Geri Halliwell-Horner

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2:06Hello and welcome to Table Manners. I'm Jessie Ware and the sun has gone. It was summer two days ago and now we're back to winter. But we do have the daffodils out so it's still spring. Yeah. We have a Spice Girl coming on today. Well, she's not just a Spice Girl. She's a UN Goodwill Ambassador. She is an author, a children's book author. She is a star baker. she is Geri Halliwell Horner I feel like she has many things but first and foremost the way that we know of her is that she is a Spice Girl and this is our third Spice Girl on the podcast she's pop royalty she's an icon we have a few people in the room that have well we have Luca who does our socials who is a devoted Spice Boy and we also have Peter Lorraine who's our manager who also actually named the Spice Girls so So potentially he will be coming on the mic to talk about that because that is good trivia.

3:05Very good. I'm on cooking duty. And so I have done, I think Jerry is gluten and dairy free. So we're going quite light with the menu today, which is perfect. I'm doing a side of salmon. It's an Alison Roman recipe. Her citrus slow cooked side salmon. So I think you put it on quite a low heat. it's like 140 and it's blood orange season so you've got blood oranges lemons and thyme on there seasoned and then it gets cooked for about 35 minutes and then I'm doing it with smashed potatoes which I swear I've done very recently with the capers and I've done a whipped feta and yogurt thing to go with it you love to get your whip out darling I do I do um but Jerry won't be having any of that but she can have the potatoes and then I'm just doing a herb salad It's very, very straightforward and it's been very stress-free and I like that.

3:59So I was encouraged to make the best of rhubarb season, which is February, March. We're just seasonal gals. Yeah, just seasonal gals. And I've made rhubarb stewed with ginger, orange, stem ginger and orange. And I made some gluten-free almond biscuits. Yum. You're good at those biscuits. I don't understand. I can't cook desserts. How I end up on desserts every week at the moment. Well, listen, my bread making is going from strength to strength. Good. So I may be stepping in as the baker very soon. Good. Who knows? Watch the space. So Geri's coming on to talk about her book. It's her second book of the character Rosie Frost.

4:43And I think it's for... Isn't it based on her own experiences of childhood? I think there's parallels. OK. But it's about a girl who is kind of visited by the ghost of Anne Boleyn and it's kind of Hunger Games-esque. How did Anne Boleyn get executed? What was it? Divorced, beheaded, died. Divorced, beheaded, survived. Yeah, so? Which one was Anne Boleyn? I think she got beheaded. Okay. And Geri's like a bit of a fan of Anne Boleyn. She feels like she's never really got her flowers and has been quite misunderstood. Anyway, I'm looking forward to meeting Geri Halliwell-Horner. Geri, coming up on Tableau.

5:29Jerry, you are the nosiest guest I've ever had and I love it. You've been in nearly every room. You've asked every question about everybody. We think you should do your own podcast. You may as well add it to the accolades you've already got. I'm speechless. How are you? I'm great. Thank you so much for having me. I'm so happy to have you. Yeah, I'm like, I'm in awe and slightly, wow. Where have you come from? I've just come back from the National Gallery. What were you doing there? I was doing an interview there, but actually I was looking at a painting. Have you been there? The National Gallery?

6:07Yeah. And for those listening and reminding, oh my God, the paintings there are amazing. I was looking at this painting of Lady Jane Grey. It's massive. and it's the influence, the book that I've written. Rosie Frost. Rosie Frost. She's your second book of the series. But there's a painting of her. It's a bit graphic. She's getting her head chopped off, basically. She's about to be executed. Which one was Jane Grey? Basically, in the Tudor... Do you like history? Okay, so in the Tudor times, so Henry VIII, he had three kids. So he had Mary and then he had Edward. and Elizabeth. So not in that order, the two girls first.

6:50But what happened was that the first two daughters got annulled. They were sort of like, didn't count, so to speak. I'm sort of short cutting that. And then Edward, who was 15, he got really ill. And when he was dying, and it was all about Protestants versus Catholics, the Protestants didn't want a Catholic to take the throne. So they, the family all said, oh, make sure that you get your your cousin so to speak jane gray to go on the throne because she's a protestant and she was only 17 but meanwhile you had mary and elizabeth well mary they're all catholic all her supporters were furious so what happened was they put her on the throne so it was all just kind of using this young girl she was 17 years old she was the queen of nine days she went up and literally she was a queen for nine days and then she got executed by all the uprising of the Catholics supporting Mary and it wasn't Mary's fault either it was just all these men you know orchestrating pushing.

