History and adventures in food | Ray Bray | Quaker Talk | 20 Feb 2026 скачать в хорошем качестве

History and adventures in food | Ray Bray | Quaker Talk | 20 Feb 2026

Ray Bray on food — in his uniquely Ray way, having just survived a fall and a broken wrist to be here with us. Prompted by Pen Vogler’s Scoff, Ray takes us on a quick canter through the history of food, class, taste, and changing fashions — from Norman feasts (porpoise, heron, seal) to the rise of tinned food, the social signalling of napkins, and the curious journey of oysters from “poor person’s desperation” to luxury menu item. Along the way we hear about bread, mills, salt, tea taxes, forks, and why pork pies deserve reverence — and the conversation opens out into war-time rationing memories, foraging, hearing-access tips, and the way food always seems to lead back to class. ▶️ Bristol Quakers Friday discussion group — 20 Feb 2026:    • History and adventures in food | Ray Bray ...   📖 Scoff, by Ben Vogler - https://www.theguardian.com/books/202... ⏹ Key moments (timestamps) 0:00–2:15 Ray sets the frame: a “quick gamble” through food + class, inspired by Pen Vogler’s Scoff 2:15–3:05 Norman-era “menu”: venison, pheasant, hare… plus crane, heron, seal, porpoise 3:05–4:20 What disappears (mutton? venison pasties? pigeon pies?) and what survives (Cornish pasty) 4:20–5:10 George Orwell on cheap “pleasant” food vs nourishment 5:10–7:10 Breakfast across class: thin tin pots, bread/fat vs kitchari, devilled kidneys, colonial tastes 7:10–10:50 Dinner etiquette: napkins, hand-washing bowls, napkin rings, Victorian bread-roll mishaps 11:00–13:40 Tinned food: early factories, Navy rations, hammer-and-chisel opening, dangers of spoilage 13:40–15:45 Forks, personal cutlery, class performance, and modern cheap cutlery 15:45–17:35 Oysters: from poor person’s food to luxury; the 1902 sewage scandal and typhoid deaths 17:35–19:25 Vegetables arriving (cauliflower), changing carrots, “new” imports we forget were once exotic 19:25–21:20 Flatulent peasant diets; meat as rare; goose at Christmas 21:20–22:35 Plant-based strength; vegan food going mainstream 22:35–25:10 Bread: mills, tithes, white bread as “purity” 25:10–30:40 Tea: Catherine of Braganza, small beer, tea tax, Samuel Johnson, “thinking classes” 30:40–31:50 Pork pie reverence (hot water crust + savoury jelly) 32:00–34:40 Medlars; “below the salt” 34:45–41:10 Angela’s wartime food memories: rose hips, blackberrying, jam jars, rationing — and class at the table 41:10–44:05 Favourite foods shared: apples; stewed apple with raisins; crystallised ginger; champ; truffle risotto; vegetarian lasagne 44:05–47:55 David on intolerances, fish stir-fries, ghee; “peas with honey”; bread culture; Whitstable oysters 54:30–57:30 Foraging/scrumping; captions + hearing accessibility 59:30–End Next week: David previews the Local Power Plan (local power / local energy) ⏹ Questions and queries raised • What foods disappear over time — and why do some survive? • Are we “sniffy” about what poor people should eat, and what the wealthy are “allowed” to eat? • How much of taste is class-signalling rather than nutrition? • Etiquette: hygiene, status, or both? • Why did tinned food take off in the Navy before civilian life? • Cutlery: how did it shift from personal sets to mass affordability? • Oysters: how did they move from staple to indulgence? • Which “ordinary” foods were once exotic arrivals? • Tea (and tea tax): class identity, labour, “intellectual” culture • What have we foraged, scrumped, or gleaned — and what does it carry? • Comfort food now: health, ethics, upbringing • How can meetings make online worship more accessible? ⏹ Mentioned • Pen Vogler, Scoff • George Orwell on cheap pleasures and diet • Samuel Johnson’s tea devotion ⏹ To be continued… ⏹ Coming up | David Saunders | The Local Power Plan | 27 Feb 2026 ⏩ See all Ray’s Quaker Talks on this playlist:    • The Internet as a Right to Everybody | Ray...   ⏩ Nearly full set of Bristol Quaker Friday discussion group talks:    • Bristol Quaker Talks   ⏹ Zoom link (Fridays at 11am): https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84009232514...