Hairy Biker Dave Myers' stepson and F1 engineer Sergiu Orzac engaged six months after celebrity chef died of cancer

Orzac popped the question to his girlfriend nearly six months to the day after the celebrity chef he “had the honour to call dad” died after a battle with cancer.

The self-confessed “petrol head” and “adventure junkie”, according to his Instagram profile, was pictured with his new fiancée, Mara Bianca Iodi, wearing motorcycle helmets as she showed off her ring.

Lodi uploaded the photo to her Instagram to announce the engagement, with the caption “Cheers for our next chapter!” alongside the ring emoji. In a second upload, she shared a series of photos from a holiday she and Orzac are on in Puglia, Italy, along with more close-up pictures of her engagement ring. 

Myers, who was best known as one half of the Hairy Bikers, died at the age of 66 in February with his family and his TV partner Si King, age 57, and by his side.

The TV cook had been married to Sergiu’s mum Lilliana Orzac, since 2011. The pair met in 2005 while he was filming Hairy Bikers in Romania, and he became a stepfather to her two children, Sergiu and his sister Izabelle, from a previous relationship.

Liliana shared her joy at her son's engagement to fellow-Romanian Iodi online. She wrote: “This year has been at times tragic, sad, awkward, challenging, unusual, draining, lonely . . . But it also has brought me uplifting moments, happy moments, full of love moments. . . joy and a full heart. . . 'I'll share and celebrate with you my recent happy moments and some to come! My son got engaged! Yes!!!”

Taking to social media a week after his stepdad’s funeral in March, Alpine F1 aero mechanic Sergiu wrote a touching tribute to him. He wrote: “It has taken me a while to write this as it's hard to think about it and still cannot believe you are no longer with us.

“Last week we said our final goodbyes to one of the most wonderful people I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. Furthermore I had the honour of calling you my dad. 

“You have always been an inspiration in my life, and will remain so even now that you are not with us anymore; with your infectious zest for life and unmatched passion for any endeavour you set your mind to. Without you, I would not be the man I am today.”

He added: “I'll end with a little quote from Renoir that I think is fitting and captures the effect you had not only on your family, but the millions of fans worldwide: 'The pain passes, but the beauty remains.”

His sister Izabelle changed her profile picture to a photo of herself and Myers in happy times in tribute. She uploaded it with a heart emoji.

During his life, Myers spoke lovingly about his stepchildren, and Liliana paid tribute to him as a “wonderful stepdad” in the days following his death. Myers previously said: 'A major regret of mine for a long time had been not having children. When I married Lil, I had this ready-made family with two stepchildren.”

Myers announced he was receiving treatment for cancer in May 2022 and kept his many fans up-to-date with his treatment, although he never revealed what type of cancer he had.

The Hairy Bikers last cookbook, Our Family Favourites, will be released in October. King has, however, said that it wouldn't be “respectful” to his late friend for him to continue as a Hairy Biker on his own. You can pre-order Our Family Favourites on Amazon now. The book will be released on October 24.