Today’s (January 20) guest on James Martin’s Saturday Morning is fellow chef Michael Caines who was tragically involved in a car accident that left him with one arm.
He previously detailed the life-changing moment, which happened in 1994, in his book, Michael Caines At Home.
Michael’s car ‘flipped onto its roof and span round several times’
Michael admitted the accident is “so vivid in my memory,” stating: “It was a hot August bank holiday afternoon.” He was driving home from his niece’s christening in South Wales.
Recalling that he was tired, Michael had just started a new job as head chef at Gidleigh Park Hotel in Devon and had been working long hours. Driving along the outside lane of the M4 in Gwent, his brother and girlfriend had joined him and were asleep in the back of the car.
Due to being so tired, Michael fell asleep and the car drifted to the inside lane. He hit the barrier and “careered back across the motorway, colliding with the central reservation”.
“The driver’s side took the full impact before the car screeched along the central reservation, flipped onto its roof and span round several times. I’ll never forget the sound of screeching metal. It was awful,” Michael explained.
He continued: “I woke on impact and began screaming, which woke up my brother and his girlfriend, who amazingly escaped with only superficial injuries. I wasn’t so lucky.”
‘My life was ruined’
The terrible accident left Michael hanging upside down, held in place by his seatbelt. He noticed a hand on the floor and checked his arm. He realised there was nothing from the elbow down.
“As I hung upside down, held in place by my seatbelt, I noticed a hand on the floor. Then I checked my right arm and realised there was nothing from the elbow down.
“I must have gripped the steering wheel so tightly that my arm was ripped off when the car was thrown into the air,” Michael continued.
While losing a lot of blood, Michael stated he “wanted to let go and die,” adding: “My life was ruined.”
I must have gripped the steering wheel so tightly that my arm was ripped off when the car was thrown into the air.
He asked himself: “How could I continue cooking?” While in a state of shock, Michael managed to get himself out of the driver’s side and began to run. While escaping, he was stopped by other motorists who urged him to lie down.
One of them was a former military doctor, who stemmed the bleeding and alarmed Michael that he should stay awake to avoid slipping into a fatal coma. A lady called Geraldine covered him with a blanket and urged him to stay positive.
Geraldine made him realise there was more to life than work. At 25, he knew he was too young to die.
Michael returned to work two weeks later
Following the horrific incident, Michael picked himself up and returned to work two weeks later. Admitting it was tough, he learned to delegate.
His then-boss, Paul Henderson, helped Michael source a state-of-the-art prosthetic arm in America. He slowly gained the confidence and skill to become the chef he’d always to be.
The near-death experience taught Michael to live life to the full. As far as he is concerned, it made him a better man.
Catch Michael cooking on James Martin’s Saturday Morning today (January 20) at 9.30am on ITV1.
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