'Two Fat Ladies:' Cooking show heavy on humor, calories
March 29, 1998
Web posted at: 1:44 p.m. EST (1844 GMT)
(CNN) -- "Deprivation is out; indulgence is in." That might
well be the motto of a less-than-lean British TV import
called "Two Fat Ladies," a cookery program that throws out
the blandness of calorie-conscious diets and brings in the
heartiness of traditional home cooking.
The two fat ladies in question are Jennifer Paterson and
Clarissa Dickson Wright, who travel about Britain on a
Triumph Thunderbird motorbike with sidecar, chasing recipes
and cooking up scrumptious meals with a lack of pretension
refreshing in these days of superstar chefs.
Dietary restrictions -- of any kind -- are anathema to the
two ladies, who themselves may well be seen as the best
promotion for the recipes they present.
One key ingredient contributing to the show's success is the
easy and witty banter that goes with the unpretentious style
of presentation and cooking -- it no doubt adds a light touch
to heavy recipes.
Another key ingredient of the show is location: "We're never
in a studio, you see, we actually take over people's
kitchens," Paterson says.
"We go to some really lovely places and they take a great
deal of effort finding them," Dickson Wright added.
In the United States, the "Two Fat Ladies" show has aired on
the Food Network and ABC. And there is a Two Fat Ladies
cookbook, of course.