Happy Mondays
Leading life and happiness coach
THERE’S a lovely comfort that comes with sitting down after a long day: shoes, bra and belt off and soft clothes on as we flump into the sofa in front of our favourite TV programme. Be it a soap, game or talent show or drama series there’s a delightful switching off and “coming home” feeling of joy in familiar entertainment.
There are online fan forums which discuss episodes and contestants, where people can exchange their perspectives and passions for the shows. One series, however, that appears to have transcended taste and time is Columbo.
The shambolic sleuth with the wonky eye, foul-smelling cigar and dirty mac has legions of fans of all generations still following in his awkward footsteps. Probably the only TV detective ever who kept a boiled egg in his pocket as a portable snack.
It was via a stint of working at home that author Jenny Hammerton tuned in every afternoon to see the shabby sleuth nail murderers with studied cluelessness and a gentle guile. She was hooked.
Sixty-nine episodes later and a super fan emerged. In fact more than a fan as Jenny is a collector of recipes of the golden age of Hollywood film stars, a hobby which sprang from finding a vintage celebrity cookbook in a memorabilia shop many years ago.
It was a book that changed her life. Since then Jenny’s celebrity recipe collection exceeds 7,000 and she combined her love of old recipes with her adoration of the detective series and lo her book, Cooking With Columbo: Suppers With The Shambling Sleuth, was born. “I’ve never met anyone who doesn’t like Columbo,” she enthuses. “He has a great
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There really is no time like the present. intellect, no one outsmarts him and he always made a point of getting into the mindset of the murderer whether they were a musician or an artist.”
Jenny has painstakingly included recipes from all the actors in the series from Dick Van Dyke (Breast Of Chicken Florentine) to Anne Baxter (Swiss Quiche) and lovingly linked them to the corresponding episode and plot outline.
Jenny admits to having a crush on Peter Falk (“he was cute when he was young”) and like the rest of us found something endearing about the detective who spoke fondly of his wife and her awful cooking, his dog, his nephews and his love of chilli (recipe in the book).
“You always knew who did it up front and it was how he found the clues – a bite in a piece of cheese, the laundry powder the killer used – which made each episode so exciting. That and his quirks, ‘Just one more thing?’ that you looked forward to which made it such great viewing,” says the author.
Jenny has worked as a film archivist for more than 20 years and lovingly tracked down these authentic recipes for the book and those who were around in that decade can relive the curious cuisines of the time.
The book delights all who come across it. Everyone’s face lights up when they see it. It’s a great gift or simply a kitchen must-have. As I was interviewing Jenny in a restaurant our waiter David came over and asked to look at the book. “Ahhh,” he sighed. “A rainy Sunday afternoon, glass of wine and Columbo on TV. Bliss.” I think that just about sums it up.
Cooking With Columbo by Jenny Hammerton is available on Amazon or follow her celebrity recipes at Silverscreensuppers.com urging others to speed up – is it any wonder we never feel fully present?
Consciously try to talk face to face with your children, giving them 100 per cent of your attention. Our pets come to our hand and give us every bit of their consciousness and time and we love this devotion.
Let’s try it with our offspring amid the morning chaos from time to time. Everyone benefits. WWW.REALCOACHINGCO.COM