Before Delia or Nigella, the distaff side of British TV cookery was dominated by one person: the fearsome Fanny Cradock. Dressed like a drag queen and barking orders at her assistant-cum-husband Johnnie, Cradock terrified and delighted the nation in equal measure from the 1950s to the mid-70s.
Brian Fillis's dramatisation of Cradock's career is based on interviews with her friends and family, and reveals the private vulnerability behind her tart public persona. Nighty Night creator Julia Davis cakes on the make-up as Fanny; The League of Gentlemen's Mark Gatiss dons Johnnie's monocle.
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COOKING WITH GAS
Fanny suggests some unusual ingredients for a fricassee.
Cast Fanny Cradock Julia Davis Johnnie Cradock Mark Gatiss Christopher Nicholas Burns Jane Hayley Atwell Nicky Claudie Blakely Derek Jason Watkins Simon Steven O'Neil TV Executive Simon Greenall
