The 1970s Dinner Party (2023) Movie Script
1
The 1970s
was a decade of dramatic changes.
Suburbs sprang up...
People wanted to form new
communities and meet new friends.
.Furniture became fashionable...
Lava lamps,
shag pile carpets, beanbags.
Furniture was fantastic in the '70s.
...food, flamboyant...
This was an age
where food colouring was king.
...and entertaining at home
reached new heights.
You could try coq au vin.
It was wonderful.
Now you are cordially invited to
this unassuming suburban house
to take a step back in time to when
the dinner party was an art form.
Martini or Babycham?
We'll be joined by some of
the era's most celebrated celebs
and offered a wide range
of nibbles...
Oh, pineapple and cheese!
...the mother of all
prawn cocktails...
Hello!
...a saucepan of cheese...
What did having a fondue set
say about you?
Well, it said you were cool.
...and this...
and lots of jelly.
There will be generous
side portions of nostalgia...
And this is a lovely memory.
This is with Ronnie Barker.
...and if you're lucky, we might
even set light to a dessert.
Hope I don't set the house on fire.
Any vodka out there?
So chuck on your kaftan
and fix yourself a cocktail...
Cheers!
...because this is dining
from the best decade ever.
Cheers!
Cheers.
Entertaining at home
is now a lost art.
Our idea of a decadent dinner
chez moi is ordering it on an app
and waiting for the fast food
in your onesie.
Although inviting over neighbours
for nibbles is a thing of the past,
that all ends tonight.
Debbie McGee and Rustie Lee
are going to show you exactly
how to throw a 1970s dinner party
that will be the talk
of the cul-de-sac
and a tribute to the decade.
I've got some more nibbles.
Oh, look at that.
Brings back memories. Does it?
What's it, pineapple hedgehog?
I know!
It was the thing, wasn't it?
It was at every party.
Oh, this is looking great, isn't it?
How exciting is this?
It's very exciting.
Now, listen, you do the entertaining
and I'll go and do the cooking.
Right.
They're gonna love it.
So why were the '70s
the heyday of the dinner party?
Well, I'm glad you asked.
We're often told that
the 1970s was a time of struggle,
strikes and hyperinflation, but the
decade didn't start off that way.
In the beginning of the 1970s,
Britain was doing really well.
Wages were high, inflation was low,
so lots of disposable income.
The baby boomers
were born into austerity,
and now they're living
at a time of affluence,
and they're grabbing it
with both hands.
More of us were hopping on
to the property ladder.
Home ownership
was expanding in the 1970s.
People had more money, of course,
but, also, mortgages were cheaper.
To meet this demand,
housing developments
sprung up in the suburbs,
selling a new lifestyle
to the aspiring and ever-growing
middle class.
Those kind of cul-de-sacs
called things like Rose Crescent
or Elm Hill, you know,
where, once,
there might have been a forest,
and now there's just
a forest of houses.
A lot of people were moving
to places like Hatfield, Stevenage,
and, obviously,
as a natural result of that,
people wanted
to form new communities.
There was this social mobility
and new friends and neighbours,
and, obviously,
that led to then entertaining.
And what better way to get
to know the new neighbours
than to invite them over
for a vol-au-vent?
This was a much more
informal idea of entertainment
of people kind of coming around,
spending an evening drinking wine,
having some food and really kind of
making their own entertainment.
But entertaining at home
didn't come without its pressures.
For the new hostess,
it could be incredibly stressful
to make sure you got the right mix
of food and wine and company.
Do you know really well
the people you're inviting over?
What do they eat?
What do they not eat?
The many pitfalls and pressure
of entertaining at home
were often portrayed
in the popular sitcoms of the time.
I phoned the boss and asked him and
his wife to come over for dinner.
When did you arrange dinner for?
Tonight.
Poor old Margot in this clip.
You have to feel sorry for her.
She was
the archetypal proud housewife,
and even she was
put into a complete tailspin
and completely blindsided
by her husband, Jerry.
Well, thank you very much, Jerry.
What's wrong?
I need at least three weeks
if I'm going to entertain a managing
director, that's what's wrong!
The scriptwriters of The Good Life
were just amazing at picking up
on these-these social nuances
that people related to.
She wanted it to be perfect.
She was a perfectionist.
Much like our hosts this evening.
And here's our first guest now.
Children's presenter Johnny Ball
entertained and educated
millions of us in the '70s
with Think Of A Number...
Hello. Thank you, and welcome
once again to Think Of A Number.
...through clever demonstrations,
like this one explaining
how Concorde goes supersonic.
Watch carefully or you'll miss it
cos it happens in a flash.
He made science and maths fun.
Boing!
Pineapple and cheese.
I've gotta have one of those.
Yeah, absolutely.
And can I get you a drink?
Yes, please.
I'm a vodka tonic, please.
We've got Cinzano. Will that do?
Here's to the night. Cheers.
An acquired taste, isn't it?
Oh, get it down you, Johnny...
...because our next guests
have arrived...
Hello, there, you two. Come in.
Hi!
...Leee John and Vicki Michelle.
You're looking good!
And so are you.
Ah, gorgeous.
Great to see you.
I'm loving the outfit.
I'm so excited. Come in.
Actress Vicki Michelle
hit the big time in the '70s.
Here she is in arguably
her most memorable role...
All the way from Abbeville
on roller skates.
...with her convincing French accent
in '80s sitcom 'Allo 'Allo!
Thank heavens you are safe.
What about the others?
Have you seen Monsieur Leclerc?
He broke the balls of his bearings.
So, what can I get you to drink?
Ooh.
Er, I've got... Yeah. Cinzano.
You'll get your lime with Cinzano.
Martini or Babycham.
Oh!
One, two, get it on!
Leee John is the flamboyant front man
of soul group Imagination.
Here he is rocking those sequins and
singing their hit Just An Illusion
in one of their spectacular tours.
# Illusion. #
Suck out the side.
Look at the stereo system!
Yeah, well,
you know, we used to play...
I've got one of those in the loft.
Yeah, we used to play your vinyls
on that, Leee.
Yeah.
They're all back in again.
It really does take me back.
Oh, I'd better go. Another guest.
And fashionably late...
Hi, there.
Hi, Debbie!
It's so great to see you.
...it's pop princess Cheryl Baker.
This '70s and '80s songstress was in
the Eurovision-winning Bucks Fizz.
Here they are performing live,
Making Your Mind Up,
their eye-catching,
skirt-spinning entry.
Chin, chin.
Chin, chin.
Chin, chin.
Chin, chin.
While Debbie does drinks...
Rustie's preparing the appetiser.
She's going big in the kitchen
with a show-stopping creation...
The '70s dinner parties was
all about making a big impression.
If this doesn't make an impression,
nothing will. Ah!
...pineapple and prawns.
Nice choice, Rustie.
For centuries, fresh pineapples
have been the "look at me" fruit,
so talk us through.
What I've done is
I've scooped out the pineapple,
made a lovely Korean mayonnaise dip,
and it's just something
to just taste, you know,
very nice on the end of
a fillet of fish.
Hello! Hello.
That is fabulous!
Now, this is my interpretation
of the '70s thing.
It's like a prawn cocktail.
Like a prawn cocktail.
But it looks like fingers
coming out.
It does, doesn't it?
See what you think.
Oh, I must, I must, I must, I must.
It's good, isn't it?
Who would have thought pineapple
and cheese would be a thing?
But I used to like doing that.
Loved entertaining...
Yeah.
...because it was an opportunity
to show off, really.
And I'm not that much of a show-off.
And having wowed them with
the Babycham and pineapple prawns...
So, shall we go in?
...it's time for the guests
to be seated for dinner.
So, it's through there, everyone.
And they're in for a treat tonight,
with a delectable menu
from the 1970s.
Oh, wow.
Oh, this is amazing!
Oh! Good heavens.
Wow. It's like going back in time.
Have a seat.
That is fantastic.
I had that tablecloth.
I know.
I bet you did.
Debbie, did you nick this off me?
Of course.
See, this colour, orange,
orange is so '70s.
And it's not just the decor that
will transport them back in time.
So, the wine,
we've got Mateus rose...
Which I still like to this day.
So, it had that wicker covering,
you know,
so, actually, it was great
because you could hold on to it.
This is cold and wet.
You know, you might slip.
But...
You drink it,
and then you'd put a light bulb
in the top and you turn it.
Yeah, that's right, a lampshade.
A lampshade. Yeah. Oh, my God, yes.
And a Liebfraumilch.
Ooh!
Oh!
Hated it.
Hated it.
We used to call it lethal.
