Curves like those showcased by the bootylicious Beyoncé, kitchen queen Nigella Lawson and
‘ultimate celebrity bum’ owner Jennifer Lopez could be a sign a lady will live longer than her skinny mates, according to researchers.

Previous studies have indicated that fat around the stomach area heightens the risk of heart disease, strokes and diabetes, while weight around the thighs and bottom appears to cut the risk.

For the latest research, volunteers were persuaded to gorge themselves on ice cream and sweets over a period of eight weeks, with their body fat and fat-cell size measured before and after the regime.

Scientists concluded that fat cells around the stomach and heart had grown in size but not in number, while the reverse was true for thigh fat cells – they increased in number but did not get bigger.

More: Jennifer Lopez’s bum voted best celebrity rear

Dr Michael Jensen from the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota noted that the findings back up the idea of increased capacity to produce lower body fat cells creating a kind of ‘protection’ in the upper body.He added that this potentially helps prevent metabolic disease which can lead to diabetes and other illnesses.

‘The cellular mechanisms are different,’ he said, adding: ‘The accumulation of abdominal fat happens largely by individual cells expanding in size, while with fat gain in the femoral or lower body, it’s the number of fat cells that increases.

‘So, different mechanism, different impact.’

The work by Dr Jensen, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, also ties in with previous research indicating that an individual’s waist-to-hip ratio is a better predictor of heart disease than his or her BMI – GPs’ rule of thumb for judging healthy weights.

TV review: Nigella Lawson continued on her crusade to sneak as much mischief as possible onto pre-watershed BBC.

Nigella continued on her crusade to sneak as much naughtiness as possible onto pre-watershed BBC2.

There hardly seems any point in passing comment or judgement on Nigella’s penchant for salacious sound-bites and coquettish body language, so I’ll glide quickly over her mention of ‘sweet juices’ and ‘gleaming cream’, and even her admission that, ‘I like to get my hands dirty,’ in this latest episode.

But one segment of the programme was surprising, even by her usual standards. After she cooked an Oriental fusion meal, she invited a young Asian man into her kitchen to share it with her, without introducing him to her audience.

I still can’t decide what was more amusing: the thought of her suggesting to producers that they get a token Oriental-looking chap in to see what he makes of her Korea-inspired food, or her outrageous flirting with the young man in question. ‘I’ve had enough of standing up,’ she purred to her guest and naturally, they promptly disappeared off camera.

The food itself was, as usual, unapologetic and full of heart. Nigella has a cheerful disregard for calorie contents and cholesterol-watching, which makes a refreshing change from those TV chefs who feel the need to lecture us and transform our eating habits.

She will have inspired legions of women to return to cooking good old-fashioned comfort food and that can be no bad thing.

As the Domestic Goddess herself said last night, ‘in life, one should seize every opportunity for pleasure’. Mind you, she probably wasn’t referring to cooking there at all.

The latest episode of Nigella Kitchen was titled “Rags To Riches”, but failed to convince that Nigella was one of us, writes
Rachel Harris.

It was probably just a coincidence, but the ‘cost-cutting’ episode of Nigella Kitchen seemed appropriate and reassuring in the light of this week’s spending cuts announcements.

The message was this: even Nigella feels the pinch and she’s here to show us how to prepare great food at a low cost.

So, the domestic goddess took ingredients apparently lying around her kitchen and made fabulous meals without having to go to the shops.

It sort of worked: the meals were indeed fabulous and I’m sure she did find her ingredients lying around, but only because she’d been down to her Belgravia grocer’s and coughed up a fair amount of money for them.

Fresh dill, chillies and ginger were chucked into a south Indian curry with careless aplomb, before tamarind paste – that staple of any kitchen – was thrown into the mix too.

Things really got silly when she snuck a good fistful of saffron into a paella dish.

Saffron, you may recall, is the most expensive spice in the world. We Europeans even went to war over the stuff in the Middle Ages, such is its value.

Presenting Nigella as an ordinary everywoman was laughable and utterly pointless.

The purpose of Nigella Lawson is not to be relatable; her purpose is to cook good food and be sexy.