7:57She probably didn't want to be queen anyway there you go you just got it you're right Lenny there you go so this is amazing painting there and you're drinking Earl Grey tea I'm sure they were related there's a nice theme there is that sorry no that was my alarm saying that the salmon is ready but we're just what are we having we're having a slow cooked salmon with blood oranges and lemon and thyme um by one of my favorite chefs that we've had on the podcast called allison roman do you know of her no she's fab new york fab and you like it really have you always been into cooking i've always been into food yeah and i do like cooking i love it actually and in fact i've just got into i know you're a baker a star baker in fact and um but i've just got into doing sourdough and i feel like i'm boring everyone talking about it okay so you've got a really i know a tiny bit about bread yeah you've got the proving oh yeah the stretch and fold yeah and uh the and and my the mother and uh yeah how is your mother my mother's fab and she's thriving what's her name i've called her after my yoga teacher it's me helen um so helena yeah it should have been helena you've never made a bread in your life lenny so i'm not doing that thank you um but yeah actually just why not finish this uh after you leave jerry i will be i will be making a loaf because that's the kind of gal i am it's quite satisfying isn't it so what's your best bake okay so i when i was a little girl yeah i used to go to my neighbor's house and i had this she was called auntie doreen and so and it was a real treat we always had to call everyone who was older than you auntie auntie something or is that a kind of spanish thing as well uh both yeah i would say and so i'd go across the road and make a bake a sort of simple cake with her and for me those memories would be like I know Victoria's sponge or a crumble I would say I'm not the biggest foodie but when if I have to choose I love cakes okay just simple cakes are you the person that looks at the dessert menu before you start your main course I would say that yeah I think yeah totally you have two children and so a birthday cake's a big deal in the house and do you make them i can do i can do some but they always want that fancy um you know like icing right you know all the i wouldn't say that's my so when was the baking is different though to cooking i think it's much more scientific yeah see that's why i don't really get on with it yeah yeah okay have you had has the listeners have ever seen your house they kind of see bits of it because like they usually see the kitchen they don't really see anything okay if i looked at your personality through the your house yeah you see this flare and color and personality and warmth you know everywhere you go it's and so it's indicative of your cooking is the same you're psychoanalyzing me and i like it yeah i mean this marble is beautiful but it's like full of flushed with color and then she's got loads of paintings everywhere and photos and it's kind of it's not chaotic it's okay but it's it's beautifully chaotic it's something really yeah really nice i was like you know when there's your sensory overload when i walked through this door i was like wow look at this but you seem like you you absorb everything can you take it in like i love that you've just been to the national gallery to go and look at a painting before coming and doing the podcast and then you you're looking around you're you're we've just got we're just getting to know each other and you're already kind of you're you're so passionate and yet you decide this is your uniform now you've been wearing white for how long it just doesn't make it for me it doesn't make sense i feel like you should be in all the colors or do you like it because you need the calm i went through a period when i was in my 20s yeah wearing black all the time really um was that post spice girls yeah i think so but i've gone through different periods and obviously you know clothes Helena Lenny is wearing bright orange and it's you know sunshine and warm but what I found I tell you what I looked at a lot of guys and they always wear the same thing yeah okay whether it's whether it was um uh Steve Jobs Facebook guy yeah you know all of they all just wear the same thing like a uniform like a uniform so they're not they get out of bed and go and that is a multitude of things i thought well actually how much time do you use getting ready yeah i i look i'm yeah that was one thing and everything matches so it was a bit of that it does suit you though you do look you look gorgeous in it it suits your coloring thank you and you've got gorgeous skin but do you think really gorgeous thank you i appreciate that And it looks great.

12:57Your aunt wears... It's simplicity. ...wears not white as well. But it's so funny because I think of you, and it's not that I... You are gregarious. In a Union Jack. No, I don't just think of you in a Union Jack, of course. But I wonder whether it was like you needed that simplicity. Like you needed that kind of uniformity and that's kind of... It just keeps things... Maybe it keeps things simple, I suppose. Do you, when you're at home, do you wear jeans and different colours? Or is this when you're going out? Sometimes I'll put on, I've got some khaki trousers or something, but, you know. You're cooking white.

13:37Yeah. What colour's your swimsuit? White. What do you think, Mum? White. Mm-hmm. But I do have other colours, but then sometimes I just throw it into... Yeah. Your dry cleaning bill must be through the roof, Gerry Yeah Yeah Do you dress your children in white? No No, they're in school uniforms Really Yeah, they dress themselves Actually, one of my daughters She went through a period of wearing the same dress When she was about three Oh, we did that one Yeah, she just wouldn't change out of it. And so I ended up really making a point every day she had to put something different on. Because she was getting...

