A Cheesemonger's History of The British Isles

A delightful and informative romp through centuries of British cheesemaking … it would make a fine Christmas present, along with a wedge of Sparkenhoe red leicester’ * Guardian *Palmer writes with pace and passion, and his encounters with modern-day practitioners fizz with infectious delight … Full of flavour * Sunday Times *Part history, part travelogue and part tasting menu … an utter delight, rousing, infectiously impassioned and inspiring * Stephanie Sy-Quia, The Spectator *We are taught in school that history is about kings and queens and posh people sitting on horses, but Ned Palmer teaches us that in fact, correctly understood, history is mainly about cheese. I hugely enjoyed his engaging, learned, funny, surprising book. Palmer wears his extraordinary range of knowledge lightly, but he is serious too. His book is history from below, from the perspective of daily life; it talks about the food and the life and the needs of unfamous people. A Cheesemonger’s History of the British Isles is the best kind of social history, the kind you can eatA beautifully textured tour around the cheeseboard.A fabulous, fascinating Cheese Odyssey.Following the history of cheese from its neolithic beginnings right up to the modern day, Ned takes you on an entrancing journey through cheese and British history itself, meeting dozens of dedicated cheesemaker’s along the way. Ned Palmer is a erudite, charming guide to all things cheese - and his book will make you want to eat nothing but cheese all day long.As an author of historical fiction, I was impressed by Ned’s command of history but also delighted by his light, fluid and professional writing style - which was, in turn, funny, fascinating, and sometimes even profound. From Medieval monastic cheese-making to the horrors of the Milk Marketing Board, Ned charts a gripping and often mouth-watering course through the culture behind bacterial cultures. He has the true food-writer’s gift of inspiring wild cravings in the reader. Reading late into the night, I constantly had to fight the urge to raid the cheese box in the fridge. Not always successfully. This book is a triumphant paean to the fine art of cheese-making, past and present, and a must-buy for anyone who appreciates good food - and good history. A truly cheese-mongous achievement!Palmer’s writing is loquacious; it is as if he has leant across the counter to regale you with tales of when he was a ‘younger monger’. His history is an utter delight, rousing, infectiously impassioned and inspiring of pride * Spectator *Palmer is both a cheesemonger and a cheese historian - encyclopedic, forensic and geekily obsessed with the stuff. He writes in a jolly patter: warm, wry and deliciously digressive. * Financial Times *Ripe with fascinating facts and anecdotes * Sunday Telegraph *The book is a treasure trove of amusing asides and anecdotes, such as the one about the 17th-century Welsh justice of the peace who assessed a defendant’s guilt by his ability to swallow “enchanted” cheese. * The Times *One of the best cookery books to get you through lockdown… fab – The Scotsman

Ned Palmer runs the Cheese Tasting Company, whose unique events pair cheese with wines, beers, whiskies and history. After studying philosophy, theatre and experimental psychology, he worked as a jazz pianist and hospital porter, before helping out on a stall at Borough Market led him into a life of cheesemongering.