Celebrity chef drops-in for tea at Selby 'Chef School'
Sudents and staff at Selby College were in for a big surprise last week when none other than celebrity chef Ainsley Harriott dropped in for dinner.
Selby
The BBC daytime favourite visited the college’s training restaurant as students from the college’s ‘Chef School’ laid on a celebratory meal in recognition of the department’s national awards success.
Ainsley, afforded near national treasure status for his flamboyant style of TV cookery, was filming with the BBC ahead of the corportation’s screening of this year’s Pearson Awards, celebrating ‘Britain’s Classroom Heroes’.
The college’s Hospitality and Catering Team already has a Silver Award in the bag, but they could take a Gold Pearson Award and be crowned FE Team of the Year when they attend a glitzy ceremont at London’s Guildhall on October 26th.
Ainsley enjoyed his delicious student-prepared three-course a la carte meal, and spent the evening chatting to guests and wished the team luck ahead of the big ceremony.
Allan Stewart OBE, Principal of the college said, “The team had a fantastic day filming with the BBC film crew, and the surprise visit from such an established chef truly was the icing on the cake. It was a great event, and a big thank you goes to the team, the BBC, staff members and of course Ainsley, whose charismatic personality made the evening that bit more special for everybody involved.”
“The college staff are all looking forward to the night of the Pearson Awards on 26 October, hoping the top-performing college team are nominated for a gold award; they certainly deserve the recognition for the amount of effort they have put in, ensuring each student not only leaves with qualifications that will get them the job they want but also has the confidence and motivation to be who they want to be.”
The ceremony will be broadcast accross the nation on the evening of Sunday, November 2 on BBC Two.