Favourite dinner party flowers?

I absolutely adore the giant pompom like beauty of hydrangeas. They suit every occasion - pure white if you want to keep it chic and simple, and pastel for something summery, outdoors and pretty. If you prefer your table to be more dramatic or romantic, then I love them in a deep velvety red or a vivid plum colour, both of these hues look wonderful against candlelight with gold coloured cutlery and accessories.

What’s for dinner?

Monkfish with lemon and butter parsley, potatoes Dauphinoise and creamed spinach or some other veg fro the kitchen garden. The more cream and butter the better as far as I'm concerned.

Home-cooked or catered?

Home cooked for ten people or less, caterers in if it's something far bigger. Although sometimes going simple and making a pasta dish or lasagne with a selection of salads can stretch to feed loads if I want to keep it fun and casual, and you can never go wrong with a barbeque for a larger crowd!

Best kept party secret?

I cook the same supper recipes over and over. They're tried and tested and I can make them on automatic, meaning that I have time to chat and relax with guests without panicking in the kitchen. After all - they're there to see YOU - not to critique the variety of your cooking! (Hopefully!)

Greatest recipe ever copied off a restaurant menu?

A stilton and mushroom soup with whole mushrooms and port that I once had at a restaurant in Henley when I was in my twenties. I've spent the past two decades trying to recreate how delicious it was.