Emma’s Media Portfolio

While I worked at Leith’s’ School of Food and Wine I had the opportunity to do some television, I was first asked to be an expert on the Generation Game with Bruce. As you can imagine, that was good fun and slightly hair raising when the sugar was either too hot or too cold for the sugar baskets I was making. I later did sausage making again with Bruce, plenty of innuendo and jokes. My third appearance was the Christmas Special with Jim Davison; I produced a chocolate log for the Christmas show and got to dance with Roy Wood as Wizzard played ‘I wish it could be Christmas Every Day’ .

Whilst at Leith’s I also did ‘Tricks of the Trade’ with Prue Leith, We did 10 programmes, mainly showing skills. Chefs School was filmed at Leith’s following the students as they progressed through the course. It was a cross between a cooking show and a documentary. I taught the youngest class, who were also the naughtiest so we were on it a lot.

I then did Ready Steady Cook about 3 times and that followed on to the Food and Drink programme. I was pregnant with Tilly when I tried out for it and I had to cook and eat all the things they say you shouldn’t eat. I believed I had a cast iron stomach after my time at Leith’s, having to taste so different foods and from people sometimes with questionable hygiene. It all went well and I got the job!

I did about 4 years on the Food and Drink Programme. We moved out of London and the rest as they say is history. My girls are now 10 and 7 and I am happy to combine family life with cooking, writing and teaching. I could be persuaded back to television, you never know!

  • BBC Radio Suffolk
    Regular guest contributor on food issues and on Girls Talk.
  • BBC Food and Drink Programme 2000/2001
    Chef / presenter. BBC2.
  • BBC Food and Drink Programme 2000
    Appeared in a segment called ‘Cook for Hire’.
  • BBC Food and Drink Programme 1999
    Appeared as regular chef along with Anthony Worrall
  • Ready steady Cook 1999.
    Appearances as “Guest Chef”.
  • Chef’s School, 1998.
    A twenty-four part fly on the wall / teaching series.
  • Other appearances:
    Leith’s Tricks of the Trade, 1996.
    The Generation Game, 1990, 1993, and 1997.
    Three appearances as an expert.
    Demonstrated several times at the Good Food Show.
    Freelance demonstrating
    Freelance teaching
    Interviews on television magazine programmes and on Radio.

Click here to view Emma’s Evening Telegraph article