14:26Do you remember that dress? I think my daughter had this one. It was an Oiler Lee dress that I got on eBay. And, you know... It actually was falling apart by the time. It was like a schmatty by the end. I mean, and she loved it so much. It's so funny, isn't it? Isn't it? I suppose it's about what they can control and what they feel safe with. Totally. And then there's us being like, you must... Yeah, no. Can we take it back to Watford, where you grew up, and what is a memorable dish from your childhood? And who was around the dinner table? Liver. Oh, God. Where do you stand on liver now? Well, actually, sometimes I see food as medicine or fuel.

15:08So, actually, I ate liver yesterday. Did you? Yeah. What sort? Calfs or chicken? it was uh I think it was carbs and um you know if you need a bit of iron just eat it but back in the day I think meat was a treat it wasn't so greedy because I've tried being a vegan I've done I did that for two years and I don't really have a stand on it it doesn't matter to me but I've tried all different ways of eating and what I think back to you know in food was you know it wasn't so how can you put it it wasn't so available you know back in the day I didn't know we'd have you know a steak as a treat and and now you know I went through a stage a couple I don't know a few years ago where it's just you know you can have it as much as time as you like and then suddenly if you just put it in the right size it um I think that's a good thing but in answer to your question what was the real what would I really think about my mother she'd mix up like English food was my mother's Spanish she'd sort of put a bit of paella and then sometimes there'd be some like roast potatoes it didn't quite, she'd be mixing it up.

16:19Does she have a Spanish accent? Very, very How does she say your name? Geraldine Oh Are you bilingual then? Um I can sort of speak Spanglish as she speaks English. Yeah I can speak get by if we were lost. Oh god that's my alarm saying that I need to take the salmon out I'm just gonna let it like do it it's very annoying alarm are you an only child no but I'm the I'm the youngest child so you're the youngest so did you all sit around the dinner table yeah very much so my mother was all about that with your bitter paella and your potatoes yeah totally my mother's always been about sitting down at the table and having dinner all together yeah and do you do that I do that as well yeah 100 % and what's your best dish that you cook that everybody loves do you know what i think i'm safe with i know it sounds really basic but scrambled eggs slow scrambled eggs if you do it really slowly yeah like the french oh well we did have countess luann on from the royal housewives of um of new york and she says she calls it eggs a la francesa and she adds a little bit of water to her okay to really really low and slow low and slow that's i would say that's one thing i feel secure on yeah but for me cooking that's breakfast i know but you can have it anytime okay okay absolutely but so i it's really nice when you make food that it's as you're a creative it's like a song that you make someone go right when it's like that when food feels like you're just a cafe is a cafeteria do you know i mean then it becomes then it takes the enjoyment out do your kids appreciate your food

18:00not enough there you go right okay there you go what's on the menu tonight are you in tonight my son just loves chicken nuggets oh no matter where we go he could he could do like a guide to the best chicken nuggets in the world do you know what i mean he absolutely loves chicken nuggets they call them in america tenders tenders yeah chicken tenders yeah my kids had a well you know what though we've started doing we can do you know the big old chicken nugget but you can put like katsu curry with it so then at least you feel like you're giving them something slightly different than just a chicken nugget but yeah my kids are chicken nuggets crazy chicken nuggets yeah bluebell really likes cooking does she yeah she cooked last night for us what did she and she cooked liver yeah no actually that was an extra bit i had had earlier she cooked Chinese chicken but she'll do anything she cooked me steak the other day for Valentine's rather than going out she cooked for me and my husband.

19:00Sweet. What's she studying? English literature. Are you thrilled? Yeah that's mother's pride isn't it you must be very proud of your daughter for what she's achieved and this is amazing so to watch them thrive and find their own lane is that my bag? Is that your bag? Yeah. I'm sorry Joey. I apologise. eyes no it's all right i don't know i don't want it to be an emergency no i turn it on you're very popular jerry or you're on a group a school whatsapp group no i'm not on oh my god you don't do the school whatsapp group sometimes sometimes not do you mute them no i'm just yeah sometimes it gets you know just being on whatsapp groups i find quite what do you think i have to be on all of them because my husband just taps out but do you do you get when you when you go do people want you to do something spice girly for the school if there's a school performance not spice girly but sometimes they might ask for some motivation which is you know i'm happy to do um to help up encourage and uplift you know you know it doesn't matter what the genre genre is yeah you you know, whether it's sports, music, science, or book writing, do you know what I mean?

