Meet the team
Lady Milena Grenfell-Baines
As far back as the 1950’s, Milena developed an interest in food when employed as a governess to a family in France. Acquiring a taste for French food was no hardship and learning much from the family cook was a beginning.
Working as an interpreter for three years on cookery holidays, establishing two new cookery schools in France, and promoting specialist cookery weekends across the UK was excellent experience for future activities.
Milena, together with Joan Whittle, an experienced cook, close friend and colleague, organised annual French, Austrian and Mediterranean cookery weeks in her home town of Preston, which were featured on Granada TV.
In the early 1980s, Milena together with Joan, broadcast a weekly cookery programme on Red Rose Radio in Preston.
Together with colleague Derek Smith, one time head of a catering college, now owner of his own catering company, ‘Hooray for Home Cooking’ has been established to promote the Remoska and its use. Introducing the Remoska to the British public has resulted in another career, when most people are well and truly retired.
Milena has maintained her interest in classical music for the past 30 years, has a close involvement with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra and is Chairman of the Friends of the Orchestra. Milena plans and takes Friends of the Phil on tours to the Czech Republic. Visiting conductors and soloists of the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra are frequent guests and are catered for in the family home.
As a Czech national, she escaped to the UK as a child refugee from the Nazis in 1939, one of the 700 Jewish children saved by Sir Nicholas Winton. Her war years were spent in the Czechoslovak State Secondary School in Exile situated in Wales, and Milena still meets with her old schoolfriends at regular intervals.
In 2001 Milena was presented with the Jan Masaryk ‘Gratis Agit’ award, by the Czech Minister of Foreign Affairs for remaining a faithful patriot, an ambassador of goodwill, culture and history of the Czech Republic.
Widow of architect Professor Sir George Grenfell-Baines, founder of the international practice of architects, designers and engineers, Building Design Partnership (BDP), Milena has 4 children and 9 grandchildren.
Derek Smith (the professional, practical and diligent)
As Chairman of Hooray for Home Cooking, Derek, together with Milena was responsible for bringing the Remoska to the British public. He has extensively tested and used the Remoska. He has provided several recipes for your enjoyment.
He runs his own corporate catering business for clients as diverse as local authorities, industrialists, high street banks and building societies. He has worked at many prestigious events such as the British Open Golf Championship, the Ryder Cup, Royal Show at Stoneleigh and the Commonwealth Games.
Derek served an apprenticeship as a baker and confectioner before joining the Royal Air Force as a chef. After leaving the RAF, Derek was fortunate to work with the celebrated European chef, Karl Loderer. With continual training and experience Derek started his own bakery and confectionery business, before being appointed Senior Lecturer and Head of the School of Catering at a northwest college.
He has been a Justice of the Peace for over twenty years and is Chairman of both Heartbeat Trustees Committee and Preston Town Twinning Partnership. Derek is married to Collette and has three grown-up children.
www.derek-smith-catering.co.uk
Jill Wadeson (the glue that holds it all together)
Helping us to introduce the Remoska to the UK, working with the factory and the various legislative authorities; like all the contributors to the cookbook, Jill has tested recipes and cooks regularly with her Remoska. Jill has been responsible for compiling, editing and has been very closely involved with the production of ‘Remoska Cooking’.
Jill is Company Secretary to Hooray for Home Cooking, responsible for the administration of the company. She had been employed as personal secretary to the founder, Sir George Grenfell-Baines and senior partners of the international firm BDP and previously, one of the directors at the former Leyland Motors Group.
Jill attended school in Switzerland, secretarial college in London, has been a Justice of the Peace and involved in charity fund raising for a number of years. She is married to Tony and has three grown-up children.
Joan Whittle (food techie!)
Founded on her interest in the food and cookery of different countries and cultures, Joan has spent most of her working life involved with commercial catering, as an hotelier, broadcaster and consultant. She has cooked, tested and provided recipes and acted as food consultant to the cookbook, ‘Remoska Cooking’.
For several years she and Milena ran a successful catering company serving both private and corporate clients.
For seventeen years Joan presented the food programme on Lancashire’s local radio station, for which in 1990 she received a Silver Heart from the Variety Club of Great Britain as Independent Broadcaster of the Year. During this time she was actively involved in running a country house hotel, and then worked on various county magazines promoting food events and recipes, and as a judge for regional food awards.
In recent years she has consulted on food development and marketing to a variety of restaurants, bistros and airlines.
