Delia Smith

  • You will need to revise this information for the GCSE written examination.

Topic 1

Delia Smith was born in 1941 in Woking, Surrey. She has become a famous TV chef, author and majority shareholder of Norwich City Football Club.

Topic 2

Delia Smith left school at 16 and worked at a number of jobs. These included being a trainee hairdresser, shop assistant, travel agent and washer-upper in a restaurant in London. After a stint working as a waitress she was allowed to work in the kitchen where she obtained some experience of cooking. Whilst living in London she started to research using cookery books in the British Mueum and practised recipes she found on the family she was living with in Harley Street.

Topic 3

In 1969 Delia began to write for The Daily Mirror and became their food critic. It was here that she met her husband Michael Wynne Jones whose Deputy Editor at the time.

Topic 4

During the 1970's Delia rose to prominence as a presenter on BBC cookery shows. In 1971 she wrote her first cookery book called 'How to Cheat at Cooking'.She also went on to become a food columnist for The Radio Times. She continued to make successful cookery programmes and write cookery books. As a committed Catholic she has also written a number of religious books including A Feast for Advent and A Feast for Lent, both published in 1983.

Topic 5

Her cookery books and TV programmes demonstrate her love ofbasicEnglish traditionalcooking, influenced by the research she did in recipe books in the British Museum.

She is popular because her recipes are easy to follow and use readily available ingredients. She has become so well known that there is a well known phrase 'the Delia effect'. This is because when she presents food programmes people are eager to copy what she has demonstrated and often the ingredients she uses are sold out quickly in shops.

She Has had a big influence on people who have little or no cooking skills as she believes in traditional, simpley prepared food , served with no fussy presentation when served.

Topic 6

Delia Smith is also famous for being a majority shareholder of Norwich City. She has tried to help improve the food served to fans who attend matches.