Olivia Potts is a former criminal barrister who retrained as a pastry chef. She co-hosts The Spectator’s Table Talk podcast and writes Spectator Life's The Vintage Chef column. A chef and food writer, she was winner of the Fortnum and Mason's debut food book award in 2020 for her memoir A Half Baked Idea.
46 min listen
John Williams is the ebullient Executive Chef at the Ritz. On the podcast, he talks to Lara and Livvy about breaking into the London fine dining scene as a boy from Tyneside, how the Ritz is as far from rustic as you can get, and his friendship with Margaret Thatcher, when she lived at the
Are toasties the ultimate comfort food? For me, they have to be in the top three at the very least. Toasties mean late nights or early suppers; they mean eating in the kitchen, standing up, or sitting on the sofa, probably in your pyjamas; they mean picking the little bits of escaped melted cheese from
28 min listen
Rory MacLean is a historian and travel writer. His latest book, Pravda Ha Ha, is out now. On the podcast, he talks to Lara and Livvy about how his mother was the inspiration for Ian Fleming’s Miss Moneypenny, singing a duet with David Bowie, and the time he was taken to lunch by a Vietnamese
28 min listen
Ryan Riley is a chef and entrepreneur, whose organisation Life Kitchen gives free cookery classes to people with cancer. On the podcast, he talks about his own mother’s struggle with cancer, how the best ideas always come on Tuesday nights (and with a drink), and why umami is the key to cooking for people with
Over the last few weeks of lockdown, I’ve found myself going through a number of different cooking emotions: normally a form of solace, something I turn to in times of crisis, it has become a little more complicated. I already knew I was privileged to have a well-stocked kitchen, radio 4 burbling away in the
London feels very different from the city it was a few weeks ago. Restaurants are closed, the tubes are empty save for key workers, and Soho is a ghost town. We can’t eat out, or go to bars or pubs; many are struggling to get hold of even basic supplies, like eggs and flour. But
Continuing in the vein of the last couple of weeks of Vintage Chef columns, this week’s recipe is designed to make the most of common ingredients, and give maximum reward for minimum effort with these incredibly simple flatbreads. Last week, I wrote about the joy that baking can bring even in adverse circumstances, how it
20 min listen
Camilla Fayed is an entrepreneur, restaurateur, and daughter of Mohamed Al-Fayed, former owner of Harrods department store. On the podcast, she talks to Lara and Olivia about her childhood love of Finnish cuisine, interning in the Harrods kitchens, and Farmacy, her vegan restaurant chain.
I’ve spent the last few days wondering whether it is frivolous to give you a cake recipe at a time like this. But I’ve finally come to the conclusion that, actually, it’s probably more important than ever. Baking is a source of comfort and joy, both for those doing the baking, and for the recipients,
We live in interesting times. Given the recent government guidance on not leaving the house for unnecessary reasons, the run on supermarkets, the advice to avoid restaurants and pubs, we’re all looking at food preparation rather differently. Whether you are quarantined because you’re symptomatic, self-isolating because you’re vulnerable, or social distancing to protect those who
28 min listen
Chef, writer, and broadcaster Valentine Warner has worked in numerous London restaurants, presented programmes such as the BBC’s ‘What to Eat Now’, and author of five books, the latest of which is ‘The Consolation of Food’. On the podcast, he talks to Lara and Livvy about how growing up on a farm inspired his love
38 min listen
Chris Atkins is a journalist and documentary filmmaker, whose work on the tabloid media led him to give evidence in the Leveson Inquiry. In 2016, he was sentenced to five years in prison for tax offences. On the podcast, he talks to Lara and Olivia about food in prison – why it was doomed to
25 min listen
Jon Atashroo is Head Chef at the Tate Modern, whose culinary career began with proving dough on a radiator at university. His latest creation is a tasting menu inspired by the Tate’s upcoming Andy Warhol exhibition, featuring dishes such as Coca Cola Jelly and Tuna Fish Disaster. On the podcast, he talks to Olivia and
13 min listen
Skye Gyngell, an Australian chef best known for her work as food editor for Vogue, and for winning a Michelin star at the Petersham Nurseries Cafe. She is now the founder of Spring at Somerset House and the culinary director of Heckfield Place. On the podcast, she talks to Lara and Livvy about being subjected
36 min listen
Sarah Langford is a barrister and author of the best-selling In Your Defence, which follows 11 real-life cases in the criminal and family courts. On the podcast, Sarah tells Lara and Livvy about her family’s background in farming, the vending machine diet of a barrister, and how MeToo killed the drinking culture in chambers. Presented
I don’t like one-use kitchen gadgets. Well, that’s not true, I do like them actually. I love them. I am drawn to them in those little catalogues that come through the door, brimming with plastic and promise, like a magpie. But my small kitchen doesn’t love them. My overflowing drawers and crowded worktops don’t love
32 min listen
Mark Diacono, food writer, farmer and photographer, who is the founder of Otter Farm in East Devon. The author of seven books, his latest, ‘Sour’, is out now. He talks to Lara and Livvy about what inspired him to start growing food, how to turn 17 acres of land into a farm producing Szechuan peppers,
39 min listen
Max Pemberton is a Daily Mail columnist and medical doctor specialising in mental health and eating disorders. On the podcast, he talks about his milkman father and activist mother and what family mealtimes were like, remembering to eat on shifts as a junior doctor, and dissuading patients with serious eating disorders of the ‘clean eating’
14 min listen
Will Lander is the owner of the beloved restaurants Quality Chop House, Clipstone, Portland, and the new Amelia. On the podcast, he talks to Lara and Livvy about growing up with the FT’s restaurant critic for a father (not many trips to McDonalds), a childhood dream to become a restauranteur, and the secret to traditional
25 min listen
Fuchsia Dunlop is a writer and chef specialising in Chinese cuisine, especially that of Sichuan. She tells Lara and Livvy about the international lodgers who trained her adventurous palate growing up, why some Chinese foods can be so challenging for westerners (hint: it’s the texture!), and the 23 different types of Sichuan spicy. Presented by