And we used to have, um,
Blue Nun on Christmas Day.
Blue Nun!
That's it, Johnny,
you do the honours.
Fawlty Towers was '70s, but somehow
you remind me of Andrew Sachs.
OK. OK. Just a moment.
There we are. Are we ready now?
Que?
I'll have the rose, please.
The rose.
Pour yourself some, because we can't
have any until you pour yourself.
I won't drink it
out of the bottle yet.
OK. Well, thank you for coming,
everybody.
Thank you, thank you, thank you.
This is the super '70s.
The sexy, soulful '70s.
Cheers.
Coming up...
Anyone who was anyone in the '70s
had a fondue set.
Rustie gets
into the ultimate '70s starter.
I hope they like cheese!
Oh!
Wow!
It's like going back
in time.
Our '70s soiree
is in full swing,
and Cheryl's very taken
with the tableware.
Look at these little wine glasses.
That was when we'd drink
small amounts.
Hope this isn't going to be
a boozy do.
Now, these stylish surroundings
are looking very familiar.
Anybody have anything like this?
I had this tablecloth for sure.
Yeah. And I had this sort of...
this sort of stuff.
Is it...
This is Spanish.
This is very, very Spanish.
No, it's Derby. It's Derby.
This was trendy crockery
in the '70s, wasn't it?
You still could get the finer china,
but this was the...
This was trendy to have, and heavy.
Yeah.
One thing I couldn't stand at
dinner parties is sticky placemats.
Oh.
Sticky placemats!
Why did...
And Paul would sue me now.
He'd say, "You can't give away
our secrets.
In the 1970s,
welcoming guests into our homes
for dinner meant we had not only
to up our game in the kitchen,
but also play interior designer.
Because there was so much focus
on home entertaining,
there was also a focus
on what your home looked like.
I think for the woman
of the household in particular,
she definitely wants to show off
her new fancy curtains
and her new groovy wallpaper.
'70s interior style was colourful,
casual and a bit bohemian,
reflecting the music, fashion
and social movements of the era.
From 1970 to 1979,
the cultural and design shifts
are immense,
so you have everything from
the leftovers of space age, hippies,
erm, right through to Laura Ashley,
basically a designing melting pot.
There was a real broadening
of the colour palette,
avocados, greens, blues,
poppy, oranges
were now more readily available.
As well as fresh bursts of colour,
suburban housing developments
also offered open-plan living.
We were experiencing luxury
that we'd never previously seen
in housing before -
central heating and double glazing
meant the insides of your house were
no longer cold, draughty places.
Lava lamps, shag pile carpets,
beanbags.
Furniture was fantastic in the '70s.
When it came
to buying interior design,
the aspirational '70s housewife
shop of choice was Habitat.
The revolution
that Habitat introduced
was really allowing people
to go into a shop
and feel that they could have
kind of good taste immediately.
Habitat's founder,
designer Sir Terence Conran,
made fashionable furnishings
affordable and accessible,
with mail order catalogues
and flat-pack furniture.
Terence Conran set up Habitat
with the idea
that it actually had a civic mission
to bring good taste to the masses.
He wanted
good design to be available
and to be available cheaply,
because I really think he believed
it would make your life better.
When you've done up your home,
there was now a huge desire
to showcase what you've done
as an interior designer.
And with your home looking fabulous,
you could then focus on the food,
serving up daring dishes
that would be
the talk of the cul-de-sac.
It's time for the starter,
and Rustie's kicking off the meal
with '70s favourite - fondue.
Anyone who was anyone in the '70s
had a fondue set,
so it was lovely for sitting around
and chatting
and just feeling posh, really.
It was really good.
Fondue means melted in French,
and, classically,
they're made with cheese.
So, the cheeses
are Emmental and Gruyere
and that you mix the two together,
and it just makes
a nice, mild flavour.
So grab your fondue pan
and a garlic clove...
So, I'm going to rub it
round the pan
to get a bit of flavour
into the fondue.
So that's going on.
...slosh in the white wine,
lemon juice and chuck in the cheese.
Melting away nicely.
It does go a bit cloggy.
Cloggy?
Is that an actual word, Rustie?
So, in the '70s, it was so much work
on the housewife.
She had to do all the cooking,
entertaining.
I'm glad Debbie's out there
doing the entertaining
and I'm doing the cooking.
I don't know how they ever coped.
Now this is ready,
and the good thing about it,
this is the fondue pot,
and you can serve it
straight from the table.
I hope they like cheese!
Ah, actually, I think
I might be lactose intolerant.
Hello!
Do you know what this is?
It's a fondue.
It's a fondue!
I used to make these.
Yes! Yeah,
I've still got the fondue sets.
Everybody had a fondue set!
Cheese. It's cheese.
But where did this obsession
with melted cheese come from?
Foreign food was all the rage
in the 1970s
and became a feature
of dinner parties across the nation.
'What did having a fondue set
say about you?'
Well, it said you were cool.
It said you were the kind
of person that might go skiing.
And it wasn't just the apres-ski
we were experiencing
for the first time.
Europe was unlocked in the 1970s
by the package holiday revolution.
This was the decade when suddenly,
we could travel abroad
in our millions
and discover
the Mediterranean beaches
with different people,
different language,
and my goodness me,
a very different cuisine.
Been to Spain? Oh!
Come back with the idea of paella.
Been to France?
Come back with a fish soup.
Or perhaps a fondue
from Switzerland.
Been to Italy?
It's all about the olives.
Those cheap package holidays
really did play into
the kind of things you saw
on the average dinner party table.
In 1973, Britain forged closer ties
with the Continent
when we joined
the European Economic Community.
The EEC was a club that Britain
had wanted to join for a long time.
You could see lots of possibilities
for employment, for new industries,
but, also, perhaps more importantly,
becoming European allowed Brits
to think of themselves as wine
drinkers as well as beer drinkers.
They could think of themselves as
having an informal salad with pasta,
rather than shepherd's pie
and sticky toffee pudding.
The burgeoning
British middle classes
had had their taste buds tickled,
and French cuisine
became a particular 1970s
dinner party favourite.
The rich had long been influenced
by French flavours in particular,
but now you saw the spread
of modern French foods
down to the lower middle classes
and even the working class.
It was wonderful.
You could try coq au vin,
you could try beef bourguignon,
Crepes Suzette to round it off.
And to help the '70s housewife
perfect French dishes,
a magazine was launched in the UK
by the famous cookery school
Cordon Bleu.
When the Cordon Bleu magazine
was launched,
purporting to teach
the average housewife
how to cook just like a French chef,
it was, of course,
an immediate success.
I think it's fair to say
the front of this one has a hostess
on the front,
very natty orange dress,
looking very proudly
at her chicken Veronique,
and it's basically telling you
that you can look glamorous
and turn out a dish
that you're going to be as proud of
as you are your own firstborn.
Fondue forks at the ready.
So, dig in.
It's steamy.
I'm gonna go get a little...
Yeah, get a little bit
of something on your fork.
Oh, hang on, I've gotta put this on.
And you dip it in.
There's a place in Dean Street
that does the Swiss...
Oh, really?
Yes.
Oh, someone pass Cheryl a napkin.
This one.
I-I said a napkin, Johnny.
Yeah, yeah, it shouldn't be too hot.
Be careful. It's really hot.
Very hot.
Too hot.
Blow it when you...
I'll blow it.
Oh, my God, they're burning!
Will everyone please be careful?
We didn't purchase the insurance
for cheesy mouth burns.
That's too hot.
Oh, it's lovely.
Gorgeous.
Did anyone ever go to Switzerland
and have a proper fondue?
I have.
Austria.
Yeah, in Austria...
In the mountains somewhere.
And so was it exactly like this?
It was like this.
I'm getting expert at this.
And while the guests have fun
with the fondue,
the main course is coming along,
and Rustie is prepping a dish
that any '70s party host
would be proud of.
I'm going
to be doing a dressed salmon.
This is going to be the showstopper.
I've got this lovely salmon
that I've taken the skin off,
I've poached it,
and I'm going to dress it now.
Everyone's hopefully going to go,
"Wow, isn't she fabulous?"
That's me.
So, we're going to just
put some parsley all around.
Everything had parsley on it.
That's hiding the bits
you don't want on show.
It's looking good already.
Serving up a decorative dish
like this
really showcased a host's skills,
but best set aside most of the day
to prep this poisson.
First things first,
finely slice copious cucumber.
So, you start off at the tail
and you just overlap them, really.
That was quick!
So, now I've finished with
the scales, and it looks lovely.
I'm going to do a mask on the fish.
That's right - she said "mask".
