Clarissa Theresa Philomena Aileen Mary Josephine Agnes Elsie Trilby Louise Esmerelda Dickson Wright (24 June 1947 – 15 March 2014) was an English celebrity cook, television personality, writer, businesswoman, and former barrister. She was best known as one of the '' Two Fat Ladies'', with Jennifer Paterson, in the television cooking programme. She was an accredited cricket umpire and one of only two women to become a Guild Butcher.

Early life

Dickson Wright was born in

St John's Wood St John's Wood is a district in the City of Westminster, London, lying 2.5 miles (4 km) northwest of Charing Cross. Traditionally the northern part of the ancient parish and Metropolitan Borough of Marylebone, it extends east to west fr ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, the youngest of four children. Her father, Arthur Dickson Wright, was a surgeon to the

Royal Family A royal family is the immediate family of kings/queens, emirs/emiras, sultans/ sultanas, or raja/ rani and sometimes their extended family. The term imperial family appropriately describes the family of an emperor or empress, and the term p ...

who had served with the

Colonial Service The Colonial Service, also known as His/Her Majesty's Colonial Service and replaced in 1954 by Her Majesty's Overseas Civil Service (HMOCS), was the British government service that administered most of Britain's overseas possessions, under the aut ...

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...

, and her mother, Aileen Mary (Molly) Bath,'' Who's Who 2012'' was from "a well known and respected Singapore family".Annals of the Royal College of Surgeons of England, vol. 58, issue 4, July 1976, p. 333, "Arthur Dickson Wright, MS FRCS" She said her father was an alcoholic who subjected his wife and children to verbal and physical abuse. At the age of 11, Wright was sent to the Convent of the Sacred Heart, an independent school for girls in the coastal town of

Hove Hove is a seaside resort and one of the two main parts of the city of Brighton and Hove, along with Brighton in East Sussex, England. Originally a "small but ancient fishing village" surrounded by open farmland, it grew rapidly in the 19th ce ...

in Sussex, and then to the Convent of the Sacred Heart at Woldingham. After school, Wright studied for a law degree at

University College London , mottoeng = Let all come who by merit deserve the most reward , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £143 million (2020) , budget = � ...

, and undertook her

pupillage A pupillage, in England and Wales, Northern Ireland, Kenya, Malaysia, Pakistan and Hong Kong, is the final, vocational stage of training for those wishing to become practising barristers. Pupillage is similar to an apprenticeship, during whic ...

to become a barrister at

Gray's Inn The Honourable Society of Gray's Inn, commonly known as Gray's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court (professional associations for barristers and judges) in London. To be called to the bar in order to practise as a barrister in England and Wa ...

Career

Early career

Dickson Wright was called to the bar in 1970. She later claimed (although she turned 23 that year) that this occurred when she was aged 21, and that she was the youngest woman ever to be called to the bar. After her mother died of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which m ...

in 1975, she inherited a considerable sum of money, which by her own account she squandered over the next eight years. Her mother's death, combined a year later with that of her father, who spent his final years aphasic and requiring the use of a wheelchair after a stroke, left her in a deep depression, and she drank heavily for the following 12 years. In 1979, Dickson Wright took control of the food at a drinking club in St James's Place in London. While there she met a fellow alcoholic named Clive (whose surname she never revealed); they had a relationship until his death in 1982 from

kidney failure Kidney failure, also known as end-stage kidney disease, is a medical condition in which the kidneys can no longer adequately filter waste products from the blood, functioning at less than 15% of normal levels. Kidney failure is classified as eit ...

at the age of 40. Shortly thereafter she was

disbarred Disbarment, also known as striking off, is the removal of a lawyer from a bar association or the practice of law, thus revoking their law license or admission to practice law. Disbarment is usually a punishment for unethical or criminal condu ...

for practising without chambers. Dickson Wright said that, during her alcoholic years, she had sex with an MP behind the Speaker's chair in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. ...

. In the early 1980s, she was homeless and staying with friends. For two years she was cook-housekeeper for a family in Sussex until she was sacked for her alcohol-induced behaviour. After being charged with drink-driving, Dickson Wright started to attend Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, counselling, and a detox centre. She attended the Promis Recovery Centre at

Nonington Nonington (variously, Nonnington, Nunyngton, Nonnyngton and Nunnington), is a civil parish and village in the southeast corner of Kent, situated halfway between the historic city of Canterbury and the channel port town of Dover. The civil pari ...

