner is recovering in hospital after suffering a serious pelvic injury, described by his brother and business partner Chris Tanner as an “horrific accident”.
The co-owner of Barbican Kitchen in Plymouth and The Kentish Hare in Kent, James shattered his pelvis in three places last week and underwent major surgery at Derriford Hospital on Tuesday.
Chris, who shared the news in a video message between services at Barbican Kitchen, praised the medical team for their care and professionalism.
“My brother and business partner James unfortunately had a pretty horrific accident last week,” said Chris. “He’s shattered his pelvis in three places and is currently holed up in Derriford Hospital. He had major surgery on Tuesday, over a five-hour operation to put him back together.”
He added: “From myself and my immediate family, I can’t thank you guys enough at Derriford Hospital — the surgeons, the nurses — for the kindness that you’ve shown and the care that he’s currently getting. It just puts into perspective how fragile life can be.
“As you can imagine, especially for James, it’s just been absolutely devastating.”
Chris said the past week has left the family “drained”, but insisted they were determined to honour their upcoming commitment at Atul Kochhar’s Kanishka in London, where the Tanner brothers had been due to appear together.
“James really wanted me to carry on and
do it,” he said.
“I’ll be there with David (Boswell) our head chef from The Kentish Hare and Paul (Barber), our general manager.
“James, get well soon. I need you back. We all miss you and love you.”
In a follow-up Instagram post, Chris thanked everyone who had sent messages of support since the accident, calling the response from the hospitality community “overwhelming”.
“Just wanted to thank everyone who’s messaged me regarding James,” he wrote.
“Sorry if I haven’t got back to you - there were so many of you who contacted me.
“It’s been a bit overwhelming, especially for him.
“Big love to the restaurant industry and I’ll keep you posted on his recovery.”
James Tanner background
James began his career training under Michel Roux Snr before moving to the Lake Placid Lodge in New York, where he rose to junior sous chef.
Returning to the UK, he worked under Martin Blunos at the two-Michelin-starred Lettonie in Bath before opening Tanners Restaurant in Plymouth with Chris in 1999, aged just 23.
The brothers went on to open Barbican Kitchen in 2006 and The Kentish Hare in 2014.
Over two decades, James became one of the UK’s best-known chefs, appearing regularly on Ready Steady Cook, Saturday Kitchen, and Saturday Morning with James Martin.
Chris said he will continue to update followers on his brother’s recovery in the coming weeks.
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Chef James Tanner undergoes surgery after ‘horrific accident’
