Posh Nosh is a British television programme that parodies television chefs; the title and outline are references to a cooking show pilot pitched by Neil and Christine Hamilton. Written by Jon Canter and Arabella Weir from an idea by Weir, and directed and script edited by Chris Langham, the programme stars Arabella Weir and Richard E. Grant as chefs the Hon. Simon and Minty Marchmont, owners of a very posh restaurant called the Quill & Tassel. Airing from February to April 2003, there were eight nine-minute episodes, in which the chefs carry out their mission to bring extraordinary food to ordinary people.
Simon and Minty prepare various dishes ranging from architect's fish and chips to bread and butter pudding, offering snooty and frequently surreal commentary along the way. For instance, they employ words in odd ways in parody of specific culinary terminology, such as interrogate a lemon; and their cooked vegetables are not peeled but embarrassed, after which they might be annoyed instead of boiled. They also frequently insist on ultra-specific, often prohibitively expensive, or non-existent ingredients, such as Greek currants that you actually have to fly to Greece to buy or organic salt.
At the same time, a thread of increasing domestic tension (and often hostility) runs beneath the surface of every exchange between Simon and Minty, like Simon frequently rolling his eyes at Minty's malapropisms or Simon sarcastically commenting on Minty's cooking skills, along with some not-so-subtle hints about Simon's repressed sexual orientation. The couple illustrate aspects of the British class divide, with Minty as a middle-class social climber who married Simon for his status. She constantly brags about her high station in life, while also seeming to run the Quill and Tassel's kitchens single-handed. A running joke in the series is Simon's crush on his tennis instructor José Luis (David Tennant). José Luis dies before episode eight, and Simon and Minty cook a meal to remember him in this episode. At the dinner, Simon is introduced to a new tennis coach, also played by David Tennant. Both Marchmonts are obsessed with their dog, Sam, going so far as to throw a birthday party (complete with other dog guests) for him. The birthday cake prepared for the party contains huge amounts of chocolate, which can make dogs extremely sick—a rather macabre joke.
The common use of websites in television programmes is often spoofed as well, with items such as www.sexmexavocado.com and www.arthurleggbourkersfarmnearbanbury.co.uk appearing as subtitles on screen.
Finally, each episode concludes with teaser for the next episode and a short faux promotional piece for a jar of something from the Posh Nosh range at your local purveyor of all foods fine and extraordinary. Each item on offer is progressively more ridiculous. For example, here is the close from the episode about architect's fish and chips (as distinct from builder's fish and chips):
Minty: Join us next week on Posh Nosh, when I'll be disabling a partridge in its own jus.
(closing theme as the credits slide by, right to left, very quickly)
(pause at the end of the third line)
Promo: From the Posh Nosh range, dried John Dory thins in basil aioli.
(last line of closing theme)
The voiceover for these promotionals is performed by Joanna Lumley.
The arty and refined opening and closing theme for Posh Nosh is taken from the traditional Scottish ballad "The Raggle Taggle Gypsies", in a 1956 recording by countertenor Alfred Deller to guitar accompaniment by Desmond Dupré. It uses the following verses from the ballad:
Opening theme: What care I for my house and my land? What care I for my treasure, O? What care I for my new-wedded lord, I’m off with the raggle taggle gipsies, O!
Closing theme: What care I for a goose feather bed With the sheet turned down so bravely, O? For tonight I shall sleep in a cold open field, [Faux promo for Posh Nosh range product inserted here] Along with the raggle taggle gipsies, O!
Iron Chef is a Japanese television cooking show produced by Fuji Television. The series, which premiered on October 10, 1993, was a stylized cook-off featuring guest chefs challenging one of the show's resident "Iron Chefs" in a timed cooking battle built around a specific theme ingredient. The series ended on September 24, 1999, although four occasional specials were produced from January 5, 2000, to January 2, 2002. The series aired 309 episodes. Repeats are regularly aired on the Food Network in Canada, the Cooking Channel in the United States, and on Special Broadcasting Service in Australia. Iron Chef can be viewed on Peacock TV and streamed for free on Pluto TV in the United States. There are 5 spinoffs, with the latest being Iron Chef: Quest for an Iron Legend.
Fish and chips is a hot dish consisting of fried fish in batter, served with chips. The dish originated in England, where these two components had been introduced from separate immigrant cultures; it is not known who combined them. Often considered Britain's national dish, fish and chips is a common takeaway food in numerous other countries, particularly English-speaking and Commonwealth nations.
English cuisine encompasses the cooking styles, traditions and recipes associated with England. It has distinctive attributes of its own, but is also very similar to wider British cuisine, partly historically and partly due to the import of ingredients and ideas from the Americas, China, and India during the time of the British Empire and as a result of post-war immigration.
Harry Ramsden's is a fast food restaurant chain based in the United Kingdom which offers fish and chips and assorted themed dishes. Founded by restaurant entrepreneur Harry Ramsden in Guiseley, West Yorkshire, in 1928, the business has 35 owned and franchised outlets throughout the UK and Ireland.
The Jim Henson Hour is an American television series that aired on NBC in 1989. It was developed as a showcase for The Jim Henson Company's various puppet creations, including the Muppet characters.