20:16To encourage others to use their initiative and do like, okay. Which leads us perfectly onto Rosie Frost. This is Ice on Fire. It's the second of the series. I mean, so we were just talking about it and about if it's a big, chunky book. And Rosie Frost is the protagonist and she is kind of guided by the ghost of Anne Boleyn. Yeah, in the first book she is. right yeah she looks slightly like someone sitting at the table here today oh she's got the hair slightly um is there a lot of you in Rosie you can't help putting a little bit of yourself in character and then but you sort of it's like do you know it's not dissimilar of being a chef when you write so you get all these ingredients for different personalities you take a bit of that one a bit of that one and put it into that person and um and you get to decide you get to play god like what happens so if you like adventure and if you like history it's in there i always sort of it's a modern day story but it's with a backdrop of a little bit of history um each one has it like the previous one was amberlynn this one is um i don't want to spoil but it's one of the other queens is it a tudor yes you love the tudors i love the tudors the the school heaver bridge is built on this island in the south of england so instead of jurassic park with dinosaurs you've got endangered animals and this school heaver bridge was built by queen elizabeth the first in honor of her mother so it's a bit like you building a school for for your gorgeous lenny yeah but never gonna happen not gonna happen okay in honor of her because Anne Boleyn was executed by her husband, Elizabeth's father, when she was three.

22:04So Elizabeth was only three when she lost her. That's so cruel. It's so cruel. If you think about it in modern day times, a three-year-old loses her mother and her father had her mother's head chopped off. Shamed her. Can you imagine? He was a terrible husband. Yeah, he was a tyrant. So Elizabeth builds this school for her, right, and it's full of polymaths, this really clever kids, in honour of her mother, right? And so all these brilliant kids go to this school. So it's like all sorts that you would know of, whether it's Frida Kahlo, Emmeline Pankhurst, scientists, all brilliance have gone to this school.

22:38And up till now, 500 years later, so Rosie Frost is sent to this school. And so you've got all the different heritage of different Tudors are there, but also brilliant brainy kids are there. But there's like this horrible head mark, well, he's a deputy head who's got up to something. There's the mean girl. Does that give you a picture? Yeah, yeah. I'm so excited. Is Rosie clever? I think Rosie has definitely got, yeah, she has emotions. Got potential. Yeah, definitely potential. She's come from an ordinary school, sent to this school, and she's like, what the hell am I doing here? She's lost her mother.

23:16She's grieving. And actually, in book two, she's kind of like, who's my father? There's a bit of that. and but there's a lot of the science involved there's big science competition but there's murder it's murderous okay the way i can describe it okay so you know um do you like star wars i yeah ish okay so you know how the sort that it ups the ante each time so this has got more murder more betrayal more revenge so an adult could read this and go okay yeah and if you like harry potter it's kind of quite do you think it's kind of if you like harry yeah i mean that that's the you know she she's amazing holy grail that brilliant writer and brilliant adventure it's got the fast paced adventure but what i'd say instead of magic it's it's like the courage from within finding your inner power and rosie's turning 14 so she's she's going through puberty but falling in love that's you know all those feelings but you could read it too because it deals with adult themes like revenge betrayal and how you you how you how that pans out how you unpack it is it going to be made into a film a musical film oh look at my look we'll see how exciting yeah thank you thank you that's exciting and i'm going to just get the food on the table okay should i should i serve can we just talk about your earrings oh yeah okay describe them for the Okay, so they are, they're actually resin.

24:53They look like polos. They're supposed to be like a scrunchie. That's what they call them. I think they're called the scrunchie, but they do look like polos. They look like fruit polos. And they're purple. And I don't know, maybe subconsciously because of Eugenia Lavendaire. I don't know. Now I'm wearing white. I sound like a freaking weirdo. But they're completed works and I love them. They're really interesting, aren't they? Are you hungry? A little bit, yeah. If I'm honest, I did eat a little bit before I came. Okay. It's okay. Thanks for the honesty, Geri. Thank you. Just me slaving away my kitchen.

25:25I hate showing up really hungry. I agree with you. I think it's bad manners. Because then you're ravenous and you want to eat everything. Yeah, and then I can't concentrate. Can you have some of that water as well, please? Yeah, of course. Do you understand what I mean? Yeah, I absolutely agree. And then I'll just eat the bread and then not actually eat the dinner. Do you ever get together with the other Spice Girls now for dinner? Occasionally. Occasionally. Yeah, it's like old school friends. Yeah. And does anybody cook? Does anybody have a meal at their house and they cook? Sometimes. I think Melanie does.

