Welcome back to Megabytes by John and Sally McKenna,
and guess what? At this year's Electric Picnic Bridgestone Awards there is a chance for festival-goers to vote for an award winner, and it won't cost you 50c a call and increased charge for mobiles. In the spirit of Electric Picnic, voting for your favourite food vendor is free, gratis, and for nothing. And what's more - you will actually receive a beautiful Bridgestone Picnicers badge to prove that you have done your food lover's duty.
We know Simon Cowell wouldn't approve, but then that's his problem. Frankly we'd need fifty million a year to put up with Cheryl.
In addition to the Picnicers Award, the Bridgestone team will also be picking four more prizes for the most dedicated, devoted, green and best dressed food sellers. These are our awards:
1_ Green Award for the most ecologically-aware producers
2_ Vegetarian Award for the most creative vegetarian cookery
3_ Best-Dressed Vendor award for the most spiffing stall
4_ Judge's Award, which recognises all-round creativity in cooking for the EP audience
5_ And the brand new "Picnicers Choice" award, where you decide!
The Awards will be presented by Richard Corrigan at a special ceremony in the Mindfield Theatre at 2.30pm on Sunday.
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As well as the awards we have an opportunity for you to heckle and quiz the great and good in Irish food writing. Ever been let down by a Clodagh McKenna souffle, or burnt your fingers with a Darina creme brulee, or wondered where the hell is the bacon in Paul Flynn's Bacon and Cabbage recipe? Well, now it's your chance to get even.
The Bridgestone tent, located at the entrance to Mindfield, is host to a bevy of food writers (what's the collected noun for a bunch of food writers - a bevy) who will be on hand to tell you of their most inspiring moments and best culinary secrets.
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SATURDAY
12 noon - Darina Allen, Cookery author and owner of the Ballymaloe Cookery School
2:00pm - Ross Golden-Bannon, Editor of Food & Wine magazine and restaurant reviewer of the Sunday Business Post
4:00pm - Aoife Carrigy, Deputy Editor of Food & Wine magazine and freelance food writer
6:00pm - Paul Flynn, cookery author and proprietor of the Tannery Restaurant and Cookery School
SUNDAY
On Opening - Clodagh McKenna, cookery book author, TV presenter and proprietor of Clodagh at Village at Lyons
12.30pm - Rory O'Connell, Chef and teacher
1.30pm - Derry Clarke, Michelin-starred chef proprietor of L'Ecrivain and cookery book author
2:30pm - The Awards will be presented by Richard Corrigan at a special ceremony in the Mindfield Theatre
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AND THE MUSIC
The music at Electric Picnic is both memory lane - I saw Roxy Music the first time they ever appeared on The Old Grey Whistle Test! - and the avant garde - Robyn is currently the best and smartest pop star on the planet and if you don't swoon to "Dancing On My Own" then you don't have a soul, or at least a pair of dancing shoes...
Continued on John's blog
http://www.bestofbridgestone.com/blog/bridgestone-electric-picnic
And read about us on the Electric Picnic 2010 website
http://www.electricpicnic.ie/the-bridgestone-food-awards/
See you there!
Sally McKenna
BRIDGESTONE GUIDES
sallymck@eircom.net
Estragon Press, Durrus, Co Cork
Bridgestone Guides are on Facebook, Twitter
www.bridgestoneguides.com
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Bridgestone is the world's largest tyre and rubber manufacturer.
Check out http://www.bridgestone.ie
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