So, that'll set on the face,
cos a lot of people didn't like to
just see the fish looking at them.
Mix mayonnaise and a bit of gelatine
together to make a paste
and apply Liberally.
That's it.
I'll leave it to set now,
and then I'll decorate it up
and give him a lovely little face.
I can remember at home the first
foreign food my mum ever cooked
was spaghetti bolognese. Yeah?
I thought it came in a tin.
Oh, dear.
You used to be able to get it
in a tin!
Oh, my God. Oh, no!
Spaghetti bolognaise, Mum made.
Italian food,
I think Italian food
became a real thing
that everybody... Staple.
Yeah, everybody was buying pasta,
and there were a lot of
Italian restaurants. Pizza.
Pizza became a big thing.
Now the salmon is beautiful, but
this aspic salad is something else.
You see, the aspic is a jelly.
It's a see-through jelly.
Aspic was big in the '70s, but
funnily enough, not so much anymore.
It's a flavoured gelatine
that, when set in a mould,
is used to encase seafood, salad
and meat,
because everything looks good
stuck in jelly
So, I've already set the top part,
which is the decoration,
so when it turns out,
it looks very nice.
With the first layer set,
stick in the salad...
...and in goes the aspic jelly.
So, that's it.
In the '70s, this was all new.
Nobody knew about putting salad
in aspic.
Salad in aspic. It's...
It's the last thing
you want to have!
But my guests are gonna get this.
They're gonna have this, and
they're gonna love it or hate it.
Personally, I hate it.
Best keep that to yourself.
To the fridge.
Let's hope it sets it in time!
Coming up...
Here we go.
Oh, gosh. Whoo!
Will Rustie's jelly salad thing turn
out to be delicious or disgusting?
I don't remember having this
in the '70s, I must admit.
I think it's cos
we didn't really like it.
I'm getting it now!
It shouldn't be too hot.
It's really hot.
Very hot. Blow it when you...
Debbie McGee and Rustie Lee
are throwing a dinner party,
'70s style.
Oh, it's lovely. Gorgeous.
Debbie is front of house
and a stickler for table manners...
I think we might need our napkins.
...while Rustie is recreating
all those dishes
that would have knocked the socks
off your dinner guests.
To the fridge.
And now for the moment we've all
been waiting for - the main course.
The salmon is sitting pretty,
but has the aspic salad set?
I think it's ready.
Wondering how to get an aspic salad
to turn out perfectly
from its mould?
Sit it in some warm water
for a moment to loosen the jelly
and take a deep breath.
I hope it's going to come out.
Now, keep your fingers crossed,
everybody.
Here we go. Oh, gosh.
Whoo!
Yay!
There it is. Look at this!
Isn't that fantastic?
That looks beautiful, doesn't it?
Come on, be honest.
OK. Honestly,
it looks revolting.
You did ask.
And now a finishing touch.
Oh, I say. Debbie!
Oh, Rustie!
What do you think?
Oh, my gosh.
OK, shall we take it?
Come on. Yeah.
I'll get the salad.
What will our
unsuspecting guests make of this?
Oh, hang on a minute.
Oh. Rustie Lee!
It's so pretty.
What do you think of that, then?
That's fabulous.
When did he catch that?
Come on, Debbie.
This is amazing. I know what
this is, but what's this?
This is salad
in aspic jelly.
And I'm sure you're going
to love this.
It was a thing in the '70s.
It was.
Nice sell, ladies.
It's very colourful, just like you.
What do you call the fish?
Salmon.
I do this at Christmas, still.
But with cucumber.
Can't get you out of the '70s, then?
No.
It was all of the cucumber on.
You can see the face.
You didn't try the face.
Oh, you gotta do the face
and the lipstick.
And no 1970s dinner party
would be complete
without the appearance
of this ingenious invention.
Oh!
Voila!
And what have we got?
This is the hostess trolley.
And do you remember that program me?
The Sale Of The Century?
Yes.
They used to have them as prizes,
and the girls did this.
Just like you done.
I thought I'd do my bit.
So, I'll just get you a plate,
Rustie. OK?
There we go.
Thank you.
Oh.
That looks delicious.
Gorgeous.
Yummy.
There you go. Thank you, darling.
Thank you very much.
Can I have an eye, please?
This looks lovely. One more.
No, but, Rustie?
Yes, darling.
Leee John's got more than me.
Do you want the head?
She wants the head!
Oh, dear.
So, there you are.
Thank you.
Gorgeous. Thank you. Merci beaucoup.
Thank you.
See you in a bit. See you later.
Yeah. Thanks, Rustie.
Uh, Debbie, that aspic salad
isn't going to serve itself.
Before we get really stuck in,
I think we all need to try at least
a mouthful, don't you think?
Yeah, absolutely.
Everybody up for it?
I'll speak to my lawyer!
I know why Rustie left this to me.
It's not that easy!
It sounds delicious.
I think getting in from under
might...
I don't remember having this
in the '70s. I must have.
Yeah, I don't remember this.
I think it's cos
we didn't really like it.
And we're getting it now!
I'm going in, everyone.
Yeah.
It doesn't look edible.
No.
Put apple on.
Sweeten it.
It's quite... Yeah.
It's quite... Hm.
It's quite hm!
It is quite "hm!"
Is that a good "hm" or a bad "hm"?
It's... hm.
Oh. My middle tastes a lot better
than it looks.
Yeah. It does.
It really looks revolting.
Well, when it's on the plate,
it looks revolting.
Anyone for seconds of the aspic?
Anyone?
No?
We discovered many other
daring dishes back in the '70s -
along with exactly how to make them.
The era saw a steady rise
in households owning TV sets,
and with them came
a growing appetite
for cookery programmes.
Oh! I wondered where
I'd left that massive telly.
There's no chance
that we would have had
'70s dinner parties
without TV chefs.
Because people wouldn't have known
how on Earth to impress people.
And the queen of TV cookery
in the early '70s
was the formidable Fanny Cradock.
She first appeared in 1955
and, by the '70s,
had a cult-like following.
I've already whipped up
the egg whites. Darling,
come here a minute, will you?
Fanny regularly roped in her
unsuspecting assistants like this,
and was known
for her very direct manner.
And you must whip them up stiffly,
so that they're like that.
You see?
If they fall out, they're wrong.
Nobody had ever seen
anything like it before.
It was hilarious.
Fanny Cradock put the joy
back into post-war cookery.
She was somebody who understood
what the British viewers wanted
and gave them it in spades.
Her food now has the reputation
of being vile,
dyed green, over-reliant
on aspic and mayonnaise.
But actually,
she's one of those people
that deserves to be held up
as a real cooking hero.
Hot on Fanny's heels
was another star,
a Brit who literally
leapt into TV history
just a few years later.
Graham Kerr
was an authority in food,
but he was an entertainer,
and it was a completely different
type of show.
Here he is in action,
not taking the cooking too seriously
and having fun with the viewers.
This is really fascinating.
What's the matter, darling?
You all right?
It was a chat show. Studio audience,
which we met,
and one of them came
and would eat with him
at the end of the show.
It was very much about lifestyle.
He made food really appealing.
The late '70s
saw the beginning of the career
of another now iconic cook.
Delia Smith.
She was almost the polar opposite
to some of her predecessors.
She was a quiet,
rather shy character on screen
and someone who was almost
a real pedant in the kitchen,
telling you, step by step,
what to do.
Here she is taking her viewers
back to basics
to avoid any confusion
at the butcher's.
But I thought it might be nice
just to explain to you
what sort of meat you're likely to
use when you're making a casserole.
But she, too, hit the zeitgeist
because she was appealing to women
who really didn't have a clue
how to cook.
She took them through
what they needed to do
in a gentle, unassuming fashion.
She didn't hit them with
food colouring and exuberance.
She simply showed them what to do.
We coined a phrase,
"doing the Delia",
which meant literally doing
what Delia does.
She was our teacher, in a way
that we hadn't really seen before.
The TV chefs of the 1970s
inspired audiences across the nation
and paved the way
for the Gordons, Nigellas
and Rusties of the future.
Back at Rustie and Debbie's bash,
there are a lot of empty plates
and loads of aspic salad.
And everyone is remembering
the good old days.
My favourite subject!
# You, you, you! #
Me, me, me!
# Me, me, me! #
Well, I happen to have a photo.
Oh, yeah? Oh, yeah.
And this is a lovely memory.
So, this is with...
Ronnie Barker...
...and my sister and me,
and we're doing a...
It was a publicity shot
for Porridge.
But we both worked with
the Two Ronnies.
