TV cook Nigella Lawson seems to have landed the BBC in more hot water after she inadvertently seemed to endorse supermarket Waitrose in her latest show.
The first episode of her new instant cookery series, Nigella Express, saw the domestic goddess use the store and its products not once, not twice, but three times – possibly breaching the BBC’s policy on product placement.
In one shot she was seen taking a packet of Waitrose pork chops from the shelves, while another showed her fridge full of the supermarket's products, and a third saw her travelling to the supermarket in a taxi. (Not very environmentally friendly one might add.)
The Beeb itself slams any such suggestions saying: "We absolutely refute any claims of product placement. The programme was produced within BBC guidelines."
But was it?
One viewer argues that despite the programme trying to disguise Waitrose labels, it was “obvious” where Nigella was doing her shopping. “It would be a bit like Jamie Oliver charging round to Sainsbury’s for one of his cookery shows,” the viewer said.
Meanwhile Waitrose Food Illustrated editor William Sitwell seemed to miss the point entirely saying: “You can’t blame Nigella for using quality products.”
Nigella clearly wouldn’t be seen strolling down the aisles of the local ASDA and while one might wonder why the local butcher or vegetable store wasn’t good enough a destination for her taxi ride, I guess the question remains – does anyone (other than Waitrose) actually care where she shops?
Comments (1)
I wish Nigella would keep her hair tied up. I would hate to eat anything she cooked because of all the hairs that might be in it. Very insanitary. And I wish she would stop peeping from under her eyelids at me - she looks soppy.
Posted by Patricia White | September 24, 2007 5:06 PM
Posted on September 24, 2007 17:06