1978: MELTON MOWBRAY - BEST PIE in the WORLD? | A Taste of Britain | BBC Archive

The market town of Melton Mowbray in Leicestershire is particularly famous for one thing - pork pies. A quintessentially English food, this excerpt shows the effort that goes into making them by hand.
Clip taken from A Taste of Britain: Forard, Forard, originally broadcast on BBC Two, Tuesday 8 August, 1978.
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[@dasnutnock6408]

A pie and a pint. I'm not sure life gets much better.

[@jamesellsworth9673]

Well...taken in a traditional pub.

[@BoomSkwad47]

Pie and some scotch. Preferably highland single malt

[@FXSTB-i]

Surprised the BBC allowed this comment.

[@iHawke]

a prayer and a pint

[@DIETRICHCICCONE]

My local bakery here in Dublin was run by an elderly man from Rutland. In addition to bread, he sold pork pies - but only on Saturdays for some reason. They were DELICIOUS. He used sage and parsley in the filling, not just salt and pepper. M&S pork pies aren't a patch on them. The baker, a Mr Hepplewhite, sadly passed away a couple of years ago. RIP

[@Tophu48548]

lots of love to you, from rutland!

[@NoPantsBaby]

Cause of the Sabbath. Gotta cause maximum offense when you're that old. Don't got much time left.

[@Lord.Kiltridge]

We live on in the hearts of the people we touch. Thank you for sharing.

[@NormaStitz-w1f]

A big wedge of Melton Mowbray, a chunk of extra mature red Leicester, a thick slice of crusty farmhouse with real butter, a generous blob of. Piccalilli and I am In heaven.

[@Londonechoes]

My Mouth watered reading this

[@joanne26]

Sounds Yummy Yummy That’s my kind of pub lunch I think I heard a news report in the last few weeks about a famous pork pie shop closing I’m not sure where in the places known for making them like Leicester etc 😃😃❤️❤️👍 👍 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

[@newspaperface]

No Colman's?

[@NormaStitz-w1f]

@@newspaperface Good point.

[@morbidsnails1913]

Pork pie with a generous dollop of Colemans English mustard is just wonderful.

[@DeannaAllison]

Pork pies sure are addictive. I don't get why some people don't like the delicious jelly. I love it.

[@NormaStitz-w1f]

@@DeannaAllison Here here!

[@nez9751]

I agree, the jelly’s the best bit.

[@alejandrotapia4749]

I'm mexican but I love England with all my heart and how much I miss the old england

[@goldieandblackie]

It's still here just harder to find.

[@stevestannard6004]

​@@goldieandblackieyeah just avoid the cities and towns.

[@harryw2903]

Imagine how much we miss it

[@cleanerben9636]

Thank you, and yeah we miss old England too!

[@fredo1070]

Beautiful, what a treasure trove.

[@AndrewHay-u1k]

Whoever said they don't have good food over there? These look bloody marvellous.

[@CricketEngland]

We have good food in the U.K. Good Beef, Lamb, Cheese, Fish, Whiskey and Beers as well as our Pork Pies and our Bakewell Tarts

[@NormaStitz-w1f]

Not to mention river-caught salmon, Cumberland & Lincolnshire sausages, hot buttered crumpets, scones with clotted cream & home made jam, Lancashire hotpot and the Birmingham Balti.

[@johntate5722]

This'd be torture to someone on a diet

[@Bobble86]

Some of the highest quality meat in the world, island nation so huge range of seafood, beautiful seasonal produce. The stereotype is outdated parroted by idiots.

[@digitaldobbie]

2 of my favourite words put together to make something special, pork and pie!

[@richardsaunders4307]

Would dearly love to watch this whole series again. Such a time capsule. I loved listening to Derek Cooper'on The Food Program on Radio 4, what a fantastic voice

[@joanne26]

Memories of making a genuine pork pie Very manual but made with ❤ Derek Cooper I remember watching him on TV And Keith Floyd They were characters ❤️❤️❤️❤️🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿👍 👍 👍 😃😃

[@JJ-go7re]

RIP Great Britain, you were so original and hard working. So sad

[@jungleboy1]

someone needs to make a time machine and fast....