25:57Who's the best cook of all of you? She's really good, yeah. We've had Melanie. Which Melanie? Mel C we've had. We've had B as well. We've had C and B. Oh, amazing. Okay. Yeah, C, Melanie, she is good. And we went to see it. Did you go and see her when she did the ballet? Oh, my God, I saw all the visual. We went. Amazing. We went to see it. Me and Mel have actually become friends. She's nice, isn't she? She's the loveliest. She's so nice. She's just really, like, you can't describe her to me. I think, also, Emma. Emma and I are both UNICEF ambassadors. And so I've seen Emma. And Mel B was gorgeous when she came on, too.

26:37And I don't know Victoria. But Emma's always been completely warm. and always makes the time if we see each other. It's like she's always got time for you, which I just think is so gorgeous. And then Mel C, because I guess we both do music and she's such a kind of LGBT ally. We both do that. And we have lots of mutual friends, but she came on and then we kept in touch and she's just always made an effort and I love that. She's not flaky. Yeah, yeah, yeah, she's real. She's real and she makes an effort. And so I can't quite believe that, you know, the Spice Girls texting me, do you know what I mean, inviting me to, like, a party.

27:18That's so nice. It's very nice. Or, like, being like, congrats. Like, she's just a lovely person. Very nice person. So we ask everyone, if you were going on a desert island for six months, because I can't bear the thought of a death penalty, what would be your last supper if you're going away for a long time, you don't have access to everything you like? Start a main course and drink. I was just going to go straight for the cake. Oh, my God. She is a straight for the cake person. I'd probably eat cake. I think the world is divided up into two lots of people, the ones that have to have dessert.

27:53See, I'd have two starters and a main course and then cheese. Yeah, like, for me, I get it. Wish I'd made a cake, man. No, it's fine. So, no, I... You can do some freedom. Yes, but now and again we can go off piece. You know, it's just one. Yeah. No, I just like cake. And if you're on your last meal at Desert Island, you'd certainly go for it. Okay, so... I'd have cake. What's your favourite cake? God, that's so hard. Is it chocolate? No, it's not. Lemon drizzle? I do like lemon drizzle. I kind of like just simple. Just a simple... A Victoria sponge? Yeah, just simple. Yeah, keep it simple. So are you going to eat any starters or just have lots of cake?

28:39Ali, oh. What would be your starter? Okay, if I had to have something, I'd quite like, if we were going to make it fancy. It doesn't have to be fancy, it's what you'd love. Maybe some toast. Toast? Quite like toast with butter on it. Yeah, toast and butter. Yeah, it'd be quite nice. Any spread, like marmite? No. Okay, toast and butter. What's your butter that you like? Salty butter? It doesn't really matter. Okay, and then do you have a main course? remember you're going to be spear spearing for fish so i'm just about to pick an oyster anything you like do you like oysters i do actually yeah do you yeah i think the world divides up in people who like more don't really how do you eat those do you put a little yeah what do you like i'd put not to be no you'd put like vinegar vinegar with onions yeah again is what you get out of it as well.

29:39It's got full of zinc. It looks lovely. For those listening, it's salmon. And there's potatoes and they look really nice. So you're dairy free, aren't you? Yeah. So yeah, we're going to have it with a little whipped feta thing. But you can just have a little smashed potato there. Amazing. Did you cook this this morning? Yeah. Just now. It's very straightforward. That's really nice. Thank you. It's a bit of much. This looks lovely. Thank you. Thank you. Have the potatoes. I don't know if it is or not, but anyway. Did we get a mane then? We got, she wanted oysters. Okay. But were you having anything else besides oysters for your mane?

30:18I actually wouldn't bother with oysters because if we're going on a desert island, we probably could get them there. You might be able to. Yeah. I wouldn't bother. I'd get something like pick and mix. Pick and mix.

30:32Which would be in your pick and mix selection? Sweetie. I'd go for sweeties. like, you know, cola bottles. Oh, I love cola bottles. Yeah, fizzy cola bottles. Do you like the sour ones? Yeah, I like sour. It's fine. I'll just go for sweeties. Like a good sugar. You're brilliantly confusing to me, Gerrit. It's like you're a lady. You ask for an Earl Grey and then you have a pick and a mix for your mains. I love it. Imagine being me.

31:32We'll be right back.

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33:28We do have my manager, our manager, Peter Lorraine is here, who you actually know. I know Peter. How do you know Peter Lorraine? I know Peter. He used to be editor of this magazine, Top of the Pops magazine, which was like back in the day. this is pre-internet magazines would be the forefront of the narrative of what was in and what was not and that particular level Top of the Pops was a leading magazine it was quite young going from pre-teen upwards I would say and one of the first interviews when I was in the band The Spice Girls he made a spice he sort of did this little thing he interviewed us and then he did a spice rack.

