HE learned his trade in the kitchens of Woolacombe restaurants — but now chef Russell Clement has really hit the big time.

Millions of viewers last night watched Russell and his wife Michele take victory in the final of BBC2's The Restaurant. Their prize is the chance to open a restaurant with top chef and restaurateur Raymond Blanc.

Anxiously watching the last episode at their Woolcombe home were Russell's parents Sandra, 57, and Chris, 59, and grandmother Rita, 82.

Russell and Michele had battled through seven weeks to reach the all-Devon final — where they were pitted against James Knight-Pacheco and Alasdair Hooper, from Exeter.

Last night's programme saw contestants having to cater for passengers on the Orient Express.

Russell said: "It was an amazing experience cooking on the Orient Express. It was just fantastic."

Russell is a former Woolacombe Primary School and Ilfracombe College pupil, and his mother Sandra is the head teacher at West Down Primary School near Ilfracombe.

A keen surfer, Russell was born in Braunton, and moved to Woolacombe aged nine.

He said: "Like every kid growing up in Woolacombe you earn your keep working in the restaurants, and I got into food from there."

Russell and Michele met six years ago when Russell was the sous-chef at the Boardwalk restaurant on the Esplanade, and Michele was down for the summer working at The Old Mill at Spreacombe.

Russell said his mother and grandmother had passed on some of their culinary skills.

He said: "My gran, Rita, lives with us and loves to cook, as does my mum. They're both really good at baking, as well as doing what I call classics, warm-pot meals like stew and lasagne, just great house food.

"We always ate round a table together. We were never a TV dinner family."

Mrs Clement said: "We're incredibly proud of him. I have to watch the programme twice as I get so emotional the first time round I don't really take it in.

"I never worked when the children were little, so I always did cooking with them. We used to make bread, pastry and pizzas and all his holiday jobs were always with food."

Russell, who now lives in Essex, said: "We're really good friends with the Exeter lads, and the couple that won it last year were from North Devon as well. Maybe we breed the best chefs in the West Country."

Last year the programme was won by Jane and Jeremy Hooper, from Chivenor.

They opened their own business Eight at the Thatch but stepped down after only six months running the Oxfordshire gastro-pub.