George Orwell gets apology 70 years after his essay was rejected

George Orwell has been written a letter of apology 70 years after one of his famous essays was rejected.

The British Council commissioned the Animal Farm author in 1946 on the piece In Defence of English Cooking, but they subsequently refused to publish it.

More than seven decades later, the piece has been reproduced in full, alongside the council’s rejection letter. An article on the council’s website is headed: “With apologies to Mr Orwell.”

Alasdair Donaldson, British Council senior policy analyst, said: “It seems that the organisation in those days was somewhat po-faced and risk-averse, and was anxious to avoid producing an essay about food (even one which mentions the disastrous effects of wartime rationing) in the aftermath of the hungry winter of 1945.”

He added: “Over 70 years later, the British Council is delighted to make amends for its slight on perhaps the UK’s greatest political writer of the twentieth century, by re-producing the original essay in full – along with the unfortunate rejection letter.”

Orwell’s essay, which was later published by the Evening Standard, was called “excellent” but deemed “unfortunate and unwise” to be published for the continental reader.

The letter explains that there have been some concerns over writing about food and apologises to Orwell for commissioning him for such an essay when it could not be published.

But he did face criticism for his orange marmalade recipe which had “too much sugar and water”.

Orwell was paid 30 guineas for the piece, and the British Council told him they would hold no rights in the essay, telling him they hoped he would publish it elsewhere.

His essay defends British cooking, explaining “the characteristic British diet is a simple, rather heavy, perhaps slightly barbarous diet, drawing much of its virtue from the excellence of the local materials, and with its main emphasis on sugar and animal fats”.

He says those looking to see the true British cooking should go into the kitchens of the middle and working classes which have not been “Europeanised” – admitting that cheap restaurants are usually bad and more expensive ones are “French or imitation French”.

He continued: “It is the diet of a wet northern country where butter is plentiful and vegetable oils are scarce, where hot drinks are acceptable at most hours of the day, and where all the spices and some of the stronger-tasting herbs are exotic products.

“Garlic, for instance, is unknown in British cookery proper: on the other hand mint, which is completely neglected in some European countries, figures largely.

“In general, British people prefer sweet things to spicy things, and they combine sugar with meat in a way that is seldom seen elsewhere.”

The essay was published with the permission of the Orwell Foundation.

Orwell’s marmalade recipe

Ingredients:

2 Seville oranges

2 sweet oranges

2 lemons

8lbs of preserving sugar

8 pints of water

Method:

Wash and dry the fruit. Halve them and squeeze out the juice. Remove some of the pith, then shred the fruit finely.

Tie the pips in a muslin bag. Put the strained juice, rind and pips into the water and soak for 48 hours.

Place in a large pan and simmer for 1/2 hours until the rind is tender.

Leave to stand overnight, then add the sugar and let it dissolve before bringing to the boil.

Boil rapidly until a little of the mixture will set into a jelly when placed on a cold plate.

Pour into jars which have been heated beforehand, and cover with paper covers.

(c) Sky News 2019: George Orwell gets apology 70 years after his essay was rejected