So, we both worked with them,
doing sketches and everything,
and it's such a lovely...
And he was such a lovely man.
He was just absolutely
just gorgeous, talented...
and a joy to work with,
as was Ronnie C.
Did you do The Two Ronnies?
You did the show?
Yeah, did loads of them.
You did?
Yeah, yeah, yeah. And, er...
Yeah, Ken Dodd.
I loved the Two Ronnies.
Dick Emery. Now we're dating!
Loved Dick Emery.
Oh, yeah.
"You are awful!
Yeah, that was good.
"..But I like you!"
Yeah.
So, what about you, Cheryl?
This is a girls' one, I think.
I don't think guys did it.
But you used to have straight hair
to there...
and then you'd be permed from there.
Do you remember that?
Yeah.
Was it the Kevin Keegan?
I don't know if it was called that.
He had a perm, didn't he?
He did, didn't he?
Oh, yeah.
And also the thigh-length boots.
Oh, I loved them.
Yeah.
Look at that.
Oh, they look great.
Look at those heels!
Yeah.
I still get my old ones out
for panto. Yeah.
You can still use them.
Yeah.
And I can remember,
you know, being a dancer,
and I used to have little sponge...
pink sponge rollers
that you did the ringlet on
with a clip. Yes, I know!
And then, one night,
you know, I went on stage,
I'd forgotten to take them out!
It's time for dessert.
And there's no stopping Rustie
in the kitchen.
She's got something
suitably spectacular
for the grand finale.
So, for dessert,
I'm making crepes Suzette.
It's really pancakes, actually,
but a bit thinner.
It's more than just pancakes,
Rustie.
Crepes Suzette was reserved
for the bravest of hosts.
It's a real performance pudding.
My maitre d' at my restaurant
used to make these.
He used to flambe them at the table.
And the orange liqueur
that you pour on,
the vapours from that,
he would light.
And it was fantastic to see.
So, Leee, what about you?
I used to be a singing waiter.
Wow!
Just off Bond Street.
And it was called Encore.
And here it is.
Oh!
And that's 1978, I think, '79,
just before Imagination.
And it got me my Equity card,
actually, and it was fun.
Look how cute he was!
I've got a picture of me
with, er, Tony Hart,
John Craven and all the others.
So, so... I loved, er, television,
but I was still doing clubs
at the beginning of the '70s,
and I had - I did
work with a couple of people.
For instance,
the Bee Gees only ever did one club,
and that was opening
the Fiesta Sheffield,
so I did that with them.
Honestly!
The '70s were amazing for me
cos I met Paul.
I worked with Paul in the theatre
for three years
before I joined the TV show,
but my first appearance
on the TV show,
he introduced me
as "the lovely Debbie McGee",
and then it stuck.
Great legs, girl.
Yes.
Rustie is approaching
the finishing line...
...with the help
of a trusty old friend.
You know, it was such a godsend
when these came in.
It was just a game-changer
because it would save you
having to whisk up so many things,
and there were so many other things
you could make,
which was a great help
to the housewife.
She could show off a bit more!
Whoa!
The 1970s saw an explosion
of technology and gadgets
for our homes.
The '70s was a really good time
for sort of early technology.
It wasn't always
the most reliable technology,
but it was new, and it was exciting.
And domestic gizmos
were flying off the shelves.
A lot more women started entering
the workplace for the first time.
They weren't simply homemakers,
and a lot of technology
was actually lab our-saving devices
then marketed at women specifically.
Anyone who's ever made a cake
which starts with
"Beat together the butter
and sugar until creamy"
will know that
that takes a very long time
and quite a lot of muscle power.
Now, however,
you stick it in your Kenwood Chef
and Bob's your uncle.
But no dinner party
in the 1970s would be complete
without a hostess trolley.
The heated hostess trolley
plugged in.
It would keep whatever it was
that you wanted to keep warm, warm,
and when you could lift off the lid,
there was a puff of steam.
It felt a little bit like those
posh hotels with butler service.
My dad bought one for my mum,
and it was a thing
that they were very proud of.
We'd have parties and people round,
and everybody would be, "Ooh, wow,
this is new and spectacular!
But, you know, it wasn't that long.
I'd give it a couple of years or so?
And I definitely remember
that thing
ended up in my dad's shed
with all his tools in it.
But they weren't half noisy.
It wasn't just the big-ticket items
that were popular in '70s kitchens.
I remember electric tin openers
stuck onto the wall
that people used to
bang their heads on.
The apple peeler. Fantastic gadget.
Yoghurt makers or to as tie makers.
Oh, there was so many crazy things
that they were just coming out with.
And I think
it was that consumerism-driven...
It's like,
"What can we sell them next?
Some were very useful,
and some were useful
if you used them.
Others, I suspect, got quietly
put to the back of the cupboard
and then, well,
discarded at the next jumble sale.
Nobody needs
an electric carving knife.
Oh!
Coming up, the big finale.
What have we got?
Crepes Suzette!
Rustie is making dessert -
and it's lit.
Literally.
I'm about to light it now.
And here comes the flame-thrower!
The 1970s
dinner party has been a hit.
The specially-selected dishes
and drinks from the era
have gone down a treat.
Here's to the super '70s.
Absolutely.
The diners have been transported
back in time this evening.
But it's not over yet,
is it, Rustie?
Ooh, am I brave enough?
Don't laugh at me!
Wah! I did it!
Only 30 more to go!
Rustie is serving crepes Suzette.
The crepes will be drenched
in orange liqueur
and set alight
to bedazzle the guests.
I'm going to do that at the table.
Hope I don't set the house
on fire!
Show them what you got, Rustie.
Hope the fire extinguisher
is on standby.
Oh, oh!
Ooh!
Have I got a surprise for you!
Oh, what have we got?
Crepes Suzette!
Well, let me light this up,
and then I'll...
Oh, you're gonna cook it for us!
Oh, thank God.
You can do it, Rustie.
You can do it.
Yeah.
Ooh!
Cooking with gas!
Very filling.
Is that a flambe going on?
Yes, a bit of a flambe.
Well, what's this?
Oh, Grand Marnier!
Marnier's going in.
And here comes the flame-thrower.
Yes. Hold on a minute...
Heating the liqueur in the crepes
releases vapour,
which Rustie is going to set alight.
Flambe.
I can't believe how much
Grand Marnier you're putting!
Yes, it's a lot of Grand Marnier.
You'll be under the table
when I'm finished with you lot.
Ooh, she's adding more!
I'm about to light it now.
Oh, here we go.
OK, OK. Light my fire.
Great, isn't it?
Is there any vodka out there?
Oh, well done!
Rustie, you are on fire, baby.
Oh, thank you!
Are you ready for this now?
Oh, we're really ready.
I bet this'll be flaming good, this.
Fantastic.
It smells amazing!
It really does.
Oh, this one's beautiful.
I'll have that one, then.
I got one.
Right, I'm going to join you now.
Well done!
Thank you very much.
Is everything OK?
Absolutely bloomin' lovely.
The Grand Marnier...
Absolutely lovely.
As I said, it melts in your mouth.
So, this was my favourite dessert
in the '70s.
But my second in line
was Arctic Roll.
Yes! Arctic Roll!
Sponge with ice cream.
And we used to get
a tin of peach halves.
I'd put half a peach
on the top of the ice cream
and pour the peach juice.
So, what was your other desserts
that you can remember?
Spotted dick.
Do you remember,
you used to be able to buy those,
erm, trifle mixes.
I think it was Bird's.
Bird's, yeah.
And you'd make the jelly,
and you'd make the custard,
and you'd whip up the cream.
The cream never tasted like cream.
And then you'd have
hundreds and thousands on the top.
The top, yeah, yeah, yeah.
Cheers.
Great to see you all.
So, our evening spent in the 1970s
is coming to an end.
It was a lovely walk
down memory lane.
It was fabulous.
I was surrounded by '70s beauties.
For years,
we've laughed at the decade
and written it off
as a time of strange food
and out-there fashion.
Oh, they look great.
Look at those heels.
But back then, we were masters
of entertaining at home.
We've got Liebfraumilch.
Hated it!
Lethal muck.
The art of sitting together,
telling stories...
He was such a lovely man.
...and pretending
something is delicious.
Yay!
I'm going in, everyone.
It looks revolting, really.
So, this weekend,
phone up some friends,
dust off the fondue set,
and let's get entertaining.
But just be careful
WHAT you cover in jelly.
We had a lovely time.
And long live the '70s.
Cheers!
Here's to Rustie!
Thank you. And you have been
fabulous guests. Thank you.
And you've been a fabulous hostess.
