Gordon Ramsay has spoken about the ‘slippery slope’ of his brother’s heroin addiction and how he fought for a better life for his family.
In a candid interview, the chef, 56, talks about his tough childhood and how he has a reminder on a ‘daily basis’ when looking at his troubled sibling Ronnie, 55, that he too could have gone down a very different road.
Speaking to Spencer Matthews in the Big Fish podcast, Gordon delves deeper into the reasons behind his anti-drugs stance and why he was determined to reach the top of his profession without turning to substance abuse.
He says: ‘Growing up in multiple s**tholes, you get one’s s**t together early.
‘I just wanted to better myself and get out of a situation that was unfortunate. I had grown up on 15 council estates.
Honest: Gordon Ramsay has spoken about the ‘slippery slope’ of his brother’s heroin addiction and how he fought for a better life for his family
Heartbreaking: In a candid interview, the chef, 56, talks about his tough childhood and how he has a reminder on a ‘daily basis’ when looking at his troubled sibling Ronnie, 55,
‘There’s always a nerve-wracking moment when you go to another school, another football club. Having to make mates again sometimes twice in one year.
‘That’s incredibly disruptive. I set out to change and give my family the security and everything that I had wished for at their age. I never expected that level of success, like any success it’s worked for.’
Gordon, who was on the podcast to talk about the new series of Future Food Stars, credits his mother as being the biggest inspiration as she juggled three jobs to keep the family afloat, with the family constantly moving due to his father, who was an alcoholic.
‘The first ambition when I got successful was to give mum her own house, her own garage and a car,’ he says. ‘It’s a big thing for a son to look after their mum. she went to hell and back to look after us.’
Gordon notes while his success grew, his brother was spiraling into an addiction with heroin.
He says: ‘The flipside to my success is my brother’s addiction to heroin. It’s bizarre isn’t it?
‘You grow up on several council estates, you’re sharing this tiny bedroom and you’re in bunkbeds. You’re so close as brothers, we’re 14 months apart so much has changed dramatically.’
He adds: ‘I have that reminder on a daily basis how different it could have been if I’d gone down a different road and felt the country owed me something rather than fighting for something.’
Gordon says he watched his brother go from being a ‘blue-eye boy’ to falling down a ‘slippery slope in freefall’ after mixing with the wrong crowd.
LTR: (Back) Gordon’s brother Ronnie, Gordon’s father Gordon, Gordon Ramsay, ( Front) Gordon’s sister Yvonne, Gordon’s mother Helen, Gordon’s sister Diana
‘Sadly he couldn’t get out of that scenario took a bad turn, You start off with a couple of joints and then suddenly the dependency is far greater further down the line,’ he says.
Speaking about his anti-drugs stance, he continues: ‘I get incredibly upset when everybody thinks I’m on it [cocaine] because you’re boisterous, you’re loud and you’re excited. That’s just passion.
‘Pure f*****g passion and that’s no different to being in a dressing room or changing room at half time, 2-0 down and you’ve got to get your s***t together in the next 45 minutes.
‘Growing up in that environment you’re never worried about losing, it was the fight back.
‘So, at three-star level there is a price to pay for that and it’s not flipping burgers and dressing f****** Caesar salads. It’s just the ultimate so, it’s as refined as an athlete.
‘So, I got upset when everyone thought that rock’n’roll status in the industry was dependent on this f*****g white powder and it was absolute nonsense.’
Gordon adds: You don’t need to a substance to be at the top of Everest, the top of your profession.’
Previously speaking in his autobiography, Humble Pie, the chef revealed he had paid for his younger brother to attend rehab five times.
He wrote: ‘It’s the one thing I feel I’ve failed at. I find it hard knowing that there’s nothing I can do to help.’
In February 2007 Ronnie was caught with 100 milligrams of heroin outside a supermarket in the Balinese resort of Kuta, fined £260 and jailed for ten months.
He appealed to his brother for £6,000 for a top lawyer to help him escape the charges, but Ramsay refused.
At the time Ronnie said: ‘All it is to him is the price of a wheel off one of his Ferraris.’
After he was jailed Gordon revealed his heroin addict brother threatened to kill him and his children in an effort to get cash, prompting him to up security around his home.
Gordon is estimated to be worth around £610million and has given his wife Tana and their five children a life world’s away from his childhood.
He turned to cooking after his football career was cut short due to a knee injury and went on to work at Marco Pierre White at Harveys.
In 1998, Ramsay opened his own restaurant in Chelsea and it went on to gain three Michelin stars in 2001, making history as the first Scot to achieve that feat.
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Future Food Stars continues on BBC One and BBC iPlayer at 9pm on Thursday.
Doting dad: Gordon is estimated to be worth around £610million and has given his wife Tana and their five children a life world’s away from his childhood
