Delia Smith has retired from TV cooking, claiming that television producers no longer want to educate their viewers, only to entertain them. She will continue to teach the world to cook, via the internet but when it comes to her long-running career as a TV cook, she has well and truly hung up her apron, The Telegraph reported yesterday (February 5, 2013).

Delia first appeared on television over 40 years ago and in that time she’s sold millions of cookbooks, many showcasing basic cooking recipes and others, more elaborate cookery techniques. She caused controversy with her ‘how to boil an egg’ tuition back in 1998 but you know what? You try Googling “how to boil an egg” (some people don’t know, you know!) and you’ll most likely find Delia’s instructions right there staring back at you. She said, “If you do a TV programme now, it’s got to entertain… When I started, there was further education in the BBC; now you have to entertain. You have someone telling me I haven’t got time to show this, or I haven’t got time to show that.”

Smith was dropped “by mutual agreement” from Waitrose’s advertising campaign (she featured alongside Heston Blumenthal) and she said that once that was finalised, she decided “this is the end when it comes to Delia on the telly.” She had been approached by the BBC to work with them again but turned the offer down, choosing to focus instead on her online tuition. 

Delia Smith

Delia Smith, the famous TV cook will now focus her efforts online 

Delia Smith

Delia Smith, retiring from TV cooking