Living on the Veg
| Living on the Veg | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Created by | Henry Firth and Ian Theasby |
| Presented by | Henry Firth and Ian Theasby |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language | English |
| No. of series | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 10 |
| Original release | |
| Release | January 12, 2020 --> – present |
Living on the Veg is a British vegan cookery programme that first aired in 2020 on ITV1. It is hosted by the cookery writers and bloggers Henry Firth and Ian Theasby, a duo known as BOSH!, and produced by Rock Oyster Media. Each episode features a guest.
Production
Firth and Theasby met at High Storrs School in Sheffield as children and became friends. The pair became vegan in 2015; Theasby first, with Firth following after seeing Cowspiracy.[1][2] They then formed BOSH!, producing vegan cookery videos for YouTube and social media, garnering over a billion views.[3] They authored a series of successful cookery books, as well as How to Live Vegan, a book about living as a vegan in a non-vegan world.[4][2] As early as 2017, Firth and Theasby hoped to host the first vegan cookery show. They pitched the idea to a range of production companies, but had no success, and started to wonder if their approach was the right one. They were then approached by Rock Oyster Media, who asked if the pair had considered producing a vegan cookery programme.[2] Michael Connock, Rock Oyster's executive producer, said that the company "is delighted to be working with Ian and Henry, dishing up plate after plate of their unique blend of wholesome and delicious food. With the subject of diet taking such a prominent place in the climate change debate it seems timely and relevant to be producing a programme about plant-based food."[5]
The programme was commissioned for ITV by the network's commissioning editor for daytime entertainment Lara Akeju and the commissioning assistant Leanne Clarke.[5] The programme was ITV's first ever vegan cookery programme.[3] In producing Living on the Veg, Firth and Theasby hoped to appeal beyond the vegan market, to flexitarian and even meat-eating audiences.[2]
The first episode, which was aired on 12 January 2020, featured sponsorship from the supermarket Waitrose, along with ITV's other Sunday morning cookery programming. This led to a backlash from vegans, as the Waitrose adverts featured non-vegan products and footage of farmed animals. Spokespersons from The Vegan Society and PETA argued that Waitrose could have used the adverts to showcase their plant-based products. Waitrose apologised, explaining that they were not aware of the content of Living on the Veg in advance, and explained that they were speaking to ITV to "make sure that all foods featured in the future are more matched to the topics in the show".[3]
Format
The first series was made up of ten one-hour episodes, airing weekly on Sunday mornings. On the programme, Firth and Theasby produce a series of vegan foods, for a range of meals, including "pizzas, burgers, curries, pies, big breakfasts, [and] decadent desserts".[6][5] They aim to walk viewers "through a new weekly menu every episode".[7] Every episode features a guest.[3] The tone is light-hearted, featuring back-and-forth between Firth and Theasby.[2]
Episodes
| Episode number | First broadcast date | Recipes | Guest |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 12 January 2020 | Roast dinner; avocado snack hacks; curry house jalfrezi; English ploughman's sandwich; sticky toffee pudding | Sadie Frost |
| 2 | 19 January 2020 | Full English breakfast; lasagne; burgers; nut-based snack hacks; salted caramel apple crumble | Alex Beresford |
| 3 | 26 January 2020 | Paella; Texas BBQ pizza; beetroot ravioli with slaw; houmous snack hacks; Victoria sponge | Day Radley |
| 4 | 2 February 2020 | TBA | TBA |
| 5 | 9 February 2020 | TBA | TBA |
| 6 | 16 February 2020 | TBA | TBA |
| 7 | 23 February 2020 | TBA | TBA |
| 8 | 1 March 2020 | TBA | TBA |
| 9 | 8 March 2020 | TBA | TBA |
| 10 | 15 March 2020 | TBA | TBA |
References
- ^ Blackledge, Richard (21 November 2019). "Sheffield's BOSH! to present their own TV series about vegan cookery". The Star. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
- ^ a b c d e Scott, Catherine (26 January 2020). "Meet the vegan sensations from Sheffield who now have their own TV show". The Yorkshire Post. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
- ^ a b c d Carpani, Jessica (18 January 2020). "Waitrose apologises for offending vegans by advertising meat and dairy during ITV's first plant-based cooking show". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
- ^ Sitwell, William (24 September 2019). "At home with the Bosh! boys: but how much sense does their new vegan manifesto make?". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
- ^ a b c Chandler, Mark (22 November 2019). "BOSH! duo serve up vegan cookery show for ITV". The Bookseller. Retrieved 26 January 2019.
- ^ "Living On The Veg" (press release). ITV. 18 December 2019. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
- ^ "Living on the Veg". BOSH!. Retrieved 26 January 2020.