Kat Powell
Queen Elizabeth II: A Reign Through Recipes
Co-written by former Royal correspondent, Lynne Pritchard, and former Royal chef, Stephen O’Doherty, this biographical recipe book takes the reader through significant moments throughout Queen Elizabeth II’s life with accompanying recipes from different occasions and eras. From her majesty’s first national broadcast to the celebrations of the Platinum Jubilee, each section will contain detail about royal culinary culture and individual tastes. This book explores how food can tell the story of a changing monarchy, but more importantly, how it can help to understand one remarkable woman’s life.
Title: Queen Elizabeth II: A Reign Through Recipes
Authors: Former royal correspondent, Lynne Pritchard and former royal chef, Stephen O’Doherty
Publisher: Canongate
Format: Hardback
Length: 250
Price: £25
Outline:
Biographical recipe book, retelling the life of Queen Elizabeth II through recipes from significant events, periods and people in her life. Each recipe is accompanied by anecdotes from the authors and from Royal family and friends.
Market:
- Of unique interest to royalists
- Gift book for Christmas
Research:
- International interest in Royal family, Queen specifically https://www.bbc.com/news/world-62955392
- Queen’s favourability ratings by country could be useful for international sales https://www.statista.com/statistics/889574/the-queen-s-favourability-rating/
- Statistics show support for monarchy highest in those over 55 (77%) https://www.statista.com/statistics/863893/support-for-the-monarchy-in-britain-by-age/ This means that marketing can remain relatively traditional – i.e. advertising, breakfast show appearances by authors etc.
- Harvard Common Press on ‘Who buys cookbooks and why?’ https://diannej.com/2014/who-buys-cookbooks-and-why/ suggests that the market is mostly women
USPs:
- Unique content – recipes are accompanied by biographical content providing a deeper insight into royal life
- Credible authors – provide unique perspective and authentic recipes
- Timing – to be published September 2023, after King’s coronation, before anniversary of Queen’s death and in time for Christmas
Publisher and fit:
Canongate has published a number of celebrity biographies (e.g. Barack Obama’s Dreams from my Father), and several celebrity cookbooks; this book would add something new to their list as it combines the two.
Pub Date:
September 2023 (to commemorate the anniversary of her death and in time for Christmas sales)
Competition:
Eating Royally: Recipes and Remembrances from a Palace Kitchen Cookbook by Darren McGrady (Rutledge Hill Press)
- Personal anecdotes from Princess Diana’s personal chef
- Only available in US
A Royal Cookbook: Seasonal Recipes from Buckingham Palace (The Royal Collection Trust)
- Published by Royal Collection Trust so a reputable source
- Only recipes, no background/bio info so impersonal
Elizabeth II: A Queen for Our Time by Chris Jackson (Rizzoli International Publications)
- Personal anecdotes
- Never before seen photos
- Not direct competition as it is a photography book not a cookbook
This is a book that I think would sell really well in the UK market and I think many people would see this as a wonderful way to commemorate the queen. I wonder if you could even get some of her surviving family members to bring in some of their favorite recipes that remind them either of her, or of their memories shared together to give it even more of a personal touch.
This would have International as well as UK appeal, especially if you weaved in recipes from key trips abroad. It’s a nice idea and builds on the interest generated from the trifle recipe that was chosen for The Queen’s 70yrs banquet, which was based on a recipe from her Wedding.