TV chef Si King has said his late Hairy Bikers co-star Dave Myers is still his “best mate” and he catches himself waiting for his phone call.
Myers, who found fame alongside King as part of the motorcycle-riding cooking duo, died aged 66 in February after being diagnosed with cancer.
The pair starred in a host of cooking and travel programmes which saw them travel around the world on their motorcycles as well as releasing a series of books together.
King revealed on ITV’s This Morning that he is still processing Myers’ death, saying: “The amount of times that I’ve gone, ‘I’ve not heard from that toe rag’ and I’ll go, ‘Oh man’.
He added: “It was my best mate, and actually he still is my best mate, that never goes does it? But he is a miss. And it’s just a bit odd.”
Reflecting on his grief, the TV star said: “It’s raw for anybody that loses somebody, but there are two things that are certain in life – you begin it and you end it – the bit in the middle is about what you do with it.
“And Dave, I have to say, he loved his life. He lived it to the full and he was joyous to be around.”
King, 58, hailed his friend of 30 years as far more courageous than him, recalling how Myers would take on challenges like Strictly Come Dancing.
“Could he dance? Could he nelly, but it was just amazing to watch because it was a heart and soul performance, as you always got with Dave – that’s who he was”, he added.
Myers reached new fans in 2013 when he took part in the BBC dance competition alongside professional Karen Hauer, reaching week seven.
In 2022, Myers revealed he had cancer and was undergoing chemotherapy.
King said the grieving process started for him when Myers was diagnosed but they concentrated on “the fight” when he was undergoing treatment.
“Grief is a very individual journey because it’s about an emotional adjustment of loss and the things that are no longer tangible, that’s quite an existential thing to get your head around”, he added.
In 1995, Myers met his long-time co-presenter King on the set of a TV drama, and they went on to build a friendship and successful career together.
The pair won over viewers with their cheeky northern humour and enthusiasm as they toured the world and cooked up a storm.
Reflecting on their career together, King said: “We always used to say it was like winning the lottery but better.
“Because we were two working class lads from the north and it’s been such a privilege to see the world we live in and talk to the wonderful people that are sometimes completely diverse from the culture that we know and understand and are completely different.
“It was just joyous to give them the opportunity. Dave and I always approached the Bikers as we were conduits for other people’s stories. We had our crack and laugh when we were cooking together, but it was about everybody else. It was never about us.
“And if you pursue that and it’s honest and it’s full of integrity, then everything else follows.”
The pair had been working on a new book, The Hairy Bikers: Our Family Favourites, before Myers died.
King was encouraged by their publishers to finish it, to which he agreed, saying: “I really, really wanted to just as a mark of respect for my best mate and also it’s about legacy.
“It was about looking after that legacy and being the curator of that legacy is really important and to treat it with the respect it deserves.”
The book features recipes that “stuck” with them as they travelled around 650,000 miles over 22 years which King said “triggered conversations and memories” of adventures they had.