[@JJ-go7re]

@@jungleboy1 amen🙏

[@hattorihanzo69]

We need our sovereignty back

[@NickMullet]

So happy everytime I see one of these pop up :)

[@CricketEngland]

Always love a good quality Poke Pie, nothing better for a summer picnic along with a good cheddar cheese and a cold beer

[@whiteonggoy7009]

I see started 1851 and still made today.

[@IOSAGifts]

BBC Archive, cool video keep up the good content

[@Al-iv3mb]

Back then if you lived outwith that area Melton Mowbray pies were only available in delicatessens. I remember Saxby's were a delicious treat for this teenage lad.

[@mrrusty3330]

blimey i'm starving now pork pie stilton and beer

[@yann664]

They don't say it there I don't think, but Stilton also comes from Melton Mowbray. It was only sold in Stilton

[@HARRi81_UK]

Fantastic 😊

[@pakijetli]

Haha the guy at the end "a succulent Chinese pie?"

[@ronmccullock1407]

Looks delicious

[@Evans_Yellow]

I wish i was a pork pie

[@brettwalters-n4u]

The taste of my childhood, I always loved pork pies since I was a wee lad.

[@ChillToMusic87]

Work of art 👌🏼

[@metal87power]

British have an obsession with pies. In the future, another civilization would conclude that those people were great mathematicians.

[@GrannyDryden]

Bloody salivating here…

[@PeaveyPV20]

Proper pork pies and only type i really enjoy and washed down with a lint if beer from burton too

[@KhrystynaBraverman]

That’s something 😮

[@jolly-rancher]

This is what Britain used to be about

[@rensha8635]

Made with love by those dear old ladies. You can only imagine what their modern factories look like now. 😢

[@NormaStitz-w1f]

@@rensha8635 The real Melton Mowbrays are still made much the same way. Ade Edmundson did a programme on them a couple of years ago.

[@newspaperface]

​@@NormaStitz-w1fthat's true but with Sainsbury's Tesco Morrisons Asda Waitrose even Aldi and Lidl all selling Melton mowbray pies by the thousands every day you can be sure they're not made like this

[@stevegordon5689]

I've just imagined god help us!

[@Bobble86]

A good butchers will still make them. Not everything is mass produced like you seem to think.

[@user-fj3ox1pu3x]

LOOKS GREAT.

[@smallsmalls3889]

And Melton Pork pies are still the best you can buy and eat

[@nez9751]

Ploughman’s lunch using this pie, good cheese, pickles, salad nice crusty bread. A pint of Guinness, doesn’t get much better than that for me. .

[@irieblue-mf5sd]

Stop it!

[@jonnylons1]

Anyone else hungry?

[@ARZA-k3w]

Already had an ice cream :)

[@Phil-Mar]

So hungry.. Please send one to me here in Wisconsin!

[@vp5633]

Hungry for your seed Jonny, load me daddy.

[@gabeh7923]

Me! I want two of these, please.

[@Baltihunter]

Or thirsty?

[@beeble2003]

"When the ladies have finished making htem, they're egged, trayed and put into the three-decked oven." That's no way to treat your staff!

[@judithkimmerling770]

Lol

[@smoath]

I wish I could time travel for dinner

[@cornbeef]

I don't know about you, but my mouth is watering watching this! A good pint and a slice of pie. Throw in a couple of silver skin pickled onions and I'm in heaven!

[@stephenparker5272]

I live in Rickmansworth, where the pubs charge you £10 for a sandwich. Round here the days of a pie or a ploughmans are long gone.

[@beeble2003]

You know that the "ploughman's lunch" was invented in the 1970s, right? It's pure pub marketing, not some traditional thing.

[@noelmajers6369]

I don't know I they are the best pies in the world but I absolutely love them

[@xfactor3000]

As an ex-Muslim, I regret that I missed out on these delicious pies for the first 37 years of my life.

