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A Michelin-starred chef and a sculptor admit that they're not afraid to speak their minds. To appear in this column, email meandyou@observer.co.uk
HIS STORY Tom Kerridge, 40, chef-owner at the Michelin-starred Hand & Flowers
Beth's first sentence to me was: "Will you give me £3 for the stripper, please?" We were at a club in north London and I thought: "This girl's pretty cool." We'd only known each other a few days, but she went to work and left me asleep in her flat. She had worried all day I was going to rob her. Instead she came home and I'd cooked her tea – a simple chicken dish. I'm not sure if she was more pleased with the tea or the fact that her telly was still there.
After that, Beth would come and meet me after work, we'd go out and party until six in the morning, go for breakfast somewhere and then go home. It was all pretty rock'n'roll. I like to think we still are a bit. I've just turned 40 and we've had the biggest party the world has ever seen. It was in a big converted barn up the road, just like a massive illegal rave from 1991, but with loads of 40-year-old chefs and our mates.
When we opened the Hand & Flowers, the idea was for me to be able to cook and for us to make enough money for Beth to afford to be a full-time sculptor. Three years turned into five, and now, after nearly nine years, the pub is hugely successful and Beth is now much more of an artist than a restaurateur. Which is just as well because, in the first year of running the pub, she left me three times! We both are passionate and outspoken – neither of us is afraid of saying what we believe in. Beth certainly isn't a "yes" woman, which is great.
We both respect each other's skills. I'm a huge fan of art. I like to buy it and I love visiting galleries. But to see Beth making art is one of the best things ever. I sent her to Carrara in Italy for three weeks, where they have the marble Michelangelo used for his sculptures. She made a fantastic piece – a serpent as a collar and tie – which is my favourite as it represents that she does what she loves now.
HER STORY Beth Kerridge, 43, sculptor and co-owner of the Hand & Flowers
I realised Tom was the one about three days after we met. And then it took me six weeks to ask him to marry me. When you find the one that's it, isn't it? I was in awe of him – he's a hugely dynamic guy. I went and bought a ring with my sister, and then met Tom after work, late on a Saturday night. He said yes before I finished my sentence. We sat in Leicester Square with a bottle of champagne. It must've been about two o'clock in the morning because the guy that was sweeping the road came over and said: "I don't know what you're celebrating, but congratulations anyway."
We're like best friends, really. Our secret is just being honest. There aren't many people whose opinions I respect when they're saying something about my sculpture, but Tom is one of them. He's the same with me about his food. There was one instance where he'd bought these beautiful plates, and he was very proud of the meal that was going on them. And I told him: "It's great food, but I hate the plates." I didn't want him to put food out where the plate was more dominant than the food. He went in a proper strop about it, but the next day the plate had disappeared.
He's the same: he's very good at seeing the obvious stuff that I overlook sometimes with my sculpture. We've got a great understanding of each other – we're not takers, as far as our relationship is concerned. Although I still do owe him that £3.
Proper Pub Food by Tom Kerridge is published by Absolute Press, £20. To order a copy for £15, with free UK p&p, go to theguardian.com/bookshop. Tom Kerridge's Proper Pub Food is on BBC2 later this summer. For information, go to thehandandflowers.co.uk
If you'd like to appear in this column, email meandyou@observer.co.uk