."Clarissa Dickson Wright – obituary"
17 March 2014, ''The Daily Telegraph'' In her 2009 book ''Rifling Through My Drawers'' she expressed a belief in

reincarnation Reincarnation, also known as rebirth or transmigration, is the philosophical or religious concept that the non-physical essence of a living being begins a new life in a different physical form or body after biological death. Resurrection is ...

. She was a keen supporter of hunting.

Cooking and television

BBC2 BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It covers a wide range of subject matter, with a remit "to broadcast programmes of depth and substance" in contrast to the more mainstream ...

commissioned a series of '' Two Fat Ladies''. Four series were made and shown around the world. Paterson died in 1999 midway through the fourth series.

Later years

''Two Fat Ladies'' ended after Paterson's death. Dickson Wright appeared with Sir Johnny Scott in ''

Clarissa and the Countryman ''Clarissa; or, The History of a Young Lady: Comprehending the Most Important Concerns of Private Life. And Particularly Shewing, the Distresses that May Attend the Misconduct Both of Parents and Children, In Relation to Marriage'' is an epis ...

'' from 2000 to 2003 and played the gamekeeper in the sitcom '' Absolutely Fabulous'' in 2003. In 2004 she closed her Edinburgh cookery book shop due to bankruptcy and lost the contract to run a tearoom at Lennoxlove, the seat of the Duke of Hamilton and Brandon. In 2005, Dickson Wright took part in the BBC reality television show ''Art School''. Dickson Wright was elected as

Rector of the University of Aberdeen The Lord Rector of the University of Aberdeen is the students' representative and chairman in the University Court of the University of Aberdeen. The position is rarely known by its full title and most often referred to simply as "Rector". The r ...

in November 1998, the university's first female rector. Her autobiography, ''Spilling the Beans'', was published in September 2007. In 2008, she presented a one-off documentary for

BBC Four BBC Four is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was launched on 2 March 2002

, ''Clarissa and the King's Cookbook'', where she makes recipes from a cookbook dating to the reign of

Richard II Richard II (6 January 1367 – ), also known as Richard of Bordeaux, was King of England from 1377 until he was deposed in 1399. He was the son of Edward the Black Prince, Prince of Wales, and Joan, Countess of Kent. Richard's father d ...

. Along with racehorse trainer Sir Mark Prescott, Dickson Wright was charged with

hare coursing Hare coursing is the pursuit of hares with greyhounds and other sighthounds, which chase the hare by sight, not by scent. In some countries, it is a legal, competitive activity in which dogs are tested on their ability to run, overtake and tu ...

with dogs in

North Yorkshire North Yorkshire is the largest ceremonial county (lieutenancy area) in England, covering an area of . Around 40% of the county is covered by national parks, including most of the Yorkshire Dales and the North York Moors. It is one of four cou ...

in March 2007 under a private prosecution lodged by the International Fund for Animal Welfare under the

Hunting Act 2004 The Hunting Act 2004 (c 37) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which bans the hunting of most wild mammals (notably foxes, deer, hares and mink) with dogs in England and Wales, subject to some strictly limited exemptions; the ...

. On 1 September 2009, she and Prescott pleaded guilty and received an

absolute discharge Absolute may refer to: Companies * Absolute Entertainment, a video game publisher * Absolute Radio, (formerly Virgin Radio), independent national radio station in the UK * Absolute Software Corporation, specializes in security and data risk manage ...

at Scarborough Magistrates' Court. They said that they were invited to the event by the Yorkshire Greyhound Field Trialling Club, which told the court that it believed it was running a legal event by using muzzled dogs. In October 2012, Dickson Wright appeared on ''Fieldsports Britain'' to discuss badgers and their nutritional value, saying: "There's going to be a cull, so rather than just throw them in the landfill site, why not eat them?" In November 2012, she presented a short BBC4 TV series on the history of the British breakfast, lunch and dinner. She was a supporter of the Conservative Party and lived in Inveresk,

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to th ...

Death

Dickson Wright was hospitalised from the start of 2014, and died in the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary on 15 March 2014 from an undisclosed illness which led to her death from pneumonia."TV chef Clarissa Dickson Wright dies"
''Guardian'', 17 March 2014"TV chef Clarissa Dickson Wright dies aged 66"
''The Scotsman'', 17 March 2014. Her funeral mass was held in Edinburgh at St Mary's Cathedral on 7 April, after which she was cremated.