In fact, with all this talk of budget-cooking, we’d almost forgotten Nigella was a sultry sex-pot, so she threw in a few mentions of “voluptuous custard” and a “desirable hint of wobble” just to remind us what she’s all about.

Let’s hope there’s a return to form next week.

Nadine Coyle’s debut solo single Insatiable hit the charts this week but already she’s thinking of a career change – becoming the next Nigella Lawson.

The Irish singer’s solo career is believed to be one of the reasons the Girls Aloud reunion has been delayed but it seems that even after she’s worked on her own music, she fancies trying her hand at a different profession.

The 25-year-old moved across the pond in 2007 and already dabbles in the food industry as she owns her own restaurant Nadine’s Irish Mist.

Although she hasn’t ruled out a Girls Aloud reunion just yet, she seems keen to expand her food empire first.

Speaking toMetro.co.ukshe said: ‘Do you know what I want to do? I want to be a singer and a songwriter and all of that but I also want a cooking show. I want to be the next Nigella Lawson.

‘I’ve always wanted to cook since I was no age at all. I’d cook up a storm from the age of 11. I’d roast peppers and stuff them with stuff. And I just got more and more into it and then I got the restaurants and got even more into it.

‘I would love to do some kind of thing, just for people that are busy and you can just throw stuff together.’Nadine is often criticised in the press for her skinny frame but she insists that she doesn’t still has an eye for junk food.‘This morning I had Lucky Charms. Toast and definitely some sort of potatoes are staples, I don’t eat rubbish all the time,’ she toldheatmagazine.

And talking about how she feels when she sees pictures of herself splashed across newspapers looking worryingly thin, she admitted it makes her more paranoid about her image: ‘I’ll be like, “Oh my God, I look really skinny in that,” or “Oh, God, look at my chin in that.” I think I’m my own worst critic.’

Cheryl Cole is already an
X Factor judge, a solo artist and a model but it seems the ambitious lady is now trying her hand at stealing Nigella Lawson’s crown and trying her hand at baking.

Posing in a black and white dress with gold button detailing Cheryl looked as proud as punch of her baking efforts as she held a tray of warm scones out in front of her looking every inch the excited schoolgirl.

It turns out she had been hard at work in the kitchen for her publicity team who took a snap of her holding the fresh tray with the caption: ‘Hot scones straight out of the oven.’

With Chezza’s long brunette hair, striking bone features and her hordes of male fans, she could well be a rival for the 50-year-old TV chef.

Luckily for Nigella though, it seems this was just a one-off. What with being an X Factor mentor, rumours of judging the US version of the show and brand new album tracks to promote, Cheryl is busy enough without adding cooking to her résumé…

TV chef Nigella Lawson has taken inspiration from her time living in Italy for her new cookery series Nigellissima, which begins on BBC2 on Monday night.

The show takes Nigella back to the hotel in Florence where she worked as a chambermaid when she was a student – and honed her love of both the country and its food.

And viewers can expect her to dish up a feast of Mediterranean delights, including, in the first show, Sicilian pasta, Tagliata – thinly sliced steak – with Tuscan fries and ‘eggs in purgatory’ – a dish which she claims is ideal for late night parties.

Nigella also gets to work on a delectable chocolate and hazelnut cheesecake – but later she admits it is not actually Italian but only uses certain Italian ingredients.

The chef recently confessed that while the main focus of the show is on Italian dishes, – calling Italy her ‘spiritual and gastronomic home’ – she has given some of the recipes a quirky English twist.

‘I stay true to my inspiration, but I inject some of my Englishness into the dishes,’ she told TV and Satellite Week.

‘For example, a very traditional recipe from Italy is pasta with sardines. But I use a smoked mackerel instead as it is far more accessible. I also take a pavlova and add some cappuccino to give it that Italian taste,’ she revealed.

The six-part series kicks off on BBC2 at 8.30pm.

TV preview: Alison Steadman heads the cast of the latest Little Crackers episode, would-be Father Christmases are put through their paces in Bad Santas and Nigella Lawson gives festive fare a Mediterranean flavour in Nigellissima: An Italian Inspired Christmas.

