Cookery shows have been around for well over half a century and have created many famous faces, launching the careers of chefs and presenters alike, as well as giving the general public their fifteen minutes of fame.
Simple cookery shows of the 1970s, such as Delia Smith’s Cookery Course, developed into travel and documentary style productions – think Keith Lloyd – and more recently reality TV and cooking competitions have become all the rage. Let’s have a look at the top food programmes on your screens and give you a run down of the most popular from ten to one.
At number 10:
Dinner Date
(averaging under 1 million, 0.78m on Thursday 2nd January 2014, source http://forums.digitalspy.co.uk) Blending food and romance, Dinner Date’s title is fairly self-explanatory: one lucky lady or gentleman is treated to an evening meal at three suitors’ homes. This person then decides which one of the three interested competitors they would like to take on a date to a restaurant, basing their choice on both the chemistry between them and the cuisine – think Come Dine with Me crossed with Blind Date! Having already aired for three successful series and almost 100 episodes, a new season of Dinner Date will be back on ITV later this year and you can catch up with old episodes on ITV player now.
Next at 9:
Come Dine with Me
(1.07m 13th July, source BARB) Probably most liked because of the narrator’s sarcastic commentary, Come Dine with Me is Channel 4’s cooking competition in which five members of the public take it in turns to host a dinner party and rate each other’s success, with the winner taking home £1000. The show has come in for criticism for a variety of reasons, but with 31 series and weekday episodes watched by around a million viewers, expect to hear more of Dave Lamb’s irony coming your way.
At number 8:
Food Unwrapped
(21st July 1.28m, source BARB) Now into its fourth series, the programme which reveals the secrets behind what we polish off unwittingly on a daily basis has become a Channel 4 Monday night number one. An alternative look at the food industry, presenters Jimmy Doherty, Kate Quilton and Matt Tebbutt have been making over a million consumers more food savvy on a weekly basis, travelling across the globe to unearth the little-known reality and facts of what lands on our plates and how it gets there.
And at number 7:
Food and Drink
(20th July 1.48m, source BARB) Food and Drink is a popular BBC Two show, and the first to explore cuisine without exhibiting cooking techniques and recipes, although later episodes have included chefs demonstrating dishes. A host of famous presenters and chefs fronted the show which ran from 1982-2002 and was resurrected in 2013, with Michel Roux Jr co-presenting with Kate Goodman. Series two is currently showing and gaining over 1.5 million viewers.
Next at 6:
Great British Menu
(series 9 peak 2.2m, source Wikipedia via BARB) Another BBC production based around food, this series pits top professional chefs from across the country against each other. They compete to have their dishes included on the final menu for a large, public special occasion, such as banquets for the Queen and Royal Family, celebrations for the London Olympics, and the 70th anniversary of D-Day. With up to 2.5 million people watching, it is clear to see why nine series of the programme have been made.
At 5 is:
Hairy Bikers
(Asian Adventure 20th February 2.73m, source Wikipeadia) Love them or loathe them, this
