Tales of ‘Stuffing it’ Austen, ‘Eye-opener’ Dickens and ‘Banana’ Waugh

I suspect gluttony, the excessive consumption of food and drink, was the first of the deadly sins to be committed. The least glamorous of them too. It is universal today, to judge by the number of fatties and the stomach-heaving coverage of food, restaurants, chefs and booze in the media. Ugh! It was always thus. The Bible devotes a lot of space to gulosity in general, let alone the excesses of Lot, Belchezzar, Herod and other esurient characters, killing fatted calves, selling birthright for pottage and glaring examples of edacity.

Gluttony is particularly objectionable in women, both in the act and the consequences. Queen Mary, wife of William III, was a notable chowhound and was said to be able to toss down a quart-pot of beer without pausing for breath. Byron avoided dining in mixed company if possible, as he could not abide watching women eat, ‘except it be a lobster salad’.