Little Crackers, Sky1, 9pm

This cornucopia of delightful mini dramas continues with a double helping of cockle-warmers. First up, actress Alison Steadman plays her own mother in a cool episode from her teenage years in Liverpool. It’s 1962 and the young Steadman has to pull the wool over her mum’s eyes if she’s to see the young Beatles at the legendary Cavern Club. Hot on Steadman’s kitten heels comes comedian Dylan Moran as a dad who finds himself way out of his comfort zone as he tries to connect with his teenage son, the victim of a street mugging. Catch the making-of films that follow too – they’re great fun.

Bad Santas, C4, 9pm

James Lovell from entertainment agency Ministry of Fun is a man on a seasonal mission – he’s out to turn around the fortunes of six unemployed men by training them to work as Santas, handing out gifts to children in grottos. For the men chosen, it’s a steep learning curve – it’s not the done thing for Father Christmas to reek of ciggies and alcohol, so can they break the habits of a lifetime? If not, they’re out of Santa School. Part two is tomorrow.

Nigellissima: An Italian Inspired Christmas BBC2, 8pm 

This is not just an Italian-inspired Christmas banquet – it’s a special Venetian-themed extravaganza, with Nigella Lawson giving it her best pout as she shows us how they do seasonal scrumptiousness in Casanova’s home city. It’s a bacchanalian affair, with the TV chef wetting her whistle with a ruby red Venetian cocktail before stuffing her turkey with Italian sausage. By the end, she’s full to bursting with double entendres, the saucy goose.

Girls, Sky Atlantic, 10.05pm

Best mates Hannah and Marnie (Lena Dunham and Allison Williams, pictured below) have been there for each other, picking up the pieces whenever life does its worst. So their slanging match at the end of last week’s episode was gut-wrenching – the kind of darkness that gives this comedy a powerful punch. Let’s hope the girls find a way to heal those wounds because there are plenty of challenges lined up for them in tonight’s final episode of the series.

The Poison Tree, ITV1, 9pm

It’s the finale of this creepy psychological crime drama and the identity of Karen’s sinister seaside stalker is revealed, along with the full extent of the seeds of deception she sowed all those years ago. Will the lethal fruit of her dark machinations kill all hopes of a happy-ever-after ending with Rex and their daughter? One thing’s certain – she’ll stop at nothing to make it happen. MyAnna Buring and Matthew Goode star.

Film Of The Day: Hellboy II: The Golden Army, ITV2, 11pm

Guillermo Del Toro was originally meant to direct The Hobbit; watching this superior comic-book adaptation makes you wish that he had. The wizard behind Pan’s Labyrinth combines his fantastical Gothic visuals with irreverent humour as he reaquaints us with his huge red antihero, Hellboy (Ron Perlman). The spawn of the devil, raised by humans, Hellboy is an unlikely goodie who here battles with Luke Goss and his dazzling ranks of clockwork minions.

Their liberal dollops of cream and endless squirts of truffle oil may get the tastebuds tingling.

But while celebrity chefs are inspiring people to shun TV dinners and get back in the kitchen, they’re also accused of adding to the obesity crisis by encouraging us to eat fatty dishes.

Nearly 90 per cent of 900 recipes by 26 TV cooks failed to comply with healthy eating guidelines, a study claims.

Many contained ‘undesirable levels’ of saturated fat, including one found to have five times the daily recommended amount. It is a worry because people tend to assume that recipes made by star names are good for them, said Dr Ricardo Costa of Coventry university.

‘When you have celebrity chefs involved with promoting many of the government’s healthy eating initiatives, you inevitably encourage confidence in their culinary practices,’ he said.

The researchers opted not to name and shame the chefs but said the list was compiled with reference to Amazon’s list of cookery bestsellers and the Good Food Channel’s website.

Stars including Nigella Lawson, Jamie Oliver and James Martin are on the site.

Shocking pictures have emerged apparently showing Nigella Lawson being strangled in public by her husband of ten years Charles Saatchi.

Images of TV chef Nigella, 53, being ‘throttled’ by 70-year-old Charles outside celeb haunt Scott’s restaurant in Mayfair on Saturday have surfaced today.

