The Plonker Club

In what is no doubt some of the most distressing news that I have heard this year, rumours are circulating the internet that Gordon Ramsay will not be making any more Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares.

The original quote comes from The Sun newspaper in the UK and according to them Gordon Ramsay said “If the restaurants succeed, there’s no praise. If they’re screwed, we’re blamed and get lawyers’ letters,” he said.

Read more…

Gordon Ramsay is back for a fifth season with one of his most popular television series – The F Word in November.

As with seasons past, competitors will be cooking in his kitchen each week and this year, hoping to make the final for a yet unknown prize. These competitors will be made up of chefs and owners from top restaurants (as voted by the public) for the past few months. This ‘support your local restaurant’ theme has been popular with Gordon Ramsay in years past and never more than during the current ‘credit crunch’ and will no doubt give some struggling restaurants some much needed publicity and highly qualified referrals. Read more…

For all of us whose local programmers don’t allow us to see all of Gordon Ramsay’s shows any time near their original airing, have to date had to really on the internet, whther it be torrents or video sites like Youtube. But as Youtube cracks down on copyrighted materials – access is getting harder and harder, unless your local broadcasters also broadcasts on the internet (usually only within the home country though)!

To the rescue come Channel 4, the UK station which airs almost all of Gordon Ramsay’s television shows (and was one of the first to also streamshows over the web). There is talk of a deal with youtube to display contents of Channel 4′s catch up service, 4oD, via the now Google-owned YouTube. Read more…

Channel 4 have been inundated with applications and have thus extended the deadline to submit your favourite local restaurant – which then allows you to apply for a spot in the F Word restaurant for next seasons show.

The criteria to nominate your favourite local restaurant as the best in one of eight categories (British, French, Italian, Spanish, Chinese, Indian,Thai and ‘other’)- as listed on the official Channel 4 page are as follows

1. Serve high quality food

2. Provide great service

3. Are run by people who are passionate about food

4. Are run by people who deliver above and beyond expectation

5. Are run by people who exhibit pride and passion for their craft and profession

Restaurants should also meet the following criteria, otherwise they may be excluded:

6. Have at least 2 chefs

7. Be willing to take part in The F Word programme and are available for filming on specific dates to be notified by us in advance from July to December 2009

8. Be available to take part in an interview over the phone with us at a time of our choosing

9. The chefs taking part in the Programme and owner(s) of the restaurant do not have any criminal convictions and are not (from the date of nomination to the date of broadcast) under any criminal investigation

10. The chefs taking part in the Programme and owner(s) of the restaurant must sign our contributor release form

Also the food needs to available for £50 (excluding wine) for two, not be a restaurant chain and have at least 10 seats.

Get your vote sin and then to get work convincing the producers why you are a worthy UK resident to be served in the F-Word restaurant.

Don’t delay

Chief Plonker
The Plonker Club
The Unofficial Gordon Ramsay Fansite
www.theplonkerclub.com

The new series of the Gordon Ramsay’s hit television show ‘The F-word’ will be shooting later this year, Channel 4 in the UK has already started planning the content including a competition to select your favourite local restaurant.

For more details follow these links – but hurry, entires close July 17 at midnight (UK time).
http://www.channel4.com/food/on-tv/f-word/about-the-f-word-series-5-09-06-17_p_1.html

http://www.fword.tv/nominate.aspx

The dates that the show will be recorded as as follows (according to the application form!)

16th Sep 09
18th Sep 09
23rd Sep 09
25th Sep 09
30th Sep 09

2nd Oct 09
7th Oct 09
9th Oct 09
20th Oct 09
21st Oct 09
22nd Oct 09
26th Oct 09
27th Oct 09
28th Oct 09

2nd Nov 09
3rd Nov 09
4th Nov 09
11th Nov 09

Chief Plonker
The Plonker Club
The Unofficial Gordon Ramsay Fansite
www.theplonkerclub.com