Thank you. Mwah!
The 1970s
was a decade of dramatic changes.
Suburbs sprang up...
People wanted to form new
communities and meet new friends.
.Furniture became fashionable...
Lava lamps,
shag pile carpets, beanbags.
Furniture was fantastic in the '70s.
...food, flamboyant...
This was an age
where food colouring was king.
...and entertaining at home
reached new heights.
You could try coq au vin.
It was wonderful.
Now you are cordially invited to
this unassuming suburban house
to take a step back in time to when
the dinner party was an art form.
Martini or Babycham?
We'll be joined by some of
the era's most celebrated celebs
and offered a wide range
of nibbles...
Oh, pineapple and cheese!
...the mother of all
prawn cocktails...
Hello!
...a saucepan of cheese...
What did having a fondue set
say about you?
Well, it said you were cool.
...and this...
and lots of jelly.
There will be generous
side portions of nostalgia...
And this is a lovely memory.
This is with Ronnie Barker.
...and if you're lucky, we might
even set light to a dessert.
Hope I don't set the house on fire.
Any vodka out there?
So chuck on your kaftan
and fix yourself a cocktail...
Cheers!
...because this is dining
from the best decade ever.
Cheers!
Cheers.
Entertaining at home
is now a lost art.
Our idea of a decadent dinner
chez moi is ordering it on an app
and waiting for the fast food
in your onesie.
Although inviting over neighbours
for nibbles is a thing of the past,
that all ends tonight.
Debbie McGee and Rustie Lee
are going to show you exactly
how to throw a 1970s dinner party
that will be the talk
of the cul-de-sac
and a tribute to the decade.
I've got some more nibbles.
Oh, look at that.
Brings back memories. Does it?
What's it, pineapple hedgehog?
I know!
It was the thing, wasn't it?
It was at every party.
Oh, this is looking great, isn't it?
How exciting is this?
It's very exciting.
Now, listen, you do the entertaining
and I'll go and do the cooking.
Right.
They're gonna love it.
So why were the '70s
the heyday of the dinner party?
Well, I'm glad you asked.
We're often told that
the 1970s was a time of struggle,
strikes and hyperinflation, but the
decade didn't start off that way.
In the beginning of the 1970s,
Britain was doing really well.
Wages were high, inflation was low,
so lots of disposable income.
The baby boomers
were born into austerity,
and now they're living
at a time of affluence,
and they're grabbing it
with both hands.
More of us were hopping on
to the property ladder.
Home ownership
was expanding in the 1970s.
People had more money, of course,
but, also, mortgages were cheaper.
To meet this demand,
housing developments
sprung up in the suburbs,
selling a new lifestyle
to the aspiring and ever-growing
middle class.
Those kind of cul-de-sacs
called things like Rose Crescent
or Elm Hill, you know,
where, once,
there might have been a forest,
and now there's just
a forest of houses.
A lot of people were moving
to places like Hatfield, Stevenage,
and, obviously,
as a natural result of that,
people wanted
to form new communities.
There was this social mobility
and new friends and neighbours,
and, obviously,
that led to then entertaining.
And what better way to get
to know the new neighbours
than to invite them over
for a vol-au-vent?
This was a much more
informal idea of entertainment
of people kind of coming around,
spending an evening drinking wine,
having some food and really kind of
making their own entertainment.
But entertaining at home
didn't come without its pressures.
For the new hostess,
it could be incredibly stressful
to make sure you got the right mix
of food and wine and company.
Do you know really well
the people you're inviting over?
What do they eat?
What do they not eat?
The many pitfalls and pressure
of entertaining at home
were often portrayed
in the popular sitcoms of the time.
I phoned the boss and asked him and
his wife to come over for dinner.
When did you arrange dinner for?
Tonight.
Poor old Margot in this clip.
You have to feel sorry for her.
She was
the archetypal proud housewife,
and even she was
put into a complete tailspin
and completely blindsided
by her husband, Jerry.
Well, thank you very much, Jerry.
What's wrong?
I need at least three weeks
if I'm going to entertain a managing
director, that's what's wrong!
The scriptwriters of The Good Life
were just amazing at picking up
on these-these social nuances
that people related to.
She wanted it to be perfect.
She was a perfectionist.
Much like our hosts this evening.
And here's our first guest now.
Children's presenter Johnny Ball
entertained and educated
millions of us in the '70s
with Think Of A Number...
Hello. Thank you, and welcome
once again to Think Of A Number.
...through clever demonstrations,
like this one explaining
how Concorde goes supersonic.
Watch carefully or you'll miss it
cos it happens in a flash.
He made science and maths fun.
Boing!
Pineapple and cheese.
I've gotta have one of those.
Yeah, absolutely.
And can I get you a drink?
Yes, please.
I'm a vodka tonic, please.
We've got Cinzano. Will that do?
Here's to the night. Cheers.
An acquired taste, isn't it?
Oh, get it down you, Johnny...
...because our next guests
have arrived...
Hello, there, you two. Come in.
Hi!
...Leee John and Vicki Michelle.
You're looking good!
And so are you.
Ah, gorgeous.
Great to see you.
I'm loving the outfit.
I'm so excited. Come in.
Actress Vicki Michelle
hit the big time in the '70s.
Here she is in arguably
her most memorable role...
All the way from Abbeville
on roller skates.
...with her convincing French accent
in '80s sitcom 'Allo 'Allo!
Thank heavens you are safe.
What about the others?
Have you seen Monsieur Leclerc?
He broke the balls of his bearings.
So, what can I get you to drink?
Ooh.
Er, I've got... Yeah. Cinzano.
You'll get your lime with Cinzano.
Martini or Babycham.
Oh!
One, two, get it on!
Leee John is the flamboyant front man
of soul group Imagination.
Here he is rocking those sequins and
singing their hit Just An Illusion
in one of their spectacular tours.
# Illusion. #
Suck out the side.
Look at the stereo system!
Yeah, well,
you know, we used to play...
I've got one of those in the loft.
Yeah, we used to play your vinyls
on that, Leee.
Yeah.
They're all back in again.
It really does take me back.
Oh, I'd better go. Another guest.
And fashionably late...
Hi, there.
Hi, Debbie!
It's so great to see you.
...it's pop princess Cheryl Baker.
This '70s and '80s songstress was in
the Eurovision-winning Bucks Fizz.
Here they are performing live,
Making Your Mind Up,
their eye-catching,
skirt-spinning entry.
Chin, chin.
Chin, chin.
Chin, chin.
Chin, chin.
While Debbie does drinks...
Rustie's preparing the appetiser.
She's going big in the kitchen
with a show-stopping creation...
The '70s dinner parties was
all about making a big impression.
If this doesn't make an impression,
nothing will. Ah!
...pineapple and prawns.
Nice choice, Rustie.
For centuries, fresh pineapples
have been the "look at me" fruit,
so talk us through.
What I've done is
I've scooped out the pineapple,
made a lovely Korean mayonnaise dip,
and it's just something
to just taste, you know,
very nice on the end of
a fillet of fish.
Hello! Hello.
That is fabulous!
Now, this is my interpretation
of the '70s thing.
It's like a prawn cocktail.
Like a prawn cocktail.
But it looks like fingers
coming out.
It does, doesn't it?
See what you think.
Oh, I must, I must, I must, I must.
It's good, isn't it?
Who would have thought pineapple
and cheese would be a thing?
But I used to like doing that.
Loved entertaining...
Yeah.
...because it was an opportunity
to show off, really.
And I'm not that much of a show-off.
And having wowed them with
the Babycham and pineapple prawns...
So, shall we go in?
...it's time for the guests
to be seated for dinner.
So, it's through there, everyone.
And they're in for a treat tonight,
with a delectable menu
from the 1970s.
Oh, wow.
Oh, this is amazing!
Oh! Good heavens.
Wow. It's like going back in time.
Have a seat.
That is fantastic.
I had that tablecloth.
I know.
I bet you did.
Debbie, did you nick this off me?
Of course.
See, this colour, orange,
orange is so '70s.
And it's not just the decor that
will transport them back in time.
So, the wine,
we've got Mateus rose...
Which I still like to this day.
So, it had that wicker covering,
you know,
so, actually, it was great
because you could hold on to it.
This is cold and wet.
You know, you might slip.
But...
You drink it,
and then you'd put a light bulb
in the top and you turn it.
Yeah, that's right, a lampshade.
A lampshade. Yeah. Oh, my God, yes.
And a Liebfraumilch.
Ooh!
Oh!
Hated it.
Hated it.
We used to call it lethal.
And we used to have, um,
Blue Nun on Christmas Day.
