The Bikers are indeed irritating. And only Dave Myers can actually cook. If you watch the programmes, you see that Si King is restricted to chopping and occasional stirrings. I do like their food though - it has its heart in traditional British dishes. If you get a chance to watch their “Food Tour of Britain”, put aside your prejudices over them. It’s a really good concept. Each episode, they visit a different county and cook a regional speciality, then there’s visits to local food producers and, finally, they have a cook-off against a local chef where a group of diners vote on which dish best represents the county. Almost needless to say that, when they visited my county, it was Cheshire cheese they cooked with - https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/cheshiresoupwithfrie_92118
One of many issues I have with the two of them, is they don’t eat the way they portray themselves.
I’ve heard both of them are vegan. I doubt their kids even get to eat that kind of food. It just makes their whole shows appear so fake. As well, it has a whiff of being unethical, like endorsing a product you hate.
But I agree with you Harters, some of Ree’s food does look saliva inducing delicious.
Yes, I know. That’s the only reason that I still watch their programmes (always with the sound off). When they start clowning around (they do that too often and too irritating) I look away for a moment.
Also, there’s no need to include many off-topic segments in their food programmes. Like the Morocco episode, pretty sure the viewers have absolutely no need to see their near naked bodies in the bathhouse.
Dunno about that but they have done a vegetarian/vegan book.
They do have a tendency to get their kit off. It is not a pretty sight - and I say that as one who is not a pretty sight in similar circumstances.
I like Ainsley, although I’ve only seen him in Eats the Streets.
I can tolerate Ree.
I can’t tolerate that lady that calls recipes receipts.
Until I randomly clicked onto PBS’s Create channel this morning, I had succeeded in blocking my memory of the Lambchop the Puppet/Mrs. Robinson chimera, Joanne Weir. Ugh!
Which one, please?
I can only think of the late Jennifer Paterson (one half of the 1990s British duo “Two Fat Ladies”)
Yes. That’s who I mean. Gordon’s partner in TV 
crime.
Jeez, I apologize to him, he looks old enough to be her mate, not her son.
As stated above, I also watch a lot with the sound off. 
I gotta follow celebrity chefdom more closely.
Receipt IS the original term. If memory serves, the cook in Upstairs, Downstairs used it. Conversely, I am an avid knitter and crocheter who belongs to a yarning group, one of the members of which calls patterns recipes. She does so jokingly, because she also likes to cook. But I learned that this usage has historical precedent. In yarnwork, the pattern used to refer only to the design created by the stitches (cables, ribs, etc.). In sewing, pattern meant only the paper templates. The directions for working the yarn stitches or sewing the fabric were called recipes.
You must mean the new series where she acts like a tour guide, taking along a flock to
watch her?
I understand, but it’s “Farmhouse Rules” that mentions it.
I didn’t know she has such a show. She just looks like Lamb Chop and behaves like Mrs. Robinson.
Ok, just be careful here, as Lambchop is my moniker! Also, FYI, Shari Lewis died quite a few years ago. Never watched her show as an adult, so never saw the Mrs. Robinson side of her. In fact only just saw that movie a couple years ago!! 
I understand Joanne weir with her nippy noodle cooking and that trendy swank kitchen. Love those fir cabinets . As a girl from Marin it’s a reality for her.
I like Rick Steins books, but find his presentation style can grate on me. The number of times he said the phrase “a la plancha, that means on the grill” during his Spanish series made me want to hurl something at the TV. I wonder if one of the editing team was challenged to see how often they could incorporate it.
Fred seems to have taken over British TV recently and his on screen enthusiasm seems to ramp up everytime I see him, it seems to have reached an impossible level.
One very commonly annoying style on these “exploration” style food shows is the presenter playing ignorant and pretending they’ve never heard or come across something before. Serving old dairy cows in restaurants? What!? That’s impossible! It just dumbs everything down.
Don’t get me started on Greg Wallace on the inside the factory series, he’s the worst culprit.
I have this intense visceral dislike for Fred. His fake enthusiasm is too over the top it ruins the otherwise enjoyable show. Have only seen him in “Remarkable places to eat”. Hope he won’t be doing more British food programmes.
Speaking of presenting styles, I think Donal Skehan is also highly irritating. Partner asks “why are you watching with the sound off?”, I turned the sound back on for a couple of minutes then partner said “OK, he’s irritating all right.”. Really over-the-top enthusiasm.
I’m willing to ignore Rick Stein’s affection for the phrase “a la plancha” but it won’t be long till I have to watch him with the sound off 
Don’t like Wallace at all.
I believe the Mrs.Robinson reference is about Joanne’s “cougar “ tendencies , not any slight to Shari Lewis.
Congratulations. You have managed to avoid him in last year’s “Million Pound Menu”. Perhaps the most awful food related programme that’s been on British TV for years. And they’ve done two series. We didnt watch the second series, as the first was so bad. Basic concept for series 1 was that, each week, there are two groups pitching their restaurant concept to investors, including a "live run " of service. It’s so stylised that, after watching a couple of episodes, you can’t tell the contestants apart, nor do you give a shit who wins, as you know you are never going to step foot a restaurant like that. Second series had three groups - presumably a realisation that with just two, there really wasnt enough interest to fill an hour.
I havent seen enough of Skehan to get irritated, although I can see how I might. On the other hand, as we’re speaking about Irish presenters, I do enjoy watching Rachel Allen’s programmes. Never been sure how much of that is enjoying her food and how much is that fact I am a middle aged straight man. 
Stein, I actually like. I think he’s probably the presenter whose company I would most enjoy if he was sat at our dinner table.