The advertising chief was caught on camera grabbing his glamorous wife by the throat four times in a furious outburst, with the images appearing on the front page of the Sunday People newspaper.

Onlookers were said to be appalled by the behaviour with Nigella appearing devastated after the incident.

‘Nigella was very, very upset. She had a real look of fear on her face. No man should do that to a woman,’ a source told the Sunday tabloid.

‘She raised her voice and got angry but at the same time was trying to calm him down, almost like you would try to calm down a child. He was being intimidating, threatening.’

Despite the unsettling altercation, onlookers were surprised to see the chef try to appease her husband with a kiss during the argument.

‘The kiss was a strange thing. She appeared to be a woman who loves him but clearly unable to stop him being abusive, frightening and disrespectful to her.’

A spokesperson for Nigella has so far been unavailable for comment.

Police say they are aware of reports that Nigella Lawson was assaulted in public by her husband Charles Saatchi.

Scotland Yard said there had been no arrests and ‘inquiries are in hand to establish the facts in order to assess whether an investigation is necessary’ after pictures emerged of the TV chef apparently being throttled by her 70-year-old partner in the street.

The advertising chief was caught on camera grabbing his 53-year-old wife by the throat in photos which appeared in the Sunday People.

Onlookers said Lawson appeared devastated after the incident outside celebrity haunt Scott’s restaurant in Mayfair on Saturday.

‘Nigella was very, very upset. She had a real look of fear on her face. No man should do that to a woman,’ a source told the Sunday tabloid.

‘She raised her voice and got angry but at the same time was trying to calm him down, almost like you would try to calm down a child. He was being intimidating, threatening.’

Lawson, who has been married to Saatchi for nine years, was unavailable for comment.

A police spokesman said no complaint had been made about the incident.

TV cook Nigella Lawson appeared to move out of her home after photos seemed to show her multi-millionaire husband grabbing her around the throat.

The self-styled domestic goddess was seen clutching a suitcase as she left the £12million Chelsea flat she shares with advertising tycoon Charles Saatchi.

She was then driven away in a blue taxi alongside her son Bruno, 17.

The 53-year-old and her husband were saying nothing about the incident but police confirmed they were looking into it.

Lawson has not made a formal complaint but the Met said: ‘Inquiries are in hand to establish the facts of the incident.’

The pictures appeared to show the cookery writer and TV presenter being manhandled by her husband as they ate at their favourite outside table at Scott’s seafood restaurant in central London.

Witnesses claimed an angry Saatchi, famed for his £30million art collection, grabbed her around the neck four times.

She was said to have tried to pacify him by placing her hand on his wrist and leaning in to kiss his cheek but Saatchi, 70, marched off, leaving his wife in tears at the table.

One witness told a Sunday newspaper: ‘Nigella was very, very upset. She had a real look of fear on her face.’

Last night, the restaurant said: ‘The staff at Scott’s are aware of the allegations in the media today but did not see anything untoward happen within the restaurant.’

Lawson, the daughter of former chancellor Nigel Lawson, has previously admitted that she and her husband have fiery rows and has described him as ‘an exploder’.

Charles Saatchi has dismissed as a ‘playful tiff’ photographs that appear to show him seizing his wife Nigella Lawson by the throat.

In photographs the celebrity cook appears to be grimacing and was reportedly seen weeping following the incident.

The pictures, taken outside Scott’s restaurant in Mayfair in central London, emerged yesterday and Lawson appeared to move out of their home in Chelsea, west London.

Police are still deciding whether to begin an investigation into the reports.

But Saatchi told the Evening Standard: ‘There was no grip, it was a playful tiff. The pictures are horrific but give a far more drastic and violent impression of what took place.

‘Nigella’s tears were because we both hate arguing, not because she had been hurt.

‘We had made up by the time we were home. The paparazzi were congregated outside our house after the story broke yesterday morning, so I told Nigella to take the kids off till the dust settled.’

Lawson and Saatchi are said to be regular visitors to the upmarket restaurant in Mount Street, which claims to offer diners the ‘finest’ oysters and fish.

The couple wed in 2003 and she has two children, Cosima and Bruno, from her marriage to journalist John Diamond, who died of throat cancer in 2001.

