After Dinner Speakers
Nigel Barden is a Food and Drink Critic, Journalist, Broadcaster, After-Dinner Speaker and Awards Host.
Nigel provides a culinary flavour to the Simon Mayo Drivetime show, every Thursday, 5-7pm
Nigel is also the food and drink presenter for BBC London TV, Radio and OnLine, including the Sony Gold winning ‘Robert Elms Show’ and ‘The Chris Evans Show’ (Sony Gold) on BBC Radio 2.
Formerly he was a Yorkshire based wine merchant, before heading off to drama school in London, in 1991.
Nigel Barden is also rugby correspondent for BBC London Radio and every weekend can be heard commenting on Guinness Premiership & European Heineken Cup games. He filmed a BBC documentary on the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race, & narrated the World Power Boat Racing, for Channel 4.
He regularly hosts a weekly 4 hour music & chat radio show for BBC London 94.9fm.
Nigel Barden has judged the Britvic Business Food & Drink Journalist Awards for the past 3 years. He compered the launch of Nintendo Super Mario, the Time Out Eating & Drinking Awards 2005-6, the Havana Club & Stolichnaya Cocktail Championships and presented a piece on the International Cocktail Grand Prix in Cuba for BBC1. In 2005 he fronted the Cuban Music Awards Concert in Battersea Park. He regularly contributes to the BBC1 ‘Inside Out’ programme & filmed a piece on Freegans, which recently went to air.
As a host, Barden has fronted the Ratatouille DVD Launch in Paris for Pixar Films (Jan 08), the Great Taste Awards at The Royal Garden Hotel, Glenfiddich Food & Drink Awards, The Knorr National Chef of the Year at The Dorchester, The World’s 50 Best Restaurants at The Royal Exchange, the Theme Bar Awards in Belfast, Glasgow, Manchester, Birmingham & the final at The Hurlingham Club in London, with co-host Chris Evans. Also the Flavour Bar Awards at The Savoy and Whisky Live at The Royal Horticultural Hall.
Live kitchen demonstrations at the Restaurant Show and Restaurant Live, interviewing Heston Blumenthal of The Fat Duck at Bray, Alan Yau from Hakkasan, Michel Roux from Le Gavroche, Manjit Gill from Bukhara, New Delhi and Paul Roberts of The French Laundry in California. Amongst numerous others are the Norwegian Seafood Challenge, the Too Many Critics dinner for the charity Action Against Hunger (for the past 3 years) & a fashion & wine show for Thierry’s, at The Aquarium, St Katharines Dock, with 20 contributors from 12 different countries.
He’s presented & contributed to many live TV shows, such as ‘5’s Company’ (Channel 5), ‘The Really Useful Show’ (BBC1), ‘Eat Drink & Be Healthy’ and ‘Butch Cooks’ (Granada Sky Broadcasting), ‘In search of the Hardys Wine Idol’ (UK Food TV). He works regularly for BBC Radio’s 2, 4 & 5, primarily as a food & drink journalist (Johnny Walker, Jeremy Vine, Nicky Campbell, Simon Mayo Shows & You & Yours).
Nigel Barden was food & drink editor of Maxim magazine (90 issues), ‘threesixtyº’ travel magazine & contributes to The Daily Telegraph, Observer, Independent and Whisky Magazine, as a food, drink and travel journalist. In 2004 he retraced the “Whisky Smugglers’ Steps” in Speyside for the Independent & enjoyed himself so much that he recently returned with a film crew & helicopter.
In 2003 he reached the latter stages of the BBC New Comedy Awards for Stand-up Comedy and co-hosted the launch of the Islington Festival, with Rory Bremner.