Books

Cookery books: * ''The Haggis: A Short History'' (Appletree Press Ltd, 3 May 1996). * ''Two Fat Ladies: Gastronomic Adventures'' with Jennifer Paterson (

Ebury Publishing Ebury Publishing is a division of Penguin Random House, and is a publisher of general non-fiction books in the UK. Ebury was founded in 1961 as a division of Nat Mags and was originally located on Ebury Street in London. It was sold to Cent ...

, 3 October 1996) (Entitled ''Cooking with the Two Fat Ladies'' in the USA). * ''The Two Fat Ladies Ride Again'', with Jennifer Paterson (

, 4 September 1997). * ''The Two Fat Ladies Full Throttle'', with Jennifer Paterson (

, 27 August 1998). * ''Hieland Foodie: A Scottish Culinary Voyage with Clarissa'', with Henry Crichton-Stuart (Natl Museums of Scotland, 1 August 1999). * ''Living Large: A Life in Recipes'' (Scotland on Sunday, 1999) (48 pages). * ''Two Fat Ladies – Obsessions'', with Jennifer Paterson (

, 7 September 1999). * ''The Very Best of Two Fat Ladies: Over 150 Favourite Recipes from Their Best Selling Books'' (

, 2000). * ''Sunday Roast: The Complete Guide to Cooking and Carving'', with

Sir John Scott, 5th Baronet Sir Walter John "Johnny" Scott, 5th Baronet (born 1948) succeeded his father Sir Walter Scott as baronet in 1992. He is a natural historian, broadcaster, columnist, countryside campaigner and farmer. As of 2016, he held the following positions: ...

( Headline Publishing Group, 7 October 2002). * ''The Game Cookbook'', with

(Kyle Cathie, 12 August 2004). * ''Pre-Victorian English Cookery'' (Macmillan Trade Paperback, 5 March 2004). * ''Clarissa's Comfort Food'' (Kyle Cathie, 4 September 2008). * ''Potty! Clarissa's One Pot Cookbook'' (

Hodder & Stoughton Hodder & Stoughton is a British publishing house, now an imprint of Hachette. History Early history The firm has its origins in the 1840s, with Matthew Hodder's employment, aged 14, with Messrs Jackson and Walford, the official publishe ...

, 16 September 2010). * ''The Great British Food Revival'', various authors (W&N, 3 March 2011). * ''The Great British Food Revival: The Revolution Continues'', various authors (W&N, 10 November 2011). Memoirs: * '' Spilling the Beans'' (

, 6 September 2007). * ''Rifling Through My Drawers: My Life in a Year'' (

, 17 September 2009). * ''Ancestors and Rellies'' (

, 2015). (Appears to have been withdrawn from release) Miscellaneous: * ''Food: What We Eat and How We Eat'' (

, 7 October 1999). * ''Clarissa and the Countryman'', with

( Headline Publishing Group, 19 October 2000). * ''Clarissa and the Countryman: Sally Forth'', with

( Headline Publishing Group, 17 December 2001). * ''A Greener Life: The Modern Country Compendium'', with

( F&W Media International (previously David & Charles), 31 October 2005). * '' A History of English Food'' (

Random House Random House is an American book publisher and the largest general-interest paperback publisher in the world. The company has several independently managed subsidiaries around the world. It is part of Penguin Random House, which is owned by Ger ...

, 13 October 2011). * ''Clarissa's England'' (

, 13 September 2012).

Audio books

* ''Box of Beans'' Book (Spilling the Beans) and 2 CDs (

, 2007). * ''Spilling the Beans'' (

, 2007). * ''Rifling Through My Drawers'' (

, 2009). * ''A History of English Food'' (

, 2012). * ''Clarissa's England: A Gamely Gallop Through the English Counties'' (

, 2013).

Forewords written

* ''The Essential Cook'' ( Countryside Alliance, 2000). * ''Kick The Habit Paperback'' by Robert Lefever (Carlton Publishing Group, 2000). * ''A Caledonian Feast'' by Annette Hope (

Canongate Books Canongate Books (trading as Canongate) is an independent publishing firm based in Edinburgh, Scotland. It is named after the Canongate area of the city. It is most recognised for publishing the Booker Prizewinner '' Life of Pi''. Canongate wa ...

, 2002). * ''A Book of Mediterranean Food'' by Elizabeth David (

New York Review of Books New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator ...