She became a household name in 1998 with her first cookery book, How To Eat.

There had previously been no comment from either Lawson or Saatchi’s representatives.

Scotland Yard has not made any arrests and a spokesman said inquiries were ongoing to ‘establish the facts in order to assess whether an investigation is necessary’.

There was no sign of multi-millionaire art collector Saatchi at their home or his nearby gallery today.

Staff said he was not expected at the modern art gallery, or the launch of a new exhibition today.

Saatchi is notoriously publicity-shy and was not even at the opening night of his previous gallery on the Southbank in 2003 which was attended by some of the art world’s biggest names

Charles Saatchi has today insisted it was a ‘playful tiff’, but the question remains why did no one step in to stop him grabbing his wife Nigella Lawson by the throat at a busy London restaurant.

The advertising magnate has insisted the pictures looked ‘far more drastic and violent’ than reality but still surely the none-the-wiser diners and passers-by in that moment would not be aware of his detailed reasoning.

The alleged altercation took place in the middle of the day in one of Mayfair’s most exclusive restaurants with sources stating that Nigella was ‘upset’ and with ‘a real look of fear’ – and yet no one went to the aid of the star when it looked like things were getting out of hand.

It is an unsettling thought to think that members of the public would only be too happy to carry on dining, or walk on by, when a woman is clearly in distress.

Furthermore, should the paparazzi – who always just happen to be in the right place at the right time to capture events like this on film – take more responsibility and potentially step in during altercations of this type?

The photographer who caught the Saatchi-Lawson incident could have approached the scene to make sure she was OK.

Instead, Nigella was followed and seen tearfully getting into a car to escape the scene.

Do we really live in a society where a blind eye can be turned when someone is being ‘throttled’ across a dinner table?

Of course boundaries should be adhered to in relation to interfering in other people’s business, but when lines are crossed during public disputes, society really should step up to do something to help.

Nick Griffin has sparked further disgust online with a tweet severely denigrating Nigella Lawson in the week photos emerged of her husband with his hands around her throat.

The British National Party leader provoked fury by wading into an incident that Charles Saatchi has attempted to dismiss as a ‘playful tiff’.

He tweeted to his 25,000 followers: ‘If I had the opportunity to squeeze Nigella Lawson, her throat wouldn’t be my first choice.’

While many Twitter users expressed faux surprise at the far-right politician, who is an MEP, attempting to offend as many people as possible, others said that – even for him – this was a tweet too far.

Most of the responses online cannot be reprinted, but Jo Sullivan wrote: ‘Just when you think Nick Griffin has no depths to [plummet to].’

Jimmy Smith added: ‘You just don’t think that Nick Griffin can possibly sink any lower, and then he proves you wrong.’

TV chef Lawson was said to have temporarily moved out of the west London home she shares with her 70-year-old husband after the pictures, taken outside Mayfair restaurant Scott’s last weekend, were published.

While Saatchi played down the incident in an interview with the Evening Standard, his wife, 53, is yet to publicly comment.

Charles Saatchi has said he admitted assaulting his wife Nigella Lawson to stop the incident ‘hanging over’ the couple.

Art collector Saatchi seized the celebrity cook’s throat during a row outside a restaurant and accepted a caution for assault after going to a police station in London yesterday afternoon.

He told the Evening Standard: ‘Although Nigella made no complaint I volunteered to go to Charing Cross station and take a police caution after a discussion with my lawyer because I thought it was better than the alternative of this hanging over all of us for months.’

Earlier he had dismissed as a ‘playful tiff’ photographs showing him grabbing his wife’s throat and her grimacing then crying during the argument outside Scott’s restaurant in Mayfair.

In a statement last night the Metropolitan police said: ‘Officers from the Community Safety Unit at Westminster were aware of the Sunday People article which was published on Sunday 16 June and carried out an investigation.

‘This afternoon, Monday June 17, a 70-year-old man voluntarily attended a central London police station and accepted a caution for assault.’

Lawson moved out of their home in Chelsea, west London with her son Bruno, 17, after the incident came to light.

Saatchi, a former advertising executive, told the Evening Standard he was holding the broadcaster and cook by the neck ‘to emphasise my point’ as they discussed family.

