REVIEW: James May Oh Cook Season One

 REVIEW: James May Oh Cook Season One

Today (as of writing this post, on the 11th February 2021) I completed my watch of James May's cookery show 'Oh Cook', so I thought I would gather my reviews on each episode into a single post, as an overall review of the series.

Episode One - Asian Fusion

This was exactly what I was expecting from a James May cook show. Very much a James May Show, with all of the fun and things going awry you'd expect. I particularly loved the call-backs to his Japan travel series, and the line not burnt, it's just well done!'.

Episode Two - Pub Classics

This episode has some typical James May-isms, with plenty of his self-depreciating humour, ranging from doubts about winning a BAFTA to talk of his own 'incompetence'. There's some classic Top Gear/Grand Tour-style cock-ups too, my favourite being when he accidentally labelled the chicken side of his chicken and mushroom pie 'vegetarian', and then noticed he'd carved a 'V' by mistake in Nikki's worktop.

Episode Three - Pasta

Oh my God, that alphabet spaghetti Jelly Baby was hilarious! This wasn’t filled with quite as many funny moments as the previous two episodes, although it did have entertaining James May-style tangents on celebrity pasta preferences and Heinz. And I definitely agree with James May’s Twitter in the declaration that you can never have too much cheese.

Episode Four - Curry

I really like this show, I love how it's essentially a deconstruction of the cookery format, with James May not afraid to loudly express his frustrations, with a 'bollocks' or an 'Oh God'.

It really embraces how James May isn't the man you would expect to see presenting a cookery programme, with so many funny moments in this episode alone, such as how he accidentally left the tin lid from the can he had opened inside of the pan he was cooking in, or his attempt to make his own bread resulting in his dough coming out looking like a sausage.

It's really quite a unique and refreshing show, and one that I would recommend to those looking for a TV Show that's a little more unconventional.

Episode Five - Pudding

This is a really funny episode, full of accidental innuendos in relation to Spotted Dick and slightly 'unconventional' descriptions of how to make an apple crumble (describing it as being like 'a cat padding about in a litter tray').

So far this show demonstrates exactly why the popularity of Clarkson, Hammond and May has never died down, even if it's only James May of the trio who appears in this series.

Episode Six - Breakfast

This one has a really funny sequence where James May makes a hash out of cooking his Hash, and he gives some interesting background of where the word 'breakfast' came from too. A fun episode all round.

Episode Seven - Roast

So the final episode of the series already, and what a great show this has been. It's the most unconventional cooking programme ever, and that I think is exactly what you want from a James May cooking show. James May's attempt at the Yorkshire accent in this one was hilariously bad. I think it needs a lot more work! Although as a Yorkshireman, it was great to see him making Yorkshire Puddings, as it's such a staple of our culture in my region. I'm totally fine with having Yorkshire Puddings with chicken as well as beef.

It's quite funny how the professional cook Nikki is the one who messes up here. First she accidentally breaks the rotational cheese grater, and then she inadvertently causes James May to burn his mouth. It's the warts-and-all approach to this show that I enjoy the most. You get to see things that in any other cooking programme they would never leave in. Only James May could present a cooking show like this.

What are your thoughts on Oh Cook? Let me know in the comments.