[@Al-iv3mb]

Better late than never😅

[@NormaStitz-w1f]

@@xfactor3000 Good on yer. Nothing like apostasy for broadening one's culinary range.

[@Sparkypark]

Eating pig while drinking cider. Doesn’t get better than that. Well done for seeing the light ( hope you haven’t jumped into another religion though).

[@specialforces101]

And bacon sandwiches

[@NormaStitz-w1f]

@@specialforces101 Absolutely 😋

[@trogdo]

Mmmmm pie

[@alyh3721]

I clicked because of Thank Goodness You're Here 😅

[@soulboy6073]

I Love any sort of pie's

[@FathomableShark]

If only the world was so simple today without the need to mass produce for the masses, the time and care to produce this exquisite pie is fading in the current era what a shame...

[@Progressive_Canadian]

It's hard to believe that back in the day, some slaughterhouses had such unsanitary conditions that they led to outbreaks of botulism and salmonella. Thankfully, we've come a long way since then, with strict health and safety standards ensuring that the food we consume is safe and hygienic. It's a testament to the power of progress and the importance of prioritizing public health and well-being.

[@frogmantoad8110]

Ugg. Big government kooks are the ones killing old school real food.

[@oblux]

Oh bore off.

[@MrWillyMrBrightside]

@@oblux true i miss salmonella

[@christokaloudis2050]

REAL PORK PIE ❤

[@badfly1]

Is that Bailey from Upper Broughton, he made the best pork pies, sadly no more. My dad knew him, he used to take pork pies and potted beef down to the Stute on a Friday night.

[@willyekk8707]

It is. Best Pork Pies in the entire Vale. Much better than D&M and Mrs Kings

[@wanderer5581]

OMG... so hungry now....

[@Alfredromeothatsme]

I see they are still going today, 5.15 or 7.95 for the hand finished pie. Shame here in Australia we have nothing like this.

[@thepenultimateninja5797]

I had no idea the jelly was added manually. I always just assumed it came out of the meat during the cooking/cooling process.

[@SBAYLISS]

You don’t seem to get much jelly these days though.😢

[@LilMonkeyFella87]

The store bought ones never do but the proper fresh ones from butchers do

[@CricketEngland]

It’s dying art these days making it by hand , what with mass production methods

[@DidYaServe]

It looks like a pie from old Beano and Dandy comics.

[@FathomableShark]

Lovely

[@steventyreman3642]

No better pork pie anywhere than a Glaisdale pork pie,,,better than all the rest !😊

[@billybear2333]

I'm from Melton and we don't shut up about pork pies

[@alphalunamare]

A proppa Pint Glass ..not seen one of those in a long while. Kids got no wrist these days.

[@tonyhancock3912]

Tried to eat one of the big ones they do all at once a couple of months back. I felt so naive for even attempting it

[@jasgamage]

Guarantee they don't put the love into them theses days!!

[@therealyogibear2k225]

This is the real story of the 3 little pigs.

[@IP2Q]

A Melton mowbery pie made like that today would cost an absolute fortune .I hope it's protected . Being Cornish our pasties are an art form as well . Who wants to eat a kebab ffs

[@alexgamble4718]

The ingredients alone would probably be £5 today, looks like a near pound of pork mince, plus labour and margin and whi knows, maybe £15 for this pie? Haha

[@johnmartin4650]

I’m hungry

[@mauriceharmon]

M&S used to do lovely Melton Mowbray pork pies, they are almost horrible now with claggy pastry and over salted filling. Must wonder why they would bother to destroy a good thing

[@SkepticalSteve01]

It pains me to admit we don’t have pork pies as good as this in New Zealand. The only times I get to enjoy them is on the increasingly rare occasions I visit England and am able to pick some up at Fortnums (I’m not going all the way oop North just to satisfy my pie cravings at the source). I have had pretty good pork pies in Sydney, but I don’t get to go there very much either now. I found the butcher’s remarks about using meat from pigs that died happy were interesting, and I suspect it really does make a difference. Also, I don’t entirely agree with his claim to only use the simplest seasoning - I’ve had a pie that had a small amount of anchovy sauce in the filling, and it was a noticeable improvement. Some Kiwis are so used to hot beef pies they can’t accomodate the idea of enjoying a cold pork pie with aspic, garnished with a little Colman’s mustard and perhaps horseradish and washed down with a room temperature pint of bitter. More fool them!

