Keith Floyd’s blend of charm and chaos turned him into a caricature when he should be remembered as a British culinary pioneer.

“Pick young, small, un-flowering dandelion leaves. Wash and dry them carefully. Serve with olive oil, salt and sherry vinegar and cubes of hot fried bread.” This was the delicious simplicity of Floyd’s Food, Keith Floyd’s debut cookbook, published 40 years ago this year.

The culmination of two tumultuous decades in the restaurant trade, the book marked the beginning of a career as a public figure during which Floyd would write nearly 30 more cookbooks and become one of television’s biggest personalities. So big, in fact, that for many he is remembered as the boozy caricature parodied by Spitting Image and Rory Bremner, and not as the pioneer who revolutionised not only our view of food, but of Europe itself….

The New European, 8 July 2021, pp. 45-47.

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