Antony Worrall Thompson

Always at the forefront of new developments in food, Antony Worrall Thompson is increasingly involved in food and health issues – diabetes, the GI diet, diet and heart disease and frequently speaks at NHS events. He’s a high profile campaigner for the organic food movement and Farmers’ Markets – as well as being patron of Forest! No one ever said that Antony isn’t contentious!!

He’s a prolific author of recipe books and a journalist with the Saturday & Sunday Express and a contributor to specialist food magazines. He has been awarded the Meilleur Ouvrier de Grande Bretagne (MOGB) – the chef’s Oscar – and is one of only seven chefs to have merited the lifelong title so far.

The Makings of a Antony Worrall Thompson

Antony Worrall Thompson was born in Stratford-upon-Avon and studied Hotel and Catering Management at Westminster College.  He worked for various establishments in Essex before becoming sous chef at Brinkley’s Restaurant in the  Fulham Road, London. He became head chef after only one month.  He followed this by taking six months ‘educational sabbatical’ in France, eating and working in 3-star establishments.

Returning to Brinkley’s as head chef, Antony changed the menus according to his experience gained in France and then moved to Dan’s Restaurant in Chelsea. He soon opened Ménage a Trois in Knightsbridge (widely known to be the Princess of Wales’ favourite restaurant) to abundant publicity and reviews.  He opened a the restaurant at One Ninety Queen’s Gate where the restaurant won the Time Out Eating Guide’s Best New Restaurant award in 1990 and featured in Egon Ronay’s Guide 1991 as a new entry with two stars.  

Worrall Thompson Empire

Since then Antony Worral Thompson has opened a wide variety of restaurants until the beginning of 1997 where he departed from the  Simpsons of Cornhill group and opened his own restaurant Notting Grill in Holland Park, which specialises in organic meat, fish and vegetables.   Antony is also a partner at the Angel Coaching Inn and Grill, at Heytesbury nr Warminster, Wiltshire.  He opened Kew Grill, in Kew, Richmond, which is in the same vein as Notting Grill and finally Antony has two new pubs The Greyhound in Rotherfield Peppard and The Lamb at Satwell, both in Oxfordshire.

In 1988 Antony won the Mouton Rothschild Menu Competition, and shortly before in December 1987 the most prestigious accolade: the Meilleur Ouvrier de Grande Bretagne (MOGB) – the chef’s Oscar. He is one of only seven chefs to have merited the lifelong title so far.  In 1989, he represented Great Britain in the Bocuse d’Or, which is a bi-annual world competition launched by Paul Bocuse and feted by the culinary soul of France itself, attracting extensive media coverage. 

Television Celebrity Chef

In 1998 Antony became resident studio chef and main presenter for BBC2’s Food & Drink programme.  He is a Ready Steady Cook regular and also appears on the amazingly popular Celebrity Ready Steady Cook. He has appeared on numerous television cookery programmes including Worrall Thompson Cooks, Simply Antony, So You Think You Can’t Cook, Antony’s Morocco on location in Morocco, and More Simply Antony.  Antony regularly guests-presents and cooks on Good Food Live (UK Food Channel), and since mid 2003 was the presenter of BBC1’s hugely popular, Saturday Kitchen. In June 2004 the UK Food Channel broadcast a series of 10 half-hour programmes called simply Worrall Thompson, an entertaining mix of food programme and fly on the wall documentary.  He is now the presenter of ITV 1's exciting new live cookery show, Saturday Cooks!

Author and Other Work

Antony’s books include The Small and Beautiful Cookbook, Supernosh with wine writer Malcolm Gluck and Modern Bistrot Cooking . He has also written for many magazines and newspapers and has co-authored a varitey of television cookery programme inspired books.  His latest books are the hugely popular, Healthy Eating for Diabetes,  Well Fed, Well Bred, Well Hung: how to buy & cook real meat and his frank autobiography RAW.  In 2006, Anthony launched GL Diet Made Simple – an exciting new extension of GI principles.

Antony is a regular judge for the Academie Culinaire’s Annual Awards of Excellence.  He speaks to students at catering colleges around the country and offers opportunities to apprentices to work for him as well as organising the Young Chef of the Year competition.  He regularly does live cookery demonstrations at events around the country including BBC Good Food Show, Harrods, Ideal Home, The Hyatt in Sydney and Melbourne, The Restaurant Show, the Dublin Food Show and British Business Forum in Oman.

He is passionate about organic farming and grows many herbs and vegetables for his restaurant.  Antony emerged from the jungle as one of the nation’s favourite celebrities in the ITV series I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out of Here.

Keynote Speaker

Antony is an excellent speaker and regularly performs at corporate events.

For further information or to book Antony Worrall Thompson, call us on +44 (0) 20 8365 3200 or email info@speakerscorner.co.uk