Tuning in…
Tuning in…
Castaway
2 appearances
Cookery expert and bestselling author, best known as a judge on The Great British Bake Off and as the undisputed queen of cakes.
On the island
Eight records
Wish Me Luck as You Wave Me Goodbye
Well, because I can so remember after the war and the end of the war, her singing me, Wish Me Luck as you wave me goodbye and my mother, who died quite recently at 105, my brothers very kindly let me do the service. And I was thinking now what shall we end up with? And then I it suddenly crossed my mind, of course mum absolutely loved that. And so I've chosen a nice noisy version.
Spring (from The Four Seasons)
Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Zubin Mehta
I love it. It is mellow and being spring, it is my favourite season. Um I think when you look in the garden after about March, it's full of promise. Things are coming up, and with that in the background, would be lovely.
Because we always used to have holidays with our our three children. We would go every year to Devon and Dad had a VW camper van which he lent to my two brothers and to me and we all loved it. And on the way down we'd be playing Summer Holiday and Cliff Richard as we went along and everybody was thinking well we are going to get there.
Susan Boyle, I am a huge admirer. I think she has done so magnificently, and what a voice and I know she worked very hard to get there.
The Band of the Salvation Army
Sir George Grove, who wrote the Dictionary of Music and Musicians, lived in our house. And a frequent visitor was Arthur Sullivan. He composed the music to the current edition of Onward Christian Soldiers in our summer house. And so we always play it at occasions. And we had it at Tom and Sarah's wedding, and we loved it. And then when Annabel and Dan got married, Dan quite firmly said, I'm not going to march down the aisle with Annabel to war.
SailingFavourite
It was something that the boys, when they were back from school, they would have it on full blast upstairs, and when Will's funeral came, not only did we have Onward Christian Soldiers, but we finished with sailing to remember him.
This reminds me so much of Annabel's wedding. We were lucky enough to have sun and lots of jolty and lots of singing and dancing. Great day.
Benny Andersson / Björn Ulvaeus / Stig Anderson
My husband and a group of chaps all I think it's about once in six weeks they play cards. And of course, all the wise off we go to a cinema, or we might even come to London, some treat, local pub. But we all went to Mamma Mia, and it was hilarious, and actually as you sit in the seats and you look round and you see all groups of girls. ... Everybody who went to see that in the cinema, I thoroughly enjoyed it. You come out singing.
In conversation
Presenter asks
0:34Is baking a shortcut to some sort of domestic contentment?
I enjoy baking. I do it as a total uh relaxation. And the wonderful thing about baking is you have an audience who's going to say ooh and ah and isn't that delicious and can I have another one? It's very rewarding. ... It is love on a plate because you are putting yourself into it. I mean the whole thing is to give it time, not to do it in a rush for the first time. And follow the recipe carefully.
Presenter asks
3:50What do you remember [about the war]?
I remember during the war, um I remember the h the house, the garden. It's funny, I still even when I was v very small, I can remember the three gardens that we have. I can remember almost every plant in them.
Presenter asks
9:40What happened when you contracted polio at age thirteen?
I was just very ill in bed, and I was sent to the isolation hospital in Bath. and I was put in a room with glass sides, and so my mother could not touch me. And that's very hard. I could see her face there, and I had no idea what I'd got wrong with me. I didn't know. And nobody told me.
The keepsakes
The book
A-Z Encyclopedia of Garden Plants
The Royal Horticultural Society
I would like to take with me a book that I have in the kitchen, because I have gardening books in the kitchen, the A to Z Encyclopedia of Garden Flowers. It's a huge book, and it has a photograph of every single plant. I may find some plants there, and also I'm not staying on that island too long. I'm going to be rescued. So I want to go on planning the garden.
The luxury
Everybody would say, I'm the coldest mortal in the world. I think I would have a huge cashmere beautiful rug. I know it's going to be cold at nights there. And the thought of being on that sand with nothing round me, no loving children or husband, I'll have that rug to keep me warm. Pure cashmere, please.
Presenter asks
10:44Tell me a bit more about your father.
My father was a very strong person. He was not er affectionate towards us. He was very strict. But he did things with us. He was a he was a great man. He was very involved with Bath, and he encouraged Bath to have a university.
Presenter asks
23:27How did you feel when your son William died in a car crash?
Yes, William was at Bristol Polly and he'd come home and I remember the night before, for we had supper in the dining room and we had roast lamb and I'd really gone to a lot of trouble because it was lovely to have him home and we were all as a complete family the night before, which is a huge bonus because I remember that. ... And then um the next thing I knew was a policeman at the door. ... Oh, you know the moment the policeman comes to the door you know exactly. And he said that that sadly William had died, and Annabel is in Wickham Hospital.
“I enjoy baking. I do it as a total uh relaxation. And the wonderful thing about baking is you have an audience who's going to say ooh and ah and isn't that delicious and can I have another one? It's very rewarding.”
“I've always thought I am chatting to the person who's doing the recipe.”
“Cooking should be in school. When everybody leaves school, whether they're boys or girls, what do they have to do in the home, produce a meal? And they haven't been taught to do it. I think it should be absolutely essential.”
“Retiring. Why would I retire? I am so blessed with good health. I love what I do, and I'm very honoured to be asked to still be in the bake-off. I love it.”