34:18It was like just funny. And then he just said, oh, and then he just named each spice. That was it. And then we just, and then it stuck. We thought, that's a good idea. Let's keep it. Were you happy with his choice? Yeah, I didn't mind it at all. Is there a very memorable Spice Girl meal? I was thinking about this the other day. I was in the car. I was always designated driver. Why was that? I don't know if it was because of the oldest and I had a car. But I remember very much two things. One was stopping off at service stations and having... You know when the service stations wouldn't be as souped up as they are now.

35:03Yeah. And there'd be, you know, having things like sausage rolls. Ginsters, right, yeah. Yeah, that kind of thing, yeah. Ginsters, yeah. I really remember having chips and scraps, which is from up north is the little, you know, the bottom ends, which I really, I do love chips. I have to say that is my other favourite food, I would say. I like chips. Do you cook them now? I don't cook them now, but chips from a fish and chip shop or sort of medium sized fries. Okay, you like a little chunk. A little, I don't like big chips, but I like sort of medium. Forget about a pommes frites. that's okay yeah that's okay if they're done well yeah if they're done well but I yeah I like keeping it simple I have to say your air fried chips are great yeah I've started doing the air chips and air fried and it's so good because you can get really quick Jerry you can get chicken nuggets and chips talk me through it how do you do it in an air fryer you literally put your chicken nuggets and your chips into the raw yeah like from the freezer or whatever or and you put it on and you put air fry didn't even spray them you could just spray them with a bit of oil now if you had to make it from scratch oh no yeah no well you could just put potatoes in yeah you just put sliced potatoes in sliced potatoes but for the ease of if your child needs that food very quickly you don't want to heat up the oven you can get them on the table in 15 minutes okay I'm going to get air fryer okay that sounds really good these potatoes are really nice they're lovely darling thank you um really nice did you just boil them and then squish them and then yeah boiled them and then just um got kind of a jar and pushed down on them which made them smashed or squished and then they're really nice thank you um what did Nelson Mandela give you to eat um rice and salad and fish it was like a buffet you had to sort of like line up and have it is that one of the most special moments of being a Spice Girl, getting to meet so fantastic, wonderful people like that.

37:14I feel very privileged to have met amazing you know I read his book The Long Walk to Freedom and then amazing most moving books yeah amazing and that sort of teaches me so much about forgiveness and overcoming and we went to Robin Island didn't we? Did you? And we went to Brixton very, really upsetting you'd be really astonished he was there 20 years he was kind of blinded by the quarry because it was so bright white because they were working in the quarry so they'd just work and chip away and because of the sun's reflection on the white it affected his eyesight do they? oh this cat hello hi Pinky he's so cute do you have any animals?

38:05I've got lots of animals Do you? I love animals. So what have you got? Okay, so originally I was a cat person. Hello, Pinky. She's a flirt. She is a bit of a tart. We like that. So I always had cats. I love cats. And then I've had lots of dogs. At the moment I have, his name's Otis. Okay, and he is half poodle with a golden retriever. Bloody hell. What are they called then? Golden poo. Or golden... golden poo is he big or small? he's medium mish and his coat is it's poodle-ish but it's sort of like he's got my colour hair he's the nicest energy that I've ever experienced in an animal and do you walk him every day?

38:54yes pretty much or let him run out he's just amazing and then I have a little dog called Daisy from Battersea and she's just like she's just like a worrying Wendy. She's like, she's a little bit... How old was she when you... She was very, very young but they had to keep her a little bit. She'd been overbred. But she's... So what sort is she? I think she's a maybe Maltese Shih Tzu, something I can't tell. And does she love Otis? Yeah, it's woken her up a little bit. She would have been more playful, so that's really nice. And then I've got some goats, horses and donkeys. and fish. So what kind of fish have you got?

39:39They are tropical fish actually and I can't remember their names like tiger fish. I'll tell you what one of them is like the one out of Nemo. The black one with a white stripe in the tank. But then I also got these ones that eat their algae up the side of the up the, you know the tank so that's quite useful. But I find them quite relaxing to have. Where are they in your fish room? Yeah, it's not as huge. If they're nice fish tanks, they're a bit like lava lamps, aren't they? Yeah, it's fine. Yeah, I quite like it. I wanted to talk about whether you still do, well, you called it, it was in your documentary, and you called it cosmic shopping at the time, which I think is almost like manifestations.

