Pub "betrayed" by Jamie Oliver show
The pub featured in Jamie Oliver's new TV series claims it has been "betrayed" by the way the chef portrayed it in the show.
Maureen Cross, who runs the King's Head in Theddlethorpe, Lincolnshire with her husband Phil, has hit out at the celebrity chef for painting its project to deliver dinners to a local school as a failure.
The programme did not mention the fact that the pub is continuing to provide hot dinners to two schools in the area.
She claimed that last Monday's episode of Jamie's Return to School Dinners was not a fair reflection of the effort the pub had put into the project.
"I've lost a lot of respect for him," said Mrs Cross. "He should have at least said we have kept doing dinners. We thought it would be fair and not just highlight the bad points. We all feel betrayed by Jamie."
George Blanchard, headteacher at Theddlethorpe Primary, one of the school's featured in the programme, was also dismayed. "As far as I'm concerned it was a case of don't let the truth get in the way of a good soap opera," said Mr Blanchard. "We are very happy with what's coming from the pub, we've had some lovely meals. The kids are eating them with gusto."
The programme - a follow-up to last year's Jamie's School Dinners - also featured the pub's chef Steve Cross, who had been hired two days earlier. Viewers saw the chef being barracked by Oliver for failing to maintain hygiene levels.
However, Mrs Cross, who is not related to the chef, claimed she told Oliver she looked after the kitchen and did not want to leave it to her new chef. Steve Cross was sacked from the pub before filming ended.
Peter Berry, a spokesman for Jamie Oliver, said inevitably some material could not be included because 120 hours of footage had to be edited into a 70-minute programme.
He added: "At the end of the programme in July the situation at the pub was uncertain. This is reflected in the way the story was left with an open question as to whether the pub would continue to provide schools with food.
"It's terrific that the pub is still providing food for schools and doing so successfully."
