With Ready, Steady, Cook having already undergone the reboot treatment and the reputation of MasterChef more than a little sullied by the recent allegations surrounding its now former hosts, perhaps it was inevitable that at some point attentions would turn to try and reviving one of the other prominent cookery reality shows of the noughties. Certainly, it didn’t prove to be much of a surprise when earlier this week The Sun revealed that ITV bosses were in talks with Gordon Ramsay and his team about reviving Hell’s Kitchen, a show that was instrumental in establishing the chef’s television career in the UK.
For those in need of a primer, Hell’s Kitchen first aired on ITV in the UK back in 2004 and, along with Kitchen Nightmares on Channel 4, introduced Ramsay to a prime-time audience. In its original guise, the show featured a group of celebrities who were split into two teams – red and blue – and tasked with running a specially constructed London restaurant-kitchen under the eye of a fiery and often acid tongued Ramsay, who acted as head chef.
The show was a huge hit. Running over consecutive nights, millions tuned in to see the celebs, who included model Jennifer Ellison, comedian Al Murray and former politician Edwina Currie, struggle to maintain their composure amid the rigours of working in a commercial kitchen with a confrontational boss. In one memorably heated exchange, actress Amanda Barrie took a swing at Ramsay after he accused her of showing off.
So popular was the format that the following year Ramsay took it to the US, the concept overhauled to feature two teams of aspiring chefs duking it out for culinary supremacy while facing the chef’s relentless barbs.
In many ways, the decision to reboot Hell’s Kitchen in the UK seems obvious. The show only ran for a total of four series in the UK, between 2004 and 2009, with Ramsay only fronting the first – Gary Rhodes, Jean-Christophe Novelli and, later, Marco Pierre White took on the role of head chef in later series, with varying degrees of success. Meanwhile, the US iteration, which Ramsay has consistently been at the heart of, is preparing to air its 24th season this month.
For Ramsay too, with his growing global restaurant empire and ever-greater ubiquity in popular culture, it makes sense. For one, it’s a chance to generate a major hit on UK TV screens after a recent string of failures – both Next Level Chef on ITV and Gordon Ramsay’s Future Food Stars on the BBC struggled to resonate with audiences and were cancelled, while the less said about short-lived BBC quiz show Gordon Ramsay’s Bank Balance the better. It’s also an opportunity to further bolster his UK estate, the chef having also reportedly trademarked the Hell’s Kitchen name in the UK so it can be used in restaurants, which could open immediately after the show reboots.
In the eyes of this writer, though, the idea of a Hell’s Kitchen revival sounds a little, well, hellish. Setting aside that the show’s bombastic and highly theatrical style, a hallmark of the US iteration, rarely translates well in the UK – as Next Level Chef amply demonstrated – the premise of the show feels completely at odds with where the UK’s restaurant industry finds itself.
Amid ongoing struggles to maintain staff retention and attract new talent, many in the industry are working hard to shed the toxic, shouty chef persona that has hung over the sector for more than a generation; an image repeatedly perpetuated during the show’s original UK run. We’re seeing an active and growing movement towards replacing aggressive and often misogynistic kitchen dynamics with respectful, balanced and well-managed environments. Lambasting chefs for not bringing the lamb sauce on time feels more than a little outdated.
And yet, as the success of dramas like The Bear and Boiling Point have proven, the fiery frisson of the kitchen remains a compelling draw for audiences; although one wonders how many choose to pursue a career in the industry as a result. The industry is working so hard to show it is a supportive and empowering environment for staff, one can’t help but feel that’s the message we should see being promoted more on the small screen.