[@bouncingbluesoul5270]

Does anyone know if this pie factory is still in. Operation?

[@badfly1]

It’s not, it was a small butchers in Upper Broughton, his family did not carry on the family business when he retired. My dad knew him and also the old lady making pies in the background.

[@bouncingbluesoul5270]

@@badfly1That’s a shame. What happened to the Building? Is it still used commercially?

[@badfly1]

@@bouncingbluesoul5270 no, it’s housing now. Still the old building but converted.

[@EcosseZA]

Humbling to watch, especially to see how they make a pork pie "for the older generation". I'm pretty sure the production of these pork pies now is several manufacturing "generations" ahead of what we're watching here - you won't see the casual walking of the chopped pork down the street to the workshop nowadays. I think we need to go two steps forward and three steps back to regain the healthier production of food.

[@aidenwhelan2560]

Wow. Ive yet to have a mowbray pie which is marbled all the way through...

[@Take_Me_Back_To_The_1980s]

Right, here's the plan. First, we go in there and get wrecked, then we eat a pork pie, then we drop some Surmontil-50's each. That way we'll miss out on Monday and come up smiling Tuesday morning

[@jean-paul7251]

Who is the presenter?

[@Sparkypark]

The butcher sounds like Brian Clough

[@frankward8336]

Not enough spice/pepper.

[@KristinaGray-wi6yp]

Waiting for Starmer to ban pork for inclusivity….

[@beeble2003]

Why do you feel that making people feel welcome and valuing them is such a bad thing that you have to make up nonsense like this?

[@KristinaGray-wi6yp]

@@beeble2003 I agree with you - can you help me draft a letter to the Saudi consulate so I can have a pint there? For inclusivity of course

[@beeble2003]

@@KristinaGray-wi6yp Well done. That would be an example of inclusivity.

[@KristinaGray-wi6yp]

@@beeble2003 brilliant - please get it done 👍

[@anneominous7172]

@@beeble2003 Come spend the day in Luton. You'll understand real quick.

[@mrt8694]

How does the chicken get that egg in the middle of a pork pie..

[@beeble2003]

Come on, you can't expect them to reveal _all_ their secrets!

[@mrt8694]

@@beeble2003 😂😂😂

[@anneominous7172]

With GREAT tentativeness...

[@JohnSmith-rw2yn]

Old boy would be turning in his grave if he could see the state of some things labelled “melton Mowbray” not sure if it’s become a licensing thing but some things that pop up are certainly way below standards of years gone by. what a great video showing a love for the craft.

[@beeble2003]

To use the name "Melton Mowbray", a pie must be made according to the traditional recipe and within about ten miles of the town. What you're observing isn't a "now vs then" thing, it's simply a "hand-made vs industrially produced" thing that was just as much the case then as it is now.

[@JohnSmith-rw2yn]

@@beeble2003 ah thanks for the info, so it's possible if I am buying one from a supermarket, it's made within the distance, but on a mass scale so it's not as nice, unless it's the placebo of hand craft that makes it taste better? As I've had them hand made and big from a butcher or other independent store and they taste better, or at least my brain tells my tummy

[@beeble2003]

@@JohnSmith-rw2yn Yes, it'll be made within the distance -- otherwise, they'd be breaking the law by using the "Melton Mowbray" name. But, because it's mass-produced, there are shortcuts involved and especially lower-quality ingredients. There is, of course, some placebo in a hand-made item: the overall satisfaction of the experience (including buying the pie) is higher, and you tend to assign all of that extra satisfaction to the taste of the pie. But there are usually genuine benefits, too, like the higher-quality ingredients. Small manufacturers can't compete on price with mass-production, so they generally try to justify their higher prices by producing a higher-quality product.

