The Peak District’s world-famous delicacy, the Bakewell Pudding, has been revealed as part of England’s Hall of Fame to celebrate St George’s Day.
The hotly anticipated Hall of Fame exhibition opens to the public on St George’s Day. Running for one week until 30th April, the free open-air exhibition will take place at Observation Point on London’s Southbank.
Bakewell Pudding – created by accident at the town’s Rutland Arms Hotel in the mid-19th century – has scooped a Bronze award in the Food and Drink category, third only to the sandwich (Gold) and England’s oldest gin distillery in Plymouth (Silver).
David James, Chief Executive of Visit Peak District & Derbyshire, the area’s official tourist board, said: “It’s no surprise that the Bakewell Pudding has been selected as one of the prize-winning ingredients in England’s Hall of Fame – it’s been enjoyed by residents and tourists for more than 150 years, and today is despatched all over the world for people to savour.
“This is a great accolade for the Peak District, whose fine local food and drink offer is perhaps not as well-known and appreciated outside the area as it deserves to be. We hope the Bakewell Pudding’s success will pave the way to a higher profile for other examples of our delicious and wide-ranging produce.”
Julie Hurst, manager of The Old Original Bakewell Pudding Shop in Bakewell, which claims to be the custodian of the original recipe, added: “It is a huge honour for the Original Bakewell Pudding to appear in England’s Hall of Fame and to find ourselves among some of the country’s premium assets.
We pride ourselves on the Pudding still being made by hand to the age-old original recipe and it is exciting for both our shop and bakery, and Bakewell as a town, that it has been recognised as one of England’s elite. The award winners come from all corners of the country, so we are proud to be representing the Peak District with our traditional dish.”
The search to establish England’s Hall of Fame began in February when the tourist board asked the public to submit their suggestions. The Hall of Fame app received almost 1,000 submissions from Harry Potter to Harry Styles, the mini skirt to the tuxedo, The Beatles to punk music, and Earl Grey tea to the Scotch Egg.
A panel of experts has awarded a bronze, silver and gold across six categories, to celebrate the best of what England has brought to the world and what makes the country such a diverse and fascinating place to visit and explore.
England’s ultimate Hall of Fame consists of:
History & Heritage
- Bronze – The four surviving original copies of Magna Carta, sealed in 1215 at Runnymede, Surrey, and regarded by historians as the foundation of constitutional liberty in the English-speaking world
- Silver – The smooth lawns and sweeping vistas of England’s landscaping master, Capability Brown, as seen at Northumberland’s Kirkharle Lake and Courtyard
- Gold – Portsmouth Historic Dockyard, the world’s oldest industrial complex and a crucial part of England’s naval heritage
The Great, the Good and the Notorious
- Bronze – World-renowned, elusive graffiti artist Banksy, whose original murals can be spotted on a guided tour of Bristol’s street art
- Silver – Robin Hood, England’s lovable outlaw, whose world-famous legend is rooted in Sherwood Forest on the outskirts of Nottingham
- Gold – Founder of the National Trust, Octavia Hill, whose birthplace museum in Wisbech, Cambridgeshire, is dedicated to her life and social reforms
Food & Drink
- Bronze – The Bakewell Pudding, first made at a local inn in Derbyshire during the 19th century… and whose recipe was something of a happy accident!
- Silver – England’s oldest working gin distillery in Plymouth, whose guided tours provide a glimpse into the centuries-old process of gin making
- Gold – The sandwich, an essential part of afternoon tea, which was named in honour of its ingenious inventor, John Montagu, the 4th Earl of Sandwich. Enjoy them cut up into dainty fingers at Woburn Abbey, where the tradition of afternoon tea was popularised around 1840.
Inventions & Discoveries
- Bronze – England as the birthplace of the steam locomotive, whose steam train attractions can be found chugging merrily around the country. A working replica of the world’s first operational steam locomotive can be seen in action at Blists Hill Victorian Town in Ironbridge, Shropshire, whilst Birmingham’s Thinktank Science Museum is worth visiting for its exciting demonstrations of the steam engine’s power.
- Silver – Sir Isaac Newton’s family home at Woolsthorpe Manor in Lincolnshire, where the English physicist and mathematician first wrote his theory of gravity
- Gold – Isambard Kingdom Brunel’s engineering masterpieces in Bristol, including the magnificent Clifton Suspension Bridge and SS Great Britain passenger steamship.
Sport & Leisure
- Bronze – The annual BNY Mellon Boat Race (known also as the Oxford vs Cambridge Boat Race), established in 1829 and one of the world’s oldest sporting events
- Silver – The home of tennis, from Hampton Court Palace in Richmond-upon-Thames, where the sport is thought to have been invented, to Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Museum
- Gold – The incidental birth of modern rugby during a football game at Rugby School in Warwickshire
Culture & Entertainment
- Bronze – Glastonbury, the granddaddy of all festivals on Worthy Farm in Somerset
- Silver –Hampshire’s elegant Highclere Castle, the real-life location of ITV’s hugely successful Downton Abbey
- Gold – The Beatles, whose mop-top haircuts and irresistibly catchy tunes set fans’ hearts on fire in 1960s Liverpool.
Source: Visit Peak District