, 2002). * ''William Evans Good Shoot Guide'' by Tony Jackson (

Gibson Square Books Gibson may refer to: People * Gibson (surname) Businesses * Gibson Brands, Inc., an American manufacturer of guitars, other musical instruments, and audio equipment * Gibson Technology, and English automotive and motorsport company based * Gi ...

, 2003). * ''Garlic, The Mighty Bulb (aka The Goodness of Garlic)'' by Natasha Edwards (

Kyle Cathie Kyle or Kyles may refer to: Places Canada * Kyle, Saskatchewan, Canada Ireland * Kyle, County Laois * Kyle, County Wexford Scotland * Kyle, Ayrshire, area of Scotland which stretched across parts of modern-day East Ayrshire and South Ayrshi ...

, 2012).

Television

SERIES: *'' Two Fat Ladies'' (1996–1999, 24 episodes), with Jennifer Paterson. *''

Clarissa and The Countryman ''Clarissa; or, The History of a Young Lady: Comprehending the Most Important Concerns of Private Life. And Particularly Shewing, the Distresses that May Attend the Misconduct Both of Parents and Children, In Relation to Marriage'' is an epis ...

'' (2000–2003, 24 episodes), with Johnny Scott. *''Art School'' ( October–November 2005, 6 episodes). *''

The Great British Food Revival ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in ...

'' (3 episodes: 5 February 2011, 8 January 2012, 22 January 2013). *'' Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner'' (3 episodes: 9 Nov 19 Nov, 26, Nov 2012). GUEST APPEARANCES: *''Grow Your Greens, Eat Your Greens'' (1993, 1 episode). *''In the National Trust - Chinese Silk Wallpaper'' (1 February 1995). *''The End of the Year Show'' (31 December 1996) (with Jennifer Paterson). *''All Over The Shop'' (8 January 1997) (with Jennifer Paterson). *''Songs of Praise: Food Praise'' (9 February 1997: ''Bournville'') (with Jennifer Paterson). *''Comedy Zone'' (27 February 1997) (with Jennifer Paterson). *''Edinburgh Nights'' (18 August 1997). *'' The Rosie O'Donnell Show'' (23 September 1997) (with Jennifer Paterson). *''

The Tonight Show ''The Tonight Show'' is an American late-night talk show that has aired on NBC since 1954. The show has been hosted by six comedians: Steve Allen (1954–1957), Jack Paar (1957–1962), Johnny Carson (1962–1992), Jay Leno (1992–2009 and 2010� ...

with Jay Leno'' (24 September 1997) (with Jennifer Paterson). *''Clive Anderson All Talk'' (September 1997) (with Jennifer Paterson). *''The End of the Year Show'' (31 December 1997) (with Jennifer Paterson). *'' Live! with Regis and Kathie Lee'' (18 February 1998) (with Jennifer Paterson). *''

Good Morning America ''Good Morning America'' (often abbreviated as ''GMA'') is an American morning television program that is broadcast on ABC. It debuted on November 3, 1975, and first expanded to weekends with the debut of a Sunday edition on January 3, 1993. ...

'' (20 February 1998) (with Jennifer Paterson). *''In the Kitchen With Bob'' (21 February 1998) (with Jennifer Paterson) (QVC on The Shopping Network). *''Edinburgh Nights'' (28 August 1998). *''Organic Food Awards'' (28 October 1998) (with Jennifer Paterson). *''Question Time'' (1998-2003, 4 episodes). *''Entertainment Tonight'' (December 1998) (with Jennifer Paterson). *''Sophie Grigson's Herbs'' (3 March 1999). *''Royal Television Society Awards'' (29 March 1999) (with Jennifer Paterson). *''Have I Got News for You'' (7 May 1999). *''Mark Lamarr Leaving the 20th Century'' (8 August 1999). *''Sophie Grigson's Herbs'' (17 August 1999). *''Loose Women'' (1999-2012, 4 episodes). *''Songs of Praise'' (12 December 1999: ''Advent 3: Christmas is Coming''). *''Parkinson'' (28 January 2000). *''Pass It On'' (20 March 2000) (27 March 2000). *''Celebrity Rehab'' (19 July 2000). *''Live Talk'' (7 November 2000) (with Johnny Scott). *''Ruby'' (8 November 2000), (with Johnny Scott). *''Friends for Dinner - Friends for Christmas Dinner'' (20 December 2000). *'' Breakfast with Frost'' (27 May 2001) (with Johnny Scott). *''Holiday'' (29 October 2001). *''Fifty Places to See Before You Die'' (10 November 2002). *''Saturday Kitchen Live'' (31 May 2003). *'' Absolutely Fabulous'' (Episode: ''Huntin', Shootin' & Fishin'') (7 November 2003). *''Today with Des and Mel'' (11 December 2003). *''The Nation's Favourite Christmas Food'' (18 December 2003). *''One Man and His Dog'' (29 December 2003). *''Today with Des and Mel'' (14 January 2004). *''Britain's Best Sitcom'' (''Open All Hours'' 6 March 2004, ''Live Final'' 27 March 2004). *''Happy Birthday BBC Two'' (20 April 2004). *''The Wright Stuff'' (2004-2011, 4 episodes). *''GMTV'' (16 September 2004). *''Countdown'' (5 episodes from 16 to 20 February 2006). *''

