TV chef Antonio Carluccio 'stabs himself in the chest with kitchen knife'

Celebrity chef Antonio Carluccio, is now recovering after the incident

Italian TV chef Antonio Carluccio was rushed to hospital after stabbing himself in the chest with a kitchen knife.

Doctors feared the blade may have penetrated a lung and took him into intensive care on Monday night.

It is unclear whether or not Carluccio, 71, had intended to kill himself.

Asked if it had been a suicide attempt, a spokeswoman for Carluccio said: 'We don’t know at the moment.

'He has been in hospital but any health issue is a private matter so we cannot offer any further comment. We do not have any further details.'

An ambulance was called to Carluccio’s luxury apartment in Battersea, south London.

The chef was then taken into Chelsea and Westminster Hospital on Monday, where his erratic breathing was closely monitored by doctors.

He was later transferred to a general ward before being discharged yesterday.

A source told the Sun: 'No one knows exactly how it happened.

'It was initially a cause for great concern but he seems to have made a remarkable recovery.”

A successful restaurant owner, Carluccio owns a chain of restaurants named after himself which serve rustic Italian food.

Carluccio's Italian restaurant in Islington, London.

He also makes regular guest appearances on TV cookery programmes such as Saturday Kitchen and presents his own Italian cookery programme.

Antonio was born in Vietri sul Mare in the southern Italian province of Salerno.

In 1975 he moved to London and 8 years later made his first appearance on BBC2.

He has written thirteen cookery books.