WHAT MUM TAUGHT ME
CAMILLA’S SON LIFTS THE LID ON LOVE AND FAMILY
Tom’s tribute to Camilla
The son of Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall and former army officer Andrew Parker Bowles, Tom Parker Bowles (42) started his career in public relations and is now a food critic and author. He lives in West London with his wife Sara (44) and their children, Lola (9) and Freddy (7). Here, he shares 17 things he knows to be true.
I WAS BORN GREEDY.
Mum was a good cook and dad was a good gardener, so we all enjoyed food.
LEARNING HOW TO COOK WAS A WAY TO IMPRESS GIRLS.
It might sound a bit pervy to say that nowadays, but I spent university just eating chips and curry sauce.
MONEY, CLASS AND YOUR NAME DON’T MEAN ANYTHING.
There will be times when you’ll be wowed by other people, but friends and family are the most important thing.
MY MOTHER IS BULLETPROOF.
There is nothing anyone could say about our family that would offend us any more. Nowadays, we just laugh at the negative comments.
I DON’T CARE IF MY KIDS SWEAR A BIT OR PUT THEIR ELBOWS ON THE TABLE.
I do care that they say please and thank you. Those words are the cornerstones of a civilised society. Manners are the most important thing.
I DON’T HANG OUT WITH WILLIAM AND HARRY MUCH.
They are different ages and have different lives. I’m a 42-year-old hack with two kids living in Shepherd’s Bush.
STEPFAMILIES ARE DIFFERENT WHEN YOU BECOME “STEP” IN LATER LIFE.
It doesn’t stop you thinking they are wonderful, but you just don’t see them all the time.
THE IDEA THAT LOVE CONQUERS ALL ISN’T ALWAYS TRUE.
Marriage is about compromise, about two people who might be different, but who love each other. Marriage is wonderful but there are ups and downs.
“CLEAN EATING” IS NEFARIOUS RUBBISH.
The idea that certain foods are clean means that others are dirty. It fuels eating disorders and fills me with fury. It’s a very dangerous trend.
INTENSIVE AGRICULTURE IS NOT THE GREAT TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCE WE THOUGHT IT WAS BACK IN THE FIFTIES.
My stepfather has been saying so for years. It’s not just a smug, Waitrose, middle-class thing to say you’ve got to eat sustainable food. It affects all of us.
I LIKE THE IDEA OF CIGAR SMOKERS.
On the whole, they are libertarian. I don’t smoke any more, but I’m still libertarian.
GETTING OLDER, FATTER AND BALDER IS FANTASTIC.
I don’t have to go out as much. My idea of luxury now is a blank page in the diary – just going home and spending a bit of time cooking and watching telly.
IF TOFFS AND MINOR CELEBS GET CAUGHT DOING WHAT THEY SHOULDN’T, THAT’S A SMALL PRICE TO PAY FOR A FREE PRESS.
Even though my mother’s been a target of some of the fiercer excesses of Fleet Street, I believe that a free press is the cornerstone of democracy.
I HATE MICHELIN-STARRED MAUSOLEUMS, WHERE YOU’RE CONSTANTLY INTERRUPTED.
I’d rather sit on a Bangkok backstreet among the cigarettes and diesel fumes. Street food is the heart and soul of any food culture. Mexico and Thailand have the best by far.
THE IDEA THAT BRITAIN IS HAVING A FOOD REVOLUTION IS RUBBISH.
We’re not. We’re at the beginning of a very long road, but we are at the start of it, which is good. We lost our food culture due to rationing, technology, convenience and the rest of it.
IF THE KIDS DON’T LIKE SOMETHING, WE DON’T MAKE THEM EAT IT.
It’s not prep school in the eighties. Having said that, I’m not going to cook six different things for them because they decide they don’t like pasta.
IT’S DISRESPECTFUL NOT TO EAT ALL THE ANIMAL – LIVER, KIDNEY, PIG’S TAIL, SNOUT.
The sirloin steak or the chicken breast are the most boring bits.
‘ There is nothing anyone could say about our family that would offend us any more’