James Tanner

James Tanner (born 1976 in Kent) is a British chef and television personality. He currently appears on the BBC cookery programme Ready Steady Cook.

After studying hotel management he worked in the kitchens of several well-known restaurants, often with his older brother Chris. He worked his way up through the ranks until he was invited by the Roux brothers to move to the US and work in upstate New York, where he was Chef de Partie at the Lake Placid Lodge. Within four months he was promoted to junior sous chef.

He worked his way up the ranks and on returning to England took a job under Martin Blunos at the two Michelin-starred restaurant Lettonie in Bath before a head-chef role at Right on the Green in Kent.    In 1999, aged 23, James and his brother Chris opened Tanners Restaurant in Plymouth.

James' television career began in 2002 when he and brother Chris made their first TV appearance on a competition called 'Chef Stars', a promotion run by UKTV Food and broadcast predominantly on their flagship show Good Food Live (more recently known as Great Food Live). The brothers didn't make it through to the final, but they made an impression.   James became a semi-regular guest on Great Food Live which was shot at the same studios as Ready Steady Cook. He was recommended to audition for the show and duly became a regular. At the heart of his style during his TV appearances is the repetition of his catchphrase "Like so", used in order to make various culinary techniques seem easy, encouraging members of the public to give them a try, and also to assuage viewers' fears of unfamiliar ingredients, as well as "dig down deep". Many feel that his influence on the Great British Public's attitude towards cuisine rivals that of his peers Jamie Oliver and Ainsley Harriott.

James also continues to appear on Saturday Kitchen and Great Food Live (now cancelled).