But he admitted that the pictures, in which his wife appears to be grimacing as he holds her outside Scott’s in Mayfair, looked ‘horrific’.

The 70-year-old told the newspaper: ‘About a week ago, we were sitting outside a restaurant having an intense debate about the children, and I held Nigella’s neck repeatedly while attempting to emphasise my point.

‘There was no grip, it was a playful tiff. The pictures are horrific but give a far more drastic and violent impression of what took place. Nigella’s tears were because we both hate arguing, not because she had been hurt.

‘We had made up by the time we were home. The paparazzi were congregated outside our house after the story broke yesterday morning, so I told Nigella to take the kids off till the dust settled.’

There was no sign of the couple at their west London home or at Saatchi’s gallery, near Chelsea’s King’s Road, yesterday.

A spokesman for Lawson, 53, confirmed she left the family home, in a multimillion-pound converted factory, with her son on Sunday, but refused to say whether it was a temporary or permanent move.

Charles Saatchi’s ex-wife has spoken out in his defence claiming he was never ‘physically abusive’ towards her.

Kay Saatchi, a US-born art collector, made her comments after her ex accepted a police caution for assaulting his wife, Nigella Lawson, in a very public row.

‘Whilst Charles has always had his faults, I never experienced him to be physically abusive,’ Ms Saatchi said. ‘He may be hard work but I feel he is being treated unfairly. This should not be part of his legacy.’

She and Mr Saatchi were married for 11 years – she was his second wife – until they divorced acrimoniously in 2001.

The comments appeared in the Evening Standard where Mr Saatchi, now an art collector, is a columnist.

The newspaper is under online pressure to fire the 70-year-old after tabloid photos showed him with his hands around 53-year-old Lawson’s neck during a row outside Scott’s restaurant, in Mayfair.

Mr Saatchi refused to comment on his marriage as he left his £14million Chelsea home. His wife of nine years has not been seen in public since the pictured were published on Sunday.

Nick Clegg has been forced to defend his views on domestic violence after being criticised for a vague response when asked whether he would have intervened if he had witnessed Charles Saatchi’s assault on his wife Nigella Lawson.

The Liberal Democrat leader and deputy prime minister said he ‘completely condemn[s]‘ all forms of domestic violence’.

Art collector and advertising executive Saatchi was cautioned by police after photos emerged showing him with his hands around the celebrity cook’s throat and her crying.

The deputy prime minister was asked during his Call Clegg programme on LBC Radio, with Nick Ferrari, what he would have done and whether he would have intervened.

He replied: ‘What a difficult question. I find it so difficult to imagine…so you see a couple…I mean, I don’t know what happened. I’m like you, I don’t know what happened.

‘When you see a couple having an argument…most people, you know, just assume that the couple will resolve it themselves.’

He continued: ‘If of course something descends into outright violence then that’s something different.

‘I just don’t know, there was this one photograph, I don’t whether that was just a fleeting thing…or…I’m at a loss to be able to put myself in to that position without knowing exactly…’

Mr Clegg said he had not seen all the images of the assault but then appear hesitant about condemning what Saatchi had done.

He said: ‘It’s just I find trying to re-imagine how you might react to very specific events which still are not entirely clear – that’s the bit I find is very difficult’.

Later the End Violence Against Woman Coalition tweeted: ‘Reported response of Nick Clegg about whether he’d have intervened in Saatchi violence is terrible – need leadership from politicians.

‘Clegg missed an opportunity to promote a positive bystander approach to violence against women to call it out. Coalition Govt has pledged to prevent violence against women – its leaders need to champion it, not undermine it.’

Shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper said: ‘Nick Clegg revealed how little he understands violence against women this morning. Far too often violence against women is dismissed as fleeting or unimportant.

‘Too often public institutions don’t take it seriously enough. Domestic violence is still a hidden crime – and victims suffer or are ignored as a result.

‘Mr Saatchi has accepted a police caution for assault and the images from the restaurant are disturbing.

‘Ministers should show they are prepared to condemn this kind of violence against women and that they recognise the seriousness of domestic abuse.’

