Name: Rupert Willday
Job title: Director of food and development
Company: Charlie Bigham’s
What was your first job? Kitchen porter, which is pretty amusing given that I’ve ended up in the food industry, despite my path here through fine art printmaking.
What’s been your worst job interview? Imagine this: flew 6,000 miles from South Africa to the Lake District for a sous chef gig. Rocked up with minutes to spare in January rain so torrential it could drown a trout. Still landed the job, mind!
What was the first music single you bought? The first single I ever bought was The Final Countdown by Europe, on vinyl – a proper classic!
“I don’t think we should worry about awkward moments too much. You just have to embrace them, laugh, and move on”
How do you describe your job to your friends? Director of food and development is too formal. In reality, I tell my mates that I eat food, talk about food, and occasionally pretend that’s work. The longer version is that I lead a team of 20 brilliant minds to refine and improve our recipes every single day.
What is the most rewarding part of your job? Food is magic. It’s the glue that bonds people together – science and creativity colliding on a plate. You’ve got to respect the rules (it’s not alchemy, after all), but bending them? That’s where the fun begins. Making food that sparks joy for our customers? Properly chuffed to do that.
What is the least rewarding part? The motorway at rush hour. I spend a lot of time in my car.
What’s your motto in life? Wing it, follow your passion, and have fun along the way.
If you were allowed one dream perk, what would it be? I love coffee but already have as much of it as I want at work, so it would be free chocolate. Mountains of it.
Do you have any phobias? I don’t actually – no fear of forgetting to turn the oven off either!
If you could change one thing in grocery, what would it be? Make supermarkets fun. Less fluorescent lighting and endless aisles, more pleasure and less chore!
What luxury would you have on a desert island? This one is easy. Coffee. Seven or eight cups a day please!
What animal most reflects your personality? If the Grinch were an animal… Let’s leave it at that!
What’s your favourite film and why? The Princess Bride. It’d be inconceivable to choose anything else – hands down the greatest film ever made.
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What has been the most embarrassing moment in your life? I don’t have one stand-out embarrassing moment… I’ve had loads, and I genuinely enjoy them.
I’ve dropped things, said the wrong thing (often), and done plenty of daft stuff. But I don’t think we should worry about awkward moments too much. You just have to embrace them, laugh, and move on. They’re part of the fun.
Which celebrity would you most like to work with and why? I’m not too fussed about celebrities but maybe someone like Stanley Tucci just for the chance to have a laugh and talk about food. That’s the kind of ‘collaboration’ I can get behind. He doesn’t live far from me either.
What would your death row meal be? Bacon sandwich. Smoked streaky bacon (not too crispy), with the bread toasted in the bacon fat, just a hint of brown sauce and a coffee.
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