[@colinmayes9446]

The people wearing hats might as well not bother, they have more hair outside of the hat than covered up.

[@frogmantoad8110]

😂😂

[@Veldoril]

rofl

[@gabeh7923]

The hair is what gives it an extra special touch of authenticity you see.

[@Beansahol]

>and then they're jellied, of course so TIL they ruin the pies on purpose with that disgusting aspic jelly

[@trevski9265]

Won't be allowed in 100 years

[@user-vs2wd6fk3m]

Shame not the same theses days...jelly..not in it...

[@badfly1]

A real one still does, at least the ones I buy in Melton on a Saturday.

[@matthewtrow5698]

"wants to be rested before it is killed" So, they asked the pigs, did they? Slaughter House: "Hello Pig, what would you like to do before you get killed?" Pig: "I'd rather not be killed." Slaughter House: "Mr. Pig, you have no choice, what would you like do do before you get killed?" Pig: "I don't know. I don't want to be killed." Slaughter House: "Ah, you want to be rested then, righto! Thanks Mr. Pig." "Sausage made from pigs that died happy." Wonderful marketing slogan. Absolute pile of porky pies. kzbin.info/www/bejne/e6a4XpSGa9Z8h8k

[@zuldo8577]

Im sorry, you pour gelatin in you pork pies?

[@Bobble86]

Flavoured stock which contains gelatine. To fill the gaps and balance the pastry and meat. Like the French do with pate en croute.

[@OlafProt]

It was the best. But now it's just another brand trading on faded past glories.

[@dunc5946]

Not a Yorkshire pork pie is it, how grey is that meat, had these as a driver, not enjoyed them, owt south a Barnsley ain’t a pork pie, sorry Melton Mowbury, they don’t cut it…..

[@nickmiller76]

The meat should be grey. Pink is wrong.

[@Drapesy]

Melton Mowbray pies, great p.r. but rubbish pies. Its all a myth. The meat is grey and horrible. The best pies come from west Yorkshire and use lovely, cured ,PINK meat. Try Stanforths in Skipton or Weegmans in Otley for example.. that's a real pork pie!!

[@willyekk8707]

I have to agree somewhat. I’m from Melton and D&M Pies and Mrs Kings are pretty rubbish but these long gone Baileys Pies were by far and away the best of the best

[@Zagneek]

Stanforths in Skipton is Pork Pie heaven! 😋🐷👍🏻

[@nickmiller76]

Just wrong.

[@beeble2003]

@@Bobble86 Right but if somebody perceives the pie to be more attractive, they'll enjoy eating it more, even if it objectively tastes the same.

[@brianquigley1940]

Pork tastes like human flesh... according to the survivors of the 1970s plane crash in the Andes that turned cannibal to survive.

[@IP2Q]

😂😂 I was just saying that to myself

[@Sean-ce1hu]

What is the charge, eating a pie…..a succulent pork pie?

[@AE1OU]

Big Ron and Tiny Tom meat pies.

[@WolfLAX-yn3yq]

The hygienic conditions really aren't the best.

[@WolfLAX-yn3yq]

@@stephenguppy7882 I am also 59 years old and I still drink milk from the farm without heating it. Today's generation is soft. I also used to play in the mud, outside in nature, whatever the weather.

[@psychshift]

Probably why today's more recent generations have so many allergies etc.

[@MarkEGreen-rf4on]

When did you last see a tramp with food poisoning? We use too many sprays and wipes today.

[@Zagneek]

We lived in t muddy ole int ground durin ard frosts, nowt but rock ard tarmac for a bed and a spoonful o lard for breakfast

[@beeble2003]

@@Zagneek We used to _dream_ of 'aving mud in our 'ole in t' ground! Etc.

[@jadedwitness9840]

They're barely a pie.. a pate in a crust would be a better description. Pie and mash over this malarkey all day