Sarah Wollaston, the Tory MP for Totnes, said: ‘So just don’t “call Clegg” if your partner likes to grab you by the throat to emphasise a point.’

Labour MP Diana Johnson said on Twitter: ‘Nick Clegg has said on radio that Nigella Lawson was the victim of “fleeting” domestic violence. The attacker accepted caution for assault.’

The criticism prompted Mr Clegg to later releasing a statement clarifying his comments.

‘I completely condemn all forms of domestic violence,’ he said.

‘As I said on the radio, my instinct would always be to try and protect the weaker person, to try and protect the person who otherwise would be hurt.’

He continued: ‘But I was asked a very specific question about how I would have reacted to a specific incident which I did not see.

‘I said I did not know how I would have reacted to that specific incident because I do not know what happened.

‘The point I was making is that I don’t know what other people in the restaurant saw and I don’t want to make a judgement on their reaction.’

Charles Saatchi has claimed he was trying to wipe Nigella Lawson’s runny nose when he was pictured grabbing his wife’s face and neck in a very public row.

The 70-year-old said: ‘Even domestic goddesses have a bit of snot in their nose. I was trying to fish it out.’

Photos recently published in the Sunday People showed him apparently throttling her as they sat outside Scott’s restaurant in Mayfair.

Former advertising tycoon Saatchi earlier claimed the original images showed them having a ‘playful tiff’ but a day later he accepted a police caution for assault.

Meanwhile TV chef Lawson returned to her rented central London apartment yesterday afternoon amid rumours of a possible split from her husband.

The 53-year-old remained tight-lipped about the status of her relationship with Saatchi on returning to her £12,000-a-week pad in Mayfair.

She was picked up from the apartment and arrived back a couple of hours later carrying a small black bag.

She has been staying at the flat since walking out of her family home last weekend when the photos emerged.

Nigella Lawson is in no mood to forgive her husband after their ‘playful tiff’ it seems, as removal men were seen clearing her possessions out of the couple’s home.

Box after box of clothes, cookery books and kitchen utensils were loaded into a van, days after Charles Saatchi was cautioned by police for ‘choking’ the TV chef at a restaurant.

Ms Lawson is reportedly considering divorcing the millionaire art collector after the assault and has since been pictured without her wedding ring, further fuelling the rumours of a permanent split.

The 53-year-old has been staying at £12,000-a-week flat above the Little House members club in Mayfair, London, with her children Cosima, 19, and Bruno, 16, after she walked out on Mr Saatchi last week.

It is believed that she has asked for her effects to be sent to her temporary bolthole, although her representative refused to be drawn on whether this was case.

Mr Saatchi, 70, tried to play down their row at Scott’s seafood restaurant, saying that he was only trying to emphasise his point when he grabbed his wife of nine years by the throat.

He also claims that he accepted a caution for assault as he thought it was ‘better than having this hanging over all of us for months’.

Mr Saatchi was in the Chelsea apartment as the removal men cleared his wife’s goods.

A close friend of Ms Lawson was quoted as saying: ‘It really does seem like the end.’

Nigella Lawson has been pictured alongside her children viewing what appears to be their new home in central London.

The TV chef, 53, was shown around the £11,000-a-month rental property, with a market value of around £2.5million, at the end of last week.

The pictures, published today, appear to back up claims Ms Lawson’s marriage to art collector Charles Saatchi is over after her and her children’s possessions were removed from their Chelsea home last week.

Earlier this month pictures were published showing her being grabbed around the throat by Saatchi, who also tweaked her nose.

Despite initially dismissing the incident as a ‘playful tiff’, advertising executive Saatchi later accepted a caution for assault.

According to the Sunday People – which initially published the photographs taken outside Scott’s restaurant in Mayfair – the confrontation stemmed from a row involving Ms Lawson’s teenage son Bruno.

Bruno and his 19-year-old sister Cosima accompanied their mother as they viewed the mews property last Friday.

Ms Lawson’s children are from her first marriage to journalist John Diamond, who died of throat cancer in 2001.

On Friday, she tweeted a picture of Bruno’s birthday cake as he marked his 17th birthday; the first time she has used the social media site since the Scott’s pictures were published.