40:25Yeah. Maybe we didn't have that word when you were making the documentary. Yeah. There's a bit in the documentary where you're looking at a photo of your dad. and you tell the documentary maker was her name Molly? Molly Deneen and you really did your research then did you watch that then? I re-watched it yeah but in the back in the back you'd done these letters you're always writing letters in that documentary Jerry and to the Prince Charles and I love it is he still a pal? I saw him yesterday King Charles yeah I saw him at the um the abbey and it was the commonwealth oh yeah and you were invited yeah it was amazing and that's a really like unifying you know all the countries coming together it's brilliant but the cosmic shopping you talk about it and um and it's kind of making manifestations desires what's going to happen you speak and you're like I am happy I am yeah you know going to reach and and it and I thought it was completely charming and beautiful and optimistic and and it was based on a book that you read what was do you remember the book that you read i can't remember the name of the book but i just wanted to know whether you still do cosmic shopping i think if you visualize i'm definitely visualize things and um i think we all do we have in our thinking you know whatever's going on we are thinking as we speak we're no matter what yeah consciousness we're thinking and it's up to us whether they're going to be positive or but i do i that thinking you know but you're creative so you visualize it before you know before you paint or you sing i'm we always visualize but there's like a determination in you jerry that like speaks and it like it sings out and i do find it really amazing i also love the fact that you were like i'm gonna were you married to george michael in one of the in one of the um letters probably but then you even say you're like well we're not married but we are friends yes we can we can get married but yeah did he ever cook for you you lived with him for a few months didn't you yeah he's I was just talking about him he was an amazing force in my life yeah I lived with him many times in my life and uh yeah we'd always we'd get takeaways together and you know watch movies and we're always going out to dinner we had our own special restaurant we'd go to which was really nice it was an italian was it in north in hamsterd yeah i know the one yeah so that was really nice that was our special it's an old-fashioned one very traditional yeah so i quite like that i suppose i'm quite do you like italian food i love italian food and my george did yeah spanish food do you eat a lot of spanish do you go to spain a lot I haven't been to Spain for a while.

43:20Spanish food, it's okay. I mean, they've got good chips. Oh, Jerry. Oh, so naughty. I love their breakfast. What was the particular pan con tomat? The pan con tomat. You know, you get the bread and you get that lovely kind of paste made of fresh tomatoes and you put olive oil in the tomato. Yeah. I don't eat pork, but I look at Iberico pork and I think it looks amazing. They eat snails. Do they? No, I wouldn't be eating snails. My grandmother cooked the snails. I used to have, maybe that's why I'm a bit put off, but I used to collect snails as pets. I could Peter and Paul and I had this whole tray.

44:02Peter and Paul? Peter and Paul. Were they the names? Yeah, these snails in this tray. Right. And I had, you know, plants and, you know, soil. It was their land. So I was really into snails, right? and then one day I went to see my grandmother in Spain. She said, go out and collect some snails. And I was like, oh my God, absolutely. Let's go and collect these little snails. I'm feeling really excited. I've got loads of snails. I'm going to keep them a little. My grandmother cooked the snails. And then the next thing I looked up, they were strung up in like a net or like cooked. So I was like, oh.

44:39That's a sad memory. That's a sad memory of snails cooked. Oh no.

44:47there you go that explains it all doesn't it would you like a little sweet something it depends what you've got well you're a great guest you've ate before and you're not going to have a bloody gluten free biscuit I made some gluten free biscuits oh you've made them oh my god of course but also Jessie can you put that into a bowl that's so nice I'll take one home with me as well you can take more than one can you put it in a bowl darling I just have the biscuit. That's so nice. I made rhubarb because it's seasonal. Did you? Oh, my God, that's so good. With ginger because of ginger spice. I love the rhubarb.

45:24Oh, my goodness. Rhubarb. That gives me... Isn't it funny how food gives you memories? Like, I always remember rhubarb yoghurt. Look at this for everyone at home because they can't see it. It's rhubarb and it's a beautiful one. It's like beautiful pink. Would you like another cup of tea? I'd love one. Thank you. that's really kind. Look at this. That looks so nice. That looks really good. The biscuits look delicious. They're light as a feather. They look like, what's it called, those baby rusts? This is totally my cup of tea. Thank you so much for making such an effort. Could you taste the ginger?

