Audrey Hepburn's son Lucca Dotti reveals she was an ordinary mother

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Audrey Hepburn remains icon 22 years after her death
But to Luca Dotti, she's simply mum
He appeared on This Morning to reveal what it was like growing up
Said he had no idea how famous his mother was
Written a book sharing her love of food

Published: 09:02 EST, 15 July 2015 | Updated: 05:23 EST, 16 July 2015

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Thanks to her roles in films including Breakfast At Tiffany's, Audrey Hepburn remains one of the world's most recognisable stars 22 years after her death.

This summer the National Portrait Gallery is staging a special exhibition that celebrates her life and status as a fashion icon and film legend.

But to her son Luca Dotti, she's simply mum.

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Audrey's son Luca Dotti, pictured on today's This Morning, said he had no idea how famous she was until after her death in 1993 when he was 25

Audrey Hepburn developed iconic status for her portrayal of Holly Golightly in Breakfast At Tiffany's

The 46-year-old admitted on today's This Morning he had no idea growing up just how famous his mother actually was.

'I didn't realise until after her death she was such an icon,' he said. 'When she was alive she was always caring about her charities and us. There was a big gap between her private life and public life.'

Audrey had Luca in 1969 with her second husband, Italian psychiatrist Andrea Dotti, who she divorced when he was 13.

He has an older half-brother, Sean, from Audrey's first marriage to Mel Ferrer in 1954 that lasted almost 15 years.

After divorcing Luca's father, she then found love with Dutch actor Robert Wolders, and said these years were the happiest years of her life.

Luca Dotti: I only realised my mum was an icon when she died

Luca is proud the National Portrait Gallery is staging an exhibition this summer celebrating his mother's life

The 46-year-old said on This Morning, left, that his mother never became an actress because she wanted 'stardom' but she found it thanks to roles including as Eliza Doolittle in My Fair Lady, right

'It's going to sound like a thumping bore, but my idea of heaven is Robert and my two sons at home – I hate separations – and the dogs, a good movie, a wonderful meal, and great television all coming together.

'I am really blissful when that happens. My goal was not to have huge luxuries. As a child, I wanted a house with a garden, which I have today. This is what I dreamed of,' she told Larry King on October 21, 1991.

Luca recalls that his mother always filled their home with love, food and friends - and he didn't realise quite how famous these friends were until he was older.

'When I was growing up there were movie stars coming to the house all the time but we weren't aware they were famous, when they came over they were just introduced as her friends,' he said.

'It was only later that I found out Julie Andrews was Mary Poppins, or who were Roger Moore was, they were just her friends.'

Audrey pictured with her friend Dame Julie Andrews: Luca never realised how famous Julie was as he always knew her as just a friend of his mother

He admitted that the Oscar-winner 'stumbled upon Hollywood... she never gave the impression she was doing it for the stardom… she didn't even want to do Breakfast At Tiffany's.'

He said she always put family first and his biggest regret is that she hasn't lived to see her grandchildren grow up.

'She would have been so happy to be a grandmother.' he said.

Luca is now paying tribute to his mother in a new book 'Audrey at Home, Memories of My Mother's Kitchen', published by Harper Design, which he describes as a 'kitchen table biography'.

Lucas, pictured looking at his mother in images from the new exhibition, said she was passionate about family, food and supporting the work of UNICEF

It includes recipes of her favourite dishes, pictures of her in her private life and stories of her life told 'around the kitchen table.'

He reveals in the book that despite her slight frame, Audrey adored food and ate copious amounts of chocolate and pasta.

'She had an excessive passion for ice cream, which she ate with a greediness worthy of a mischievous little scamp,' he writes.

Audrey always had a slim figure but Lucas said she always ate lots of pasta, chocolate and ice cream

Luca's book containing Audrey's recipes is a tribute to his mother

Luca said he wrote the book as a tribute to his mother and to share recipes of the foods she loved because people always ask him what she was really like at home.

He added that it was also a wonderful way to raise money for the charity she held dear and worked tirelessly for - UNICEF.

Luca said Audrey was happy to work hard and travel the world as a UNICEF goodwill ambassador as 'she never forgot what it was like to be a survivor.'

She had been lucky to escape the Nazi occupation of Arnhem in the Netherlands in 1944-45 - unlike 22,000 others who died during the Dutch famine when the Nazis confiscated food and fuel for themselves. The Dutch were left to die from starvation and freeze to death.

In the end, it was cancer that killed Audrey after she was diagnosed in September 1992 after checking into Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles suffering from abdominal pains.

A laparoscopy revealed metastasized abdominal cancer that had spread from her appendix.

Two surgeries could not remove it and she returned to her Swiss chalet for her last Christmas. She succumbed at age sixty-three to the rare appendiceal cancer on 20 January 1993 in her sleep.

Now Luca is glad her memory continues to endure and that her style - and her food - can continue to inspire a new generation.