Delia Smith

Delia Smith is a beloved British cook, TV presenter and the bestselling author of 24 cookbooks. Smith started her culinary career working in a small French restaurant in Paddington. Her next job was at Carlton Studios in London, where she prepared food for studio photography, including the cake for the cover shot of the Rolling Stones album Let It Bleed. In 1969, Smith began to write for the Daily Mirror’s newly-launched magazine and went on to become a long-term food columnist for the Evening Standard, the Evening News and the Radio Times. Smith’s first TV appearances took place in the early 1970s, and her career with the BBC lasted till her retirement from television in 2013.

Smith is known for inspiring several generations of British home-cooks, both through her cookery shows and bestselling books. Her first, phenomenally popular volume How to Cheat at Cooking came out in 1971 and a revised edition was published in 2008. Other huge successes include Delia Smith's Winter Collection (1995) and her three Delia's How to Cook books (1998, 1999 and 2001) based on the eponymous television series.