Lorraine Pascale was born on 17 November 1972 in Hackney, London, to Jamaican parents, and was placed into foster care shortly after birth. She was adopted at 18 months old by Roger and Audrey Woodward, an Oxfordshire couple, and grew up in Witney, experiencing further periods of fostering during a difficult childhood, an experience she later explored publicly and which led her to become the UK Government’s first fostering ambassador.

Discovered as a model at 16, Pascale spent nearly a decade in fashion, working with major brands and appearing in the 1998 Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue, before retraining at Leiths School of Food and Wine to launch her culinary career.

She went on to host multiple BBC Two cookery series, including Baking Made Easy, Home Cooking Made Easy, and Lorraine Pascale: How to Be a Better Cook, a six-part series in which she coached kitchen novices.

She has one daughter, actress Ella Balinska, and is married to businessman Dennis O’Brien.