Blue Nun!
That's it, Johnny,
you do the honours.
Fawlty Towers was '70s, but somehow
you remind me of Andrew Sachs.
OK. OK. Just a moment.
There we are. Are we ready now?
Que?
I'll have the rose, please.
The rose.
Pour yourself some, because we can't
have any until you pour yourself.
I won't drink it
out of the bottle yet.
OK. Well, thank you for coming,
everybody.
Thank you, thank you, thank you.
This is the super '70s.
The sexy, soulful '70s.
Cheers.
Coming up...
Anyone who was anyone in the '70s
had a fondue set.
Rustie gets
into the ultimate '70s starter.
I hope they like cheese!
Oh!
Wow!
It's like going back
in time.
Our '70s soiree
is in full swing,
and Cheryl's very taken
with the tableware.
Look at these little wine glasses.
That was when we'd drink
small amounts.
Hope this isn't going to be
a boozy do.
Now, these stylish surroundings
are looking very familiar.
Anybody have anything like this?
I had this tablecloth for sure.
Yeah. And I had this sort of...
this sort of stuff.
Is it...
This is Spanish.
This is very, very Spanish.
No, it's Derby. It's Derby.
This was trendy crockery
in the '70s, wasn't it?
You still could get the finer china,
but this was the...
This was trendy to have, and heavy.
Yeah.
One thing I couldn't stand at
dinner parties is sticky placemats.
Oh.
Sticky placemats!
Why did...
And Paul would sue me now.
He'd say, "You can't give away
our secrets.
In the 1970s,
welcoming guests into our homes
for dinner meant we had not only
to up our game in the kitchen,
but also play interior designer.
Because there was so much focus
on home entertaining,
there was also a focus
on what your home looked like.
I think for the woman
of the household in particular,
she definitely wants to show off
her new fancy curtains
and her new groovy wallpaper.
'70s interior style was colourful,
casual and a bit bohemian,
reflecting the music, fashion
and social movements of the era.
From 1970 to 1979,
the cultural and design shifts
are immense,
so you have everything from
the leftovers of space age, hippies,
erm, right through to Laura Ashley,
basically a designing melting pot.
There was a real broadening
of the colour palette,
avocados, greens, blues,
poppy, oranges
were now more readily available.
As well as fresh bursts of colour,
suburban housing developments
also offered open-plan living.
We were experiencing luxury
that we'd never previously seen
in housing before -
central heating and double glazing
meant the insides of your house were
no longer cold, draughty places.
Lava lamps, shag pile carpets,
beanbags.
Furniture was fantastic in the '70s.
When it came
to buying interior design,
the aspirational '70s housewife
shop of choice was Habitat.
The revolution
that Habitat introduced
was really allowing people
to go into a shop
and feel that they could have
kind of good taste immediately.
Habitat's founder,
designer Sir Terence Conran,
made fashionable furnishings
affordable and accessible,
with mail order catalogues
and flat-pack furniture.
Terence Conran set up Habitat
with the idea
that it actually had a civic mission
to bring good taste to the masses.
He wanted
good design to be available
and to be available cheaply,
because I really think he believed
it would make your life better.
When you've done up your home,
there was now a huge desire
to showcase what you've done
as an interior designer.
And with your home looking fabulous,
you could then focus on the food,
serving up daring dishes
that would be
the talk of the cul-de-sac.
It's time for the starter,
and Rustie's kicking off the meal
with '70s favourite - fondue.
Anyone who was anyone in the '70s
had a fondue set,
so it was lovely for sitting around
and chatting
and just feeling posh, really.
It was really good.
Fondue means melted in French,
and, classically,
they're made with cheese.
So, the cheeses
are Emmental and Gruyere
and that you mix the two together,
and it just makes
a nice, mild flavour.
So grab your fondue pan
and a garlic clove...
So, I'm going to rub it
round the pan
to get a bit of flavour
into the fondue.
So that's going on.
...slosh in the white wine,
lemon juice and chuck in the cheese.
Melting away nicely.
It does go a bit cloggy.
Cloggy?
Is that an actual word, Rustie?
So, in the '70s, it was so much work
on the housewife.
She had to do all the cooking,
entertaining.
I'm glad Debbie's out there
doing the entertaining
and I'm doing the cooking.
I don't know how they ever coped.
Now this is ready,
and the good thing about it,
this is the fondue pot,
and you can serve it
straight from the table.
I hope they like cheese!
Ah, actually, I think
I might be lactose intolerant.
Hello!
Do you know what this is?
It's a fondue.
It's a fondue!
I used to make these.
Yes! Yeah,
I've still got the fondue sets.
Everybody had a fondue set!
Cheese. It's cheese.
But where did this obsession
with melted cheese come from?
Foreign food was all the rage
in the 1970s
and became a feature
of dinner parties across the nation.
'What did having a fondue set
say about you?'
Well, it said you were cool.
It said you were the kind
of person that might go skiing.
And it wasn't just the apres-ski
we were experiencing
for the first time.
Europe was unlocked in the 1970s
by the package holiday revolution.
This was the decade when suddenly,
we could travel abroad
in our millions
and discover
the Mediterranean beaches
with different people,
different language,
and my goodness me,
a very different cuisine.
Been to Spain? Oh!
Come back with the idea of paella.
Been to France?
Come back with a fish soup.
Or perhaps a fondue
from Switzerland.
Been to Italy?
It's all about the olives.
Those cheap package holidays
really did play into
the kind of things you saw
on the average dinner party table.
In 1973, Britain forged closer ties
with the Continent
when we joined
the European Economic Community.
The EEC was a club that Britain
had wanted to join for a long time.
You could see lots of possibilities
for employment, for new industries,
but, also, perhaps more importantly,
becoming European allowed Brits
to think of themselves as wine
drinkers as well as beer drinkers.
They could think of themselves as
having an informal salad with pasta,
rather than shepherd's pie
and sticky toffee pudding.
The burgeoning
British middle classes
had had their taste buds tickled,
and French cuisine
became a particular 1970s
dinner party favourite.
The rich had long been influenced
by French flavours in particular,
but now you saw the spread
of modern French foods
down to the lower middle classes
and even the working class.
It was wonderful.
You could try coq au vin,
you could try beef bourguignon,
Crepes Suzette to round it off.
And to help the '70s housewife
perfect French dishes,
a magazine was launched in the UK
by the famous cookery school
Cordon Bleu.
When the Cordon Bleu magazine
was launched,
purporting to teach
the average housewife
how to cook just like a French chef,
it was, of course,
an immediate success.
I think it's fair to say
the front of this one has a hostess
on the front,
very natty orange dress,
looking very proudly
at her chicken Veronique,
and it's basically telling you
that you can look glamorous
and turn out a dish
that you're going to be as proud of
as you are your own firstborn.
Fondue forks at the ready.
So, dig in.
It's steamy.
I'm gonna go get a little...
Yeah, get a little bit
of something on your fork.
Oh, hang on, I've gotta put this on.
And you dip it in.
There's a place in Dean Street
that does the Swiss...
Oh, really?
Yes.
Oh, someone pass Cheryl a napkin.
This one.
I-I said a napkin, Johnny.
Yeah, yeah, it shouldn't be too hot.
Be careful. It's really hot.
Very hot.
Too hot.
Blow it when you...
I'll blow it.
Oh, my God, they're burning!
Will everyone please be careful?
We didn't purchase the insurance
for cheesy mouth burns.
That's too hot.
Oh, it's lovely.
Gorgeous.
Did anyone ever go to Switzerland
and have a proper fondue?
I have.
Austria.
Yeah, in Austria...
In the mountains somewhere.
And so was it exactly like this?
It was like this.
I'm getting expert at this.
And while the guests have fun
with the fondue,
the main course is coming along,
and Rustie is prepping a dish
that any '70s party host
would be proud of.
I'm going
to be doing a dressed salmon.
This is going to be the showstopper.
I've got this lovely salmon
that I've taken the skin off,
I've poached it,
and I'm going to dress it now.
Everyone's hopefully going to go,
"Wow, isn't she fabulous?"
That's me.
So, we're going to just
put some parsley all around.
Everything had parsley on it.
That's hiding the bits
you don't want on show.
It's looking good already.
Serving up a decorative dish
like this
really showcased a host's skills,
but best set aside most of the day
to prep this poisson.
First things first,
finely slice copious cucumber.
So, you start off at the tail
and you just overlap them, really.
That was quick!
So, now I've finished with
the scales, and it looks lovely.
I'm going to do a mask on the fish.
That's right - she said "mask".
