Better a meal of vegetables

Sarah Allen  |  Features  |  Culture watching
Date posted:  1 Jul 2018
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Better a meal of vegetables

photo: iStock

Where have all the ‘how to cook’ programmes gone?

For years we’ve had series of Jamie, Nigella and Delia. Or we had those other, perhaps slightly less popular, people who needed more than one name: Two Fat Ladies, The Hairy Bikers, Nigel Slater, Rick Stein. Studio-centred presentations have gone, and themed or travel-based series are just about hanging on (remember Nadia goes to Bangladesh?). But what is left centre-stage is competition cooking and eating education.

Tension and empathy

Britain’s Best Home Cook (BBC 1) is a case in point. It follows on from Bake Off, The Great British Family Showdown and Master Chef by putting the public in the kitchen, ramping up the tension as they compete against each other. Who will win this round, and then who will win the next? Who will be sent home in shame? And with the tension comes the empathy, as we follow their emotional ups-and-downs. Competitors just like us are seen hugging, fretting, helping each other out and sharing tearful departures. Sentimental perhaps, but gripping TV for many.

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