Alexis Soyer: celebrity chef, bestselling author, entrepreneur, inventor, philanthropist and Crimean War hero. Soyer built the world famous kitchens of London's Reform Club - which he filled with such ingenious inventions as the gas stove and steam lifts. He set up the most innovative culinary theme park ever seen in the capital, and devised the sauces and relishes that would make household names of Mr Crosse and Mr Blackwell. In the 1840s he set up revolutionary soup kitchens during the Irish potato famine, and in the following decade risked his life by travelling to the Russian peninsula to reform army catering for the troops - saving thousands of soldiers from the effects of malnutrition. Alexis Soyer was one of the most famous names of the early Victorian age, and his legacy lives on through the radical army reforms his work set in train. He was also - in a similar spirit of the age - a secret womaniser, near bankrupt and an alcoholic.

Author Biography

Ruth Cowen was born in 1968 and has been a journalist, editor and researcher for twelve years. She has written for the Daily Telegraph, the Daily Mail, the Financial Times, the Independent, the Guardian, the Daily and Sunday Express and the Sunday Mirror. Previous titles: Relish (HC Jul 06)