46:06I could actually. I could taste it and I couldn't identify it at first. So it's like, okay, it makes it a little bit more, it's got bite to it, a little bit more. It's really nice. Can you taste the ginger? Yeah, I've just had like slices of it. It's delicious. And it's very good for you. It's stem ginger. It's very good for you as well. Is it? Why? So ginger's good for you. Ginger is totally good for you. Totally. Do you cook with ginger a lot? I put it in like in a tea. And I read that gingers, we have a different pain threshold. Are you actually ginger, Geri? Jessica I'm not being funny it's a bit rude no I just wanted to know I'll check my mother you go less ginger as you get older don't you yeah I'll show you so gingers have higher pain pressure I'm going to show you this this was me oh yeah your ginger oh wow sweet if you look at my brother and sister he's bright blonde my sister's really dark and then I'm like red but you know it's always changed it's not a bright screaming red but no matter what I always end up with a sort of little auburn um but no I read that the other day that we have a different pain threshold and also we don't go grey as much which is interesting I was like oh okay this is really good this does like this is really nice you can take them home darling this is really good I'm now eating what looks like a Farley's Rask but it tastes delicious it's almonds it's delicious this is so my cup of tea this is really nice good good this is like it tastes like happiness oh i love you jerry yeah i do as well you describe things really well that's why you're a writer yeah probably jerry you just were talking about the rhubarb and it reminding you and isn't it funny we always ask our guests what a nostalgic taste that can transport them back somewhere.

48:02It's so true, it's like perfume isn't it? When you smell a certain perfume and you get transported back Or it reminds you of someone. Yeah totally, and food does the same thing isn't it? God that's such a good question, what food really takes me somewhere? Or a smell For me, like I'd love a cup of tea on a sandy beach on the beach on Devon and it's cold but the sun is shining but that tea is warming you up When was the last time you were in Devon with a cup of tea in hand on a beach? I was there in October. I like winter beach. I think it's gorgeous. Seaside? I think it's beautiful. I think English seaside is fantastic.

48:47What do you always have in your fridge that you couldn't do without? Well, my son likes barbecue sauce. I am yielding to that. So I think that's quite adventurous, chicken nuggets of bubbles. Yeah, I'm really slaying, aren't I? I think you are slaying, actually, Gerry. I think you're brilliant and I think it's been such a pleasure to meet you. Oh, thank you so much. And have you around. Thank you. And just your, I don't know, I feel like I've grown up with you and you feel exactly the same as what we saw on the telly, which is so lovely and, in fact, even warmer and more gorgeous and generous, but it's a total joy to meet you and listen to you talking about Rosie Frost and thanks for being on Table Money.

49:34Oh, thank you very much for having me and thank you for cooking, it's beautiful. Such a pleasure.

49:52Well, Geri Halliwell-Horn have fed my bloody cat. fish from the table. So thank you, Geri. Thank you, Geri, for coming on the podcast. So warm. Really lovely woman. Said to me, good luck with everything and like, she took a picture of my sofa. She said she liked it. She liked the colour of it. Okay, good. So I'd like to say... Did she go back? Did you go in your sitting room to have a quick shift? She snoops around. Yeah. She went, sorry, can I ask where you got that sofa from? And oh, I like the colour of that. She took pictures. Love it. She probably, yeah. Maybe I'll be her interior designer.

50:26Maybe she's looking for your execution block. Gerry Halliwell Horner on... A complete icon and legend. Totally. And so passionate. And I can't wait to read Rosie Frost. Me neither. With my daughter. I think I may start performing it tonight like I have done with others. Good. Delicious salmon. Do you think? Delicious. I think I've got people for dinner on Friday and I thought I was going to do prawns with ginger. And now you're going to do the Alison Roman. Which, is that in Nothing Fancy? Yeah. It's so straightforward as well. So straightforward. That's what I'm going for. Straightforward salad and potatoes.

51:07My potatoes were nice. Very delicious. How long were they in for? I kind of did them on a high, parboiled them and smashed them. High heat for about 20 minutes and then just kind of slow. Yeah. So you left them in while you cooked the salmon? Yeah. Okay, fine. Those almond... Did you like them? Yeah, they feel like Passover cookies, don't they? Because they've got no flour in. Yeah, but really, really nice. And actually, I found custard in the fridge, so I just had rhubarb and custard in there. It's just the greatest combo. Can I say, I'm quite proud of my rhubarb. Yeah, how did you do that? Because it was firm.

51:42I roasted it with some orange juice and some stem ginger. And the syrup that comes from the stem ginger. and I'll slice the stemmed ginger and roast it for 20 minutes. Mum, it's so good because sometimes it just goes sloppy and sad. Yeah, no, that's good. I'm going to have that in porridge tomorrow. Good. Thank you to Gerry Halliwell-Horner for coming on. Rosie Frost Ice and Fire is out now, so go and give it a read or a listen or an audiobook and you can hear one of Gerry's original songs, actually, in the audiobook. And we'll see you next week.

52:35We'll see you next time.

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