What's your favorite cocktail, sir? A martini with Old Raj gin and very important, one olive. Who knew that you must never put an even number of olives in a martini glass. My son told me that martini drinkers are superstitious about even numbers of olives.

Tell us a childhood food memory. “Well, I was born in 1940. My father was serving in the army, but when the war was over we went away for a day to the seaside. My father popped into a store, and when he came out, he told me to close my eyes. He put something in my hand that felt so weird, I snatched my hand away. I looked down, and on the sidewalk was this yellowy-pinky furry-looking fruit. It was a peach! It was the most exotic taste I’d ever experienced.”

What flavors do you love? “Savory and intense. I’m English, and all Englishmen are addicted to Marmite. My wife [American singer Sunny Ozell] would rather think it’s not in her kitchen.”

Mmmmmm

Last meal on Earth? “My wife makes the most sensational risotto. In truffle season, she shaves white truffles over it.”