Pro-hunting TV chef dies

TV cooking star and hunting supporter Clarissa Dickson Wright has died aged 66.

Miss Dickson Wright, who had been “unwell for some time” according to her agent, had stayed in Edinburgh’s Royal Infirmary since January.

She died on Saturday (15 March).

The former barrister was an outspoken campaigner for rural life and supported the Countryside Alliance. She claimed that the BBC dropped her controversial series, Clarissa and the Countryman, in 2003 for being too pro-hunting and upsetting the then prime minister Tony Blair.

She was prosecuted for hare coursing alongside trainer Sir Mark Prescott in 2007. They were both absolutely discharged after pleading guilty at Scarborough Magistrates Court in 2009, with the judge ruling that the interpretation of the Hunting Act was unclear at the time of the offence.

At 21, Miss Dickson Wright — most famous for starring in the BBC Two cooking series Two Fat Ladies with the late Jennifer Paterson — became the youngest barrister to be called to the bar. But that career came to an end due to a well-documented battle with alcohol, after which she moved into the catering industry. She had been tee-total for nearly 27 years.

She also starred as a gamekeeper in an episode of sitcom Absolutely Fabulous.

Her agent said in a statement: “Loved dearly by her friends and many fans, Clarissa was utterly non-PC and fought for what she believed in, always, with no thought to her personal cost.

“Her fun and laughter, extraordinary learning and intelligence, will be missed always.”

Martha Terry

H&H features editor

Martha is an experienced journalist who is mad-keen on dogs of all shapes and sizes. After growing up with assorted liver and white springer spaniels, she enjoyed 14 years with two rescue dogs, one a street dog from Gambia who was abandoned at three weeks old. Now, her constant companion, whether by her feet at her desk or walking cross-country courses, is Fidget, an extremely energetic and habitually muddy black and white springer. Martha has written on topics as diverse as a top horse’s clone to the best GPS trackers for dogs, as well as equestrian and rural matters for Country Life, The Field, The Times, The Spectator and The Telegraph alongside Horse & Hound.