So, that'll set on the face,
cos a lot of people didn't like to
just see the fish looking at them.
Mix mayonnaise and a bit of gelatine
together to make a paste
and apply Liberally.
That's it.
I'll leave it to set now,
and then I'll decorate it up
and give him a lovely little face.
I can remember at home the first
foreign food my mum ever cooked
was spaghetti bolognese. Yeah?
I thought it came in a tin.
Oh, dear.
You used to be able to get it
in a tin!
Oh, my God. Oh, no!
Spaghetti bolognaise, Mum made.
Italian food,
I think Italian food
became a real thing
that everybody... Staple.
Yeah, everybody was buying pasta,
and there were a lot of
Italian restaurants. Pizza.
Pizza became a big thing.
Now the salmon is beautiful, but
this aspic salad is something else.
You see, the aspic is a jelly.
It's a see-through jelly.
Aspic was big in the '70s, but
funnily enough, not so much anymore.
It's a flavoured gelatine
that, when set in a mould,
is used to encase seafood, salad
and meat,
because everything looks good
stuck in jelly
So, I've already set the top part,
which is the decoration,
so when it turns out,
it looks very nice.
With the first layer set,
stick in the salad...
...and in goes the aspic jelly.
So, that's it.
In the '70s, this was all new.
Nobody knew about putting salad
in aspic.
Salad in aspic. It's...
It's the last thing
you want to have!
But my guests are gonna get this.
They're gonna have this, and
they're gonna love it or hate it.
Personally, I hate it.
Best keep that to yourself.
To the fridge.
Let's hope it sets it in time!
Coming up...
Here we go.
Oh, gosh. Whoo!
Will Rustie's jelly salad thing turn
out to be delicious or disgusting?
I don't remember having this
in the '70s, I must admit.
I think it's cos
we didn't really like it.
I'm getting it now!
It shouldn't be too hot.
It's really hot.
Very hot. Blow it when you...
Debbie McGee and Rustie Lee
are throwing a dinner party,
'70s style.
Oh, it's lovely. Gorgeous.
Debbie is front of house
and a stickler for table manners...
I think we might need our napkins.
...while Rustie is recreating
all those dishes
that would have knocked the socks
off your dinner guests.
To the fridge.
And now for the moment we've all
been waiting for - the main course.
The salmon is sitting pretty,
but has the aspic salad set?
I think it's ready.
Wondering how to get an aspic salad
to turn out perfectly
from its mould?
Sit it in some warm water
for a moment to loosen the jelly
and take a deep breath.
I hope it's going to come out.
Now, keep your fingers crossed,
everybody.
Here we go. Oh, gosh.
Whoo!
Yay!
There it is. Look at this!
Isn't that fantastic?
That looks beautiful, doesn't it?
Come on, be honest.
OK. Honestly,
it looks revolting.
You did ask.
And now a finishing touch.
Oh, I say. Debbie!
Oh, Rustie!
What do you think?
Oh, my gosh.
OK, shall we take it?
Come on. Yeah.
I'll get the salad.
What will our
unsuspecting guests make of this?
Oh, hang on a minute.
Oh. Rustie Lee!
It's so pretty.
What do you think of that, then?
That's fabulous.
When did he catch that?
Come on, Debbie.
This is amazing. I know what
this is, but what's this?
This is salad
in aspic jelly.
And I'm sure you're going
to love this.
It was a thing in the '70s.
It was.
Nice sell, ladies.
It's very colourful, just like you.
What do you call the fish?
Salmon.
I do this at Christmas, still.
But with cucumber.
Can't get you out of the '70s, then?
No.
It was all of the cucumber on.
You can see the face.
You didn't try the face.
Oh, you gotta do the face
and the lipstick.
And no 1970s dinner party
would be complete
without the appearance
of this ingenious invention.
Oh!
Voila!
And what have we got?
This is the hostess trolley.
And do you remember that program me?
The Sale Of The Century?
Yes.
They used to have them as prizes,
and the girls did this.
Just like you done.
I thought I'd do my bit.
So, I'll just get you a plate,
Rustie. OK?
There we go.
Thank you.
Oh.
That looks delicious.
Gorgeous.
Yummy.
There you go. Thank you, darling.
Thank you very much.
Can I have an eye, please?
This looks lovely. One more.
No, but, Rustie?
Yes, darling.
Leee John's got more than me.
Do you want the head?
She wants the head!
Oh, dear.
So, there you are.
Thank you.
Gorgeous. Thank you. Merci beaucoup.
Thank you.
See you in a bit. See you later.
Yeah. Thanks, Rustie.
Uh, Debbie, that aspic salad
isn't going to serve itself.
Before we get really stuck in,
I think we all need to try at least
a mouthful, don't you think?
Yeah, absolutely.
Everybody up for it?
I'll speak to my lawyer!
I know why Rustie left this to me.
It's not that easy!
It sounds delicious.
I think getting in from under
might...
I don't remember having this
in the '70s. I must have.
Yeah, I don't remember this.
I think it's cos
we didn't really like it.
And we're getting it now!
I'm going in, everyone.
Yeah.
It doesn't look edible.
No.
Put apple on.
Sweeten it.
It's quite... Yeah.
It's quite... Hm.
It's quite hm!
It is quite "hm!"
Is that a good "hm" or a bad "hm"?
It's... hm.
Oh. My middle tastes a lot better
than it looks.
Yeah. It does.
It really looks revolting.
Well, when it's on the plate,
it looks revolting.
Anyone for seconds of the aspic?
Anyone?
No?
We discovered many other
daring dishes back in the '70s -
along with exactly how to make them.
The era saw a steady rise
in households owning TV sets,
and with them came
a growing appetite
for cookery programmes.
Oh! I wondered where
I'd left that massive telly.
There's no chance
that we would have had
'70s dinner parties
without TV chefs.
Because people wouldn't have known
how on Earth to impress people.
And the queen of TV cookery
in the early '70s
was the formidable Fanny Cradock.
She first appeared in 1955
and, by the '70s,
had a cult-like following.
I've already whipped up
the egg whites. Darling,
come here a minute, will you?
Fanny regularly roped in her
unsuspecting assistants like this,
and was known
for her very direct manner.
And you must whip them up stiffly,
so that they're like that.
You see?
If they fall out, they're wrong.
Nobody had ever seen
anything like it before.
It was hilarious.
Fanny Cradock put the joy
back into post-war cookery.
She was somebody who understood
what the British viewers wanted
and gave them it in spades.
Her food now has the reputation
of being vile,
dyed green, over-reliant
on aspic and mayonnaise.
But actually,
she's one of those people
that deserves to be held up
as a real cooking hero.
Hot on Fanny's heels
was another star,
a Brit who literally
leapt into TV history
just a few years later.
Graham Kerr
was an authority in food,
but he was an entertainer,
and it was a completely different
type of show.
Here he is in action,
not taking the cooking too seriously
and having fun with the viewers.
This is really fascinating.
What's the matter, darling?
You all right?
It was a chat show. Studio audience,
which we met,
and one of them came
and would eat with him
at the end of the show.
It was very much about lifestyle.
He made food really appealing.
The late '70s
saw the beginning of the career
of another now iconic cook.
Delia Smith.
She was almost the polar opposite
to some of her predecessors.
She was a quiet,
rather shy character on screen
and someone who was almost
a real pedant in the kitchen,
telling you, step by step,
what to do.
Here she is taking her viewers
back to basics
to avoid any confusion
at the butcher's.
But I thought it might be nice
just to explain to you
what sort of meat you're likely to
use when you're making a casserole.
But she, too, hit the zeitgeist
because she was appealing to women
who really didn't have a clue
how to cook.
She took them through
what they needed to do
in a gentle, unassuming fashion.
She didn't hit them with
food colouring and exuberance.
She simply showed them what to do.
We coined a phrase,
"doing the Delia",
which meant literally doing
what Delia does.
She was our teacher, in a way
that we hadn't really seen before.
The TV chefs of the 1970s
inspired audiences across the nation
and paved the way
for the Gordons, Nigellas
and Rusties of the future.
Back at Rustie and Debbie's bash,
there are a lot of empty plates
and loads of aspic salad.
And everyone is remembering
the good old days.
My favourite subject!
# You, you, you! #
Me, me, me!
# Me, me, me! #
Well, I happen to have a photo.
Oh, yeah? Oh, yeah.
And this is a lovely memory.
So, this is with...
Ronnie Barker...
...and my sister and me,
and we're doing a...
It was a publicity shot
for Porridge.
But we both worked with
the Two Ronnies.
So, we both worked with them,
doing sketches and everything,
and it's such a lovely...