Hannah Glasse Hannah Glasse (; March 1708 – 1 September 1770) was an English cookery writer of the 18th century. Her first cookery book, '' The Art of Cookery Made Plain and Easy'', published in 1747, became the best-selling recipe book that century. It ...

: The First Domestic Goddess'' (30 June 2006). *''Test the Nation: The National IQ Test 2006'' (2 September 2006). *''Friends For Dinner: Christmas Dinner'' (30 December 2006). *''Balderdash & Piffle'' (2006-2007, 2 episodes). *''The New Paul O'Grady Show'' (29 November 2007). *''Clarissa and the King's Cookbook'' (7 May 2008). *''The One Show'' (2008-2010, 2 episodes). *''The Alan Titchmarsh Show'' (28 September 2009). *''The Big Food Fight'' (29 September 2009). *''Victoria Wood: Seen on TV'' (21 December 2009). *''Mr Pepys's Diary'' (11 January 2010). *''Newsnight at 30'' (23 January 2010). *''The Michael Ball Show'' (13 September 2010). *''Fern Britton Meets Clarissa Dickson Wright'' (5 December 2010). *''Welly Telly: The Countryside on Television'' (29 May 2011). *''Meet The Author: Festive cooks'' (21 December 2011). *''Roundhead or Cavalier: Which One Are You?'' (15 May 2012). *''Fieldsports Britain'' (October 2012). *''The One Show'' (29 November 2012). *''Victoria Wood's Nice Cup of Tea'' (2 episodes 10 April 2013, 11 April 2013). *''The Mind of the Maker Clarissa Dickson Wright speaks at St Paul's Cathedral'' (30 April 2013). *''Celebrity Eggheads'' (13 December 2013). *''How to Get Ahead at Medieval Court'' (11 March 2014).

Awards

2008 BA/Nielsen BookData Author of the Year Award.

DVD release

''The Two Fat Ladies'' DVD set contains a 40-minute BBC tribute to Paterson that aired in 2004. The DVD box set was released in the United States of America in July 2008. The Acorn Media release contains all 24 episodes across four discs. The show had been released in Britain as a Region 2 DVD set.

Reception

Her ''A History of English Food'' was described by ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publishe ...

'' as "richly informative" and "surely destined for classic status". The reviewer noted that she had seen

badger Badgers are short-legged omnivores in the family Mustelidae (which also includes the otters, wolverines, martens, minks, polecats, weasels, and ferrets). Badgers are a polyphyletic rather than a natural taxonomic grouping, being united ...

hams on the bar in the West Country pubs of her childhood, and that a

tripe Tripe is a type of edible lining from the stomachs of various farm animals. Most tripe is from cattle, pigs and sheep. Types of tripe Beef tripe Beef tripe is made from the muscle wall (the interior mucosal lining is removed) of a cow' ...

seller in Dewsbury market sold "nine different varieties of tripe, including penis and

udder An udder is an organ formed of two or four mammary glands on the females of dairy animals and ruminants such as cattle, goats, and sheep. An udder is equivalent to the breast in primates and elephantine pachyderms. The udder is a single mass ...

(which is remarkably like pease pudding)."

References

External links

*
Clarissa Dickson Wright
at BBC Food

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dickson Wright, Clarissa English people of Scottish descent 1947 births 2014 deaths Alumni of University College London Disbarred lawyers English autobiographers English people of Australian descent English Roman Catholics English barristers English food writers English television chefs Members of Gray's Inn People educated at Beechwood Sacred Heart School People educated at Woldingham School People from St John's Wood Rectors of the University of Aberdeen British women lawyers Conservative Party (UK) people Women autobiographers Deaths from pneumonia in Scotland 20th-century English lawyers 20th-century English businesspeople