The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
Some well-known faces at this year's Festival
The headline gardening guest at this year's Dundee Flower & Food Festival is Carole Baxter, one of the presenters of BBC Scotland’s long-running television series, The Beechgrove Garden. Since joining the show in 1986 Carole has planted and pruned her way through over 700 episodes of the immensely popular show.
Born and brought up in Loose, a small village near Maidstone in Kent, Carole went on to gain a degree from the School of Biological Sciences at the University of Sussex. Later she studied Amenity Horticulture at Elmwood College, Cupar in Fife. She was awarded a prestigious Scottish Horticultural Medal in 2013.
Apart from her appearances on Beechgrove, Carole has many years broadcasting experience, including her current weekly gardening feature on BBC Radio Scotland's MacAulay and Co.
Carole is a self-employed horticulturist, broadcaster and writer. She is also a member of the Professional Gardeners’ Guild and the Garden Media Guild. Her interests include developing her own eight acre garden, walking and skiing.
A new feature this year for the Dundee Flower & Food Festival is the introduction of a celebrity chef on the opening Friday. First under the spotlight is Jak O’Donnell, a creative and experienced chef who recently appeared on STV’s Jak and Eddie’s Scottish Kitchen. Jak is a great champion of home cooking and uses the best from a country that so expertly grows, rears or cultivates a wide variety of produce including our wonderful larder from the sea. She defines her cooking as simple and Scottish — mostly allowing the produce to speak for itself or rather shout.
Jean-Christophe Novelli is a five out of five AA Rosette and multi Michelin Star award-winning chef who has also been dubbed “The Nation’s Favourite French Chef”, European Chef of Year finalist representing Great Britain, and recipient of the prestigious Egon Ronay Dessert of the Year award. He was also voted Chef's Chef of the Year by his peers. A great passion for passing on his wealth of culinary knowledge to others led him to open his own cookery school, The Novelli Academy, based in his personal kitchen on his farm near Luton. Jean-Christophe will be cooking a number of dishes including: Seafood in Scallop shells, Apple Tarte Tatin, Caramel Cage with Fruits and Ice cream, and Rack of Scotch Lamb.