In February 2018, MasterChef 2016 losers Billy and Jack will be hosting a one-off supper club with a difference. Taking place at Plum + Spilt Milk, the Great Northern Hotel’s destination restaurant situated in Kings Cross, Billy and Jack will challenge themselves to cook for 24 hours straight at London’s first 24-hour supper club, in aid of Cancer Research UK to mark World Cancer Day on Sunday 4th February. Dishing up spectacular, tasty food from Saturday, 3rd to Sunday, 4th February, Billy and Jack aim to raise £12,000 for their chosen charity.
Cancer Research UK is close to the supper club kings’ hearts for a good reason. On 22nd June 2017, Billy was diagnosed with papillary thyroid cancer after visiting the doctor with a persistent cough. Doctors found numerous growths on and around his thyroid gland and he was diagnosed with this rare form of cancer shortly after. Thankfully, after a long operation in July and with ongoing treatment, Billy is well on the road to recovery and causing more trouble than ever.
Kicking off at 11am on Saturday, 3rd February, Billy and Jack will prep and cook for nine consecutive supper club sittings, seeing them cooking through the night spanning brunch, lunch, dinner and late-night feasting to finish at 11am on Sunday. Each sitting will last two hours and will include a 3-course meal, plus nibbles including bread and THAT marmite butter, plus a drink or two. To keep spirits high, and the menu ever-changing, Billy and Jack will be joined by friends and fellow foodies from:
- Plum + Spilt Milk’s own award-winning team, headed by Mark Sargeant and Mike Denman
- Chef, food consultant, food writer, and cookery teacher, Ben Tish
- Chef, restaurateur and author, Dan Doherty
- Winner of MasterChef 2016, Jane Devonshire
- Chef and author, Emily Roux
- Broadcaster, Marie Claire Food Editor and co-founder of the food & lifestyle brand Jackson & Levine, Laura Jackson
- Chef, restaurateur, cookbook author and broadcaster, Clodagh McKenna
- Chef and author, Sophie Michell
- Chef and cancer survivor, John Lawson from Food by John Lawson
More names to be announced in due course.
Jeremy Robson, hotelier and owner of the Great Northern Hotel, comments: “We’re delighted to be able to host such a unique event in aid of a cause that touches so many. To have so many brilliant chefs in the Plum + Spilt Milk kitchen, alongside our own very talented Mark Sargeant and Mike Denman, is a very exciting prospect.”
Billy and Jack, comment: “We believe in bringing people together over great plates of food, in good times and especially in the bad. To mark World Cancer Day, Cancer Research UK is encouraging people to wear a Unity Band to help fund research into better treatments to bring more good news to more cancer patients. So, on this very special day, and for a cause extremely close to our hearts, we’ll be cooking some of our favourite dishes and bringing people together. Classics, guilty pleasures and everything in-between this will be big, celebratory food fit for this very special occasion.”
Working with Cancer Research UK, it’s Billy’s aim to raise awareness of this rare form of cancer, as well as to give hope to those who have been diagnosed with the disease.
Billy, comments: “It’s been a challenging year for me. My diagnosis happened to coincide with our first month full time in food as Billy and Jack, but with the support of family, friends and especially Jack, plus all the great doctors and nurses who’ve helped me along the way, it is a year coming to an end in a positive light. The Supper Club we’re planning is a way for us to raise awareness that survival rates from this disease are increasing; and to give back to a great charity that I have supported for many years, but now have even more reason to bring people together for such a good cause.”
Tickets for Billy and Jack’s 24-hour supper club are on sale now. At least 50% of proceeds will go to Cancer Research UK to help fund more research, more treatments and more cures. For details and tickets, visit: https://billy-and-jacks-24-hour-supper-club.designmynight.com/
