Top television chefs Chris Baber and John Whaite are joining the line-up at this summer’s
Seaham Food Festival.
The TV favourites will head to the County Durham coast alongside cooking stalwart
Rosemary Shrager and the county’s very own Masterchef contestant, Mike Bartley, on
Saturday 7 to Sunday, 8 August.
Offering tasty treats from around 100 traders and producers, family-friendly fun and
delicious demonstrations from a range of top chefs, the free Durham County Council event
is set to play a key role in supporting the economic recovery of the county and its local
businesses from the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
TV chef Chris Baber will host a cooking demonstration at the festival on Sunday. Chris is
passionate about improving everyone’s ability to cook from scratch and is hugely popular
on social media, offering his 200,000 followers simple recipes and cooking methods to
help them gain confidence in the kitchen, no matter their experience. During lockdown, he
launched the Chris Baber Cooking School which provided free cookery demonstrations for
children.
Chris said: “Growing up in the north east is where my love for food began, so it’s an
absolute pleasure to be coming to Seaham this summer. I’ll be making some of my
favourite dishes that the whole family can enjoy and sharing my best tips to make cooking
from home even easier.”
Meanwhile, John Whaite will join Rosemary on the first day of the festival. John shot to
fame after winning the third series of The Great British Bake Off and has a huge social
media following. He now runs his own cookery school in the heart of rural Lancashire and
is resident chef on Channel 4’s Steph’s Packed Lunch, where he is found cooking
inspirational yet achievable recipes each week. John also enjoyed cooking for the crowds
at Bishop Auckland Food Festival in 2013.
John said: “I am really looking forward to visiting County Durham again for Seaham Food
Festival. Festivals can provide so much inspiration to us all and after such a difficult year, it
will be brilliant to enjoy the coastline and try a host of new recipes and ingredients.”
Visitors are being reassured that coronavirus secure measures will be in place across the
weekend, with events being spread out to help keep people safe and promote social
distancing. Live music, family-friendly activities and street theatre will also be spread out
around the town to ensure festivalgoers feel more confident.
Cllr Elizabeth Scott, Cabinet member for economy and partnerships, said: “We are
delighted to welcome Chris and John to Seaham Food Festival in August. Both are
excellent additions to the line-up alongside Rosemary and Mike and I am confident that it
is going to be a hugely popular event, supporting County Durham’s recovery from the
impact of the pandemic.
“We have so much to look forward to as the festival makes its welcome return. Alongside
these fantastic chefs, we have so many traders who cannot wait to welcome customers
back and lots of cultural activities for families to enjoy. This is really going to highlight how
much our county has to offer, encouraging people to plan return trips to enjoy our beautiful
landscapes and culture at other times.”
To find out more about the festival and to stay up to date with the latest news, visit
www.seahamfoodfestival.co.uk and follow @SeahamFoodFest on Facebook, Twitter and
Instagram.