And he was such a lovely man.
He was just absolutely
just gorgeous, talented...
and a joy to work with,
as was Ronnie C.
Did you do The Two Ronnies?
You did the show?
Yeah, did loads of them.
You did?
Yeah, yeah, yeah. And, er...
Yeah, Ken Dodd.
I loved the Two Ronnies.
Dick Emery. Now we're dating!
Loved Dick Emery.
Oh, yeah.
"You are awful!
Yeah, that was good.
"..But I like you!"
Yeah.
So, what about you, Cheryl?
This is a girls' one, I think.
I don't think guys did it.
But you used to have straight hair
to there...
and then you'd be permed from there.
Do you remember that?
Yeah.
Was it the Kevin Keegan?
I don't know if it was called that.
He had a perm, didn't he?
He did, didn't he?
Oh, yeah.
And also the thigh-length boots.
Oh, I loved them.
Yeah.
Look at that.
Oh, they look great.
Look at those heels!
Yeah.
I still get my old ones out
for panto. Yeah.
You can still use them.
Yeah.
And I can remember,
you know, being a dancer,
and I used to have little sponge...
pink sponge rollers
that you did the ringlet on
with a clip. Yes, I know!
And then, one night,
you know, I went on stage,
I'd forgotten to take them out!
It's time for dessert.
And there's no stopping Rustie
in the kitchen.
She's got something
suitably spectacular
for the grand finale.
So, for dessert,
I'm making crepes Suzette.
It's really pancakes, actually,
but a bit thinner.
It's more than just pancakes,
Rustie.
Crepes Suzette was reserved
for the bravest of hosts.
It's a real performance pudding.
My maitre d' at my restaurant
used to make these.
He used to flambe them at the table.
And the orange liqueur
that you pour on,
the vapours from that,
he would light.
And it was fantastic to see.
So, Leee, what about you?
I used to be a singing waiter.
Wow!
Just off Bond Street.
And it was called Encore.
And here it is.
Oh!
And that's 1978, I think, '79,
just before Imagination.
And it got me my Equity card,
actually, and it was fun.
Look how cute he was!
I've got a picture of me
with, er, Tony Hart,
John Craven and all the others.
So, so... I loved, er, television,
but I was still doing clubs
at the beginning of the '70s,
and I had - I did
work with a couple of people.
For instance,
the Bee Gees only ever did one club,
and that was opening
the Fiesta Sheffield,
so I did that with them.
Honestly!
The '70s were amazing for me
cos I met Paul.
I worked with Paul in the theatre
for three years
before I joined the TV show,
but my first appearance
on the TV show,
he introduced me
as "the lovely Debbie McGee",
and then it stuck.
Great legs, girl.
Yes.
Rustie is approaching
the finishing line...
...with the help
of a trusty old friend.
You know, it was such a godsend
when these came in.
It was just a game-changer
because it would save you
having to whisk up so many things,
and there were so many other things
you could make,
which was a great help
to the housewife.
She could show off a bit more!
Whoa!
The 1970s saw an explosion
of technology and gadgets
for our homes.
The '70s was a really good time
for sort of early technology.
It wasn't always
the most reliable technology,
but it was new, and it was exciting.
And domestic gizmos
were flying off the shelves.
A lot more women started entering
the workplace for the first time.
They weren't simply homemakers,
and a lot of technology
was actually lab our-saving devices
then marketed at women specifically.
Anyone who's ever made a cake
which starts with
"Beat together the butter
and sugar until creamy"
will know that
that takes a very long time
and quite a lot of muscle power.
Now, however,
you stick it in your Kenwood Chef
and Bob's your uncle.
But no dinner party
in the 1970s would be complete
without a hostess trolley.
The heated hostess trolley
plugged in.
It would keep whatever it was
that you wanted to keep warm, warm,
and when you could lift off the lid,
there was a puff of steam.
It felt a little bit like those
posh hotels with butler service.
My dad bought one for my mum,
and it was a thing
that they were very proud of.
We'd have parties and people round,
and everybody would be, "Ooh, wow,
this is new and spectacular!
But, you know, it wasn't that long.
I'd give it a couple of years or so?
And I definitely remember
that thing
ended up in my dad's shed
with all his tools in it.
But they weren't half noisy.
It wasn't just the big-ticket items
that were popular in '70s kitchens.
I remember electric tin openers
stuck onto the wall
that people used to
bang their heads on.
The apple peeler. Fantastic gadget.
Yoghurt makers or to as tie makers.
Oh, there was so many crazy things
that they were just coming out with.
And I think
it was that consumerism-driven...
It's like,
"What can we sell them next?
Some were very useful,
and some were useful
if you used them.
Others, I suspect, got quietly
put to the back of the cupboard
and then, well,
discarded at the next jumble sale.
Nobody needs
an electric carving knife.
Oh!
Coming up, the big finale.
What have we got?
Crepes Suzette!
Rustie is making dessert -
and it's lit.
Literally.
I'm about to light it now.
And here comes the flame-thrower!
The 1970s
dinner party has been a hit.
The specially-selected dishes
and drinks from the era
have gone down a treat.
Here's to the super '70s.
Absolutely.
The diners have been transported
back in time this evening.
But it's not over yet,
is it, Rustie?
Ooh, am I brave enough?
Don't laugh at me!
Wah! I did it!
Only 30 more to go!
Rustie is serving crepes Suzette.
The crepes will be drenched
in orange liqueur
and set alight
to bedazzle the guests.
I'm going to do that at the table.
Hope I don't set the house
on fire!
Show them what you got, Rustie.
Hope the fire extinguisher
is on standby.
Oh, oh!
Ooh!
Have I got a surprise for you!
Oh, what have we got?
Crepes Suzette!
Well, let me light this up,
and then I'll...
Oh, you're gonna cook it for us!
Oh, thank God.
You can do it, Rustie.
You can do it.
Yeah.
Ooh!
Cooking with gas!
Very filling.
Is that a flambe going on?
Yes, a bit of a flambe.
Well, what's this?
Oh, Grand Marnier!
Marnier's going in.
And here comes the flame-thrower.
Yes. Hold on a minute...
Heating the liqueur in the crepes
releases vapour,
which Rustie is going to set alight.
Flambe.
I can't believe how much
Grand Marnier you're putting!
Yes, it's a lot of Grand Marnier.
You'll be under the table
when I'm finished with you lot.
Ooh, she's adding more!
I'm about to light it now.
Oh, here we go.
OK, OK. Light my fire.
Great, isn't it?
Is there any vodka out there?
Oh, well done!
Rustie, you are on fire, baby.
Oh, thank you!
Are you ready for this now?
Oh, we're really ready.
I bet this'll be flaming good, this.
Fantastic.
It smells amazing!
It really does.
Oh, this one's beautiful.
I'll have that one, then.
I got one.
Right, I'm going to join you now.
Well done!
Thank you very much.
Is everything OK?
Absolutely bloomin' lovely.
The Grand Marnier...
Absolutely lovely.
As I said, it melts in your mouth.
So, this was my favourite dessert
in the '70s.
But my second in line
was Arctic Roll.
Yes! Arctic Roll!
Sponge with ice cream.
And we used to get
a tin of peach halves.
I'd put half a peach
on the top of the ice cream
and pour the peach juice.
So, what was your other desserts
that you can remember?
Spotted dick.
Do you remember,
you used to be able to buy those,
erm, trifle mixes.
I think it was Bird's.
Bird's, yeah.
And you'd make the jelly,
and you'd make the custard,
and you'd whip up the cream.
The cream never tasted like cream.
And then you'd have
hundreds and thousands on the top.
The top, yeah, yeah, yeah.
Cheers.
Great to see you all.
So, our evening spent in the 1970s
is coming to an end.
It was a lovely walk
down memory lane.
It was fabulous.
I was surrounded by '70s beauties.
For years,
we've laughed at the decade
and written it off
as a time of strange food
and out-there fashion.
Oh, they look great.
Look at those heels.
But back then, we were masters
of entertaining at home.
We've got Liebfraumilch.
Hated it!
Lethal muck.
The art of sitting together,
telling stories...
He was such a lovely man.
...and pretending
something is delicious.
Yay!
I'm going in, everyone.
It looks revolting, really.
So, this weekend,
phone up some friends,
dust off the fondue set,
and let's get entertaining.
But just be careful
WHAT you cover in jelly.
We had a lovely time.
And long live the '70s.
Cheers!
Here's to Rustie!
Thank you. And you have been
fabulous guests. Thank you.
And you've been a fabulous hostess.
Thank you. Mwah!