Christopher Richard Stein, is an English celebrity chef, restaurateur, writer and television presenter. Along with business partner Jill Stein, he runs the Stein hotel and restaurant business in the UK. The business has a number of renowned restaurants, shops and hotels in Padstow along with other restaurants in Marlborough, Winchester and Barnes. He is also the head chef and a co-owner of the "Rick Stein at Bannisters" restaurants in Mollymook and Port Stephens in Australia, with his second wife, Sarah. He writes cookery books and has presented numerous cookery series for the BBC.
Hugh Christopher Edmund Fearnley-Whittingstall is an English celebrity chef, television personality, journalist, food writer, and campaigner on food and environmental issues.
Arabella Helen Weir is an American-born British comedian, actress and writer. She played roles in the comedy series The Fast Show, Posh Nosh and Two Doors Down, and has written several books, including Does My Bum Look Big in This? Weir has also written for The Independent and The Guardian and the latter's Weekend magazine.
Comfort food is food that provides a nostalgic or sentimental value to someone and may be characterized by its high caloric nature associated with childhood or home cooking. The nostalgia may be specific to an individual or it may apply to a specific culture.
Heston Marc Blumenthal is an English celebrity chef, TV personality and food writer. His restaurants include the Fat Duck in Bray, Berkshire, a three-Michelin-star restaurant that was named the world's best by the World's 50 Best Restaurants in 2005.
David John Tennant is a Scottish actor. He is best known for portraying the tenth incarnation of the Doctor in the sci-fi series Doctor Who. In 2023, he returned to the show as the fourteenth incarnation. His other notable screen roles include DI Alec Hardy in the crime drama series Broadchurch (2013–2017) and its 2014 remake, Kilgrave in the superhero series Jessica Jones (2015–2019), Crowley in the fantasy series Good Omens (2019–present) and various fictionalised versions of himself in the comedy series Staged (2020–2022).
Catchphrase is a British game show based on the short-lived American game show of the same name. It originally aired in the United Kingdom between 12 January 1986 and 23 April 2004. A revival premiered on ITV1 on 7 April 2013 and is still running as of 2024.
MasterChef is a British competitive cooking reality show produced by Endemol Shine UK and Banijay and broadcast in 60 countries around the world. The show initially ran from 1990 to 2001 and was revived in 2005 as MasterChef Goes Large. The revival featured a new format devised by Franc Roddam and John Silver, with Karen Ross producing. In 2008, the name was changed back to MasterChef but the format remained unchanged.
Great British Menu is a BBC television series in which top British chefs compete for the chance to cook one course of a four-course banquet.
British cuisine is the specific set of cooking traditions and practices associated with the United Kingdom, including the cuisines of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. According to food writer Colin Spencer, historically, British cuisine meant "unfussy dishes made with quality local ingredients, matched with simple sauces to accentuate flavour, rather than disguise it".
The second season of the American reality competition show Top Chef Masters was announced on October 22, 2009. In addition, it was announced that Gail Simmons would be added as a critic. The season premiered on April 7, 2010 with 22 chefs competing against each other in weekly challenges. In the season finale that premiered on June 9, 2010, Marcus Samuelsson was crowned Top Chef Master.
The Fast Show, also known as Brilliant in the United States, is a BBC comedy sketch show that ran on BBC 2 from 1994 to 1997, with specials in 2000 and 2014. The show's central performers were Paul Whitehouse, Charlie Higson, Simon Day, Mark Williams, John Thomson, Arabella Weir and Caroline Aherne. Other significant cast members included Felix Dexter, Paul Shearer, Rhys Thomas, Jeff Harding, Maria McErlane, Eryl Maynard, Colin McFarlane and Donna Ewin.
The idea of drinking whisky with food is considered outré by many, but there is a growing interest in pairing whiskies with complementary foods. The Scotch whisky industry has been keen to promote this. Single malts, pot-still whiskies, bourbons, and rye whiskies offer an interesting range of tastes and aromas, which are just as varied as wine. Jake Wallis Simons compares whiskies in bourbon casks to white wines, due to their lighter flavor, and those in sherry casks to red wines, with their greater fruitiness. A few Scottish cook books contain reference to the use of whisky in cooking, and a few traditional Scottish recipes that use whisky exist.
Cutthroat Kitchen is an American cooking show hosted by Alton Brown that aired on the Food Network from August 11, 2013 to July 19, 2017. It features four chefs competing in a three-round elimination cooking competition. The contestants face auctions in which they can purchase opportunities to sabotage one another. Each chef is given $25,000 at the start of the show; the person left standing keeps whatever money they have not spent in the auctions. The show ended on its 15th season in July 2017. The series shares some basic elements with other four-chef, three-round elimination-style competitions on Food Network including Chopped and Guy's Grocery Games. Numerous Cutthroat Kitchen contestants have competed on these shows.
Sunshine Noodles was a Cambodian American restaurant in Portland, Oregon, United States. Owner Diane Lam operated the business from 2019 to 2022, initially as a pop-up noodle bar and later as a brick-and-mortar restaurant in the Slabtown area of Northwest Portland's Northwest District. Despite garnering a positive reception, Lam closed Sunshine Noodles permanently in late 2022 and relocated to San Francisco.
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