THE UK’S best loved TV chef Mary Berry found herself on the menu last night after she was attacked by midges during the first episode of her new show.
81 year-old Berry, along with Scottish Michelin star chef Tom Kitchin, were assaulted by a swarm of the flying pests during their trip to the Highlands.
The first episode of Berry Everyday aired on BBC Two yesterday and featured the pair cooking up some venison steaks.
On a sporting estate near Inverness, the infamous Scottish nuisance nibbled on Berry next to a loch.
During the episode Berry and Kitchin sit down to their luxury venison steak dinner at an unidentified sporting estate near Inverness.
But Berry and Kitchin themselves ended up as dinner for a cloud of blood-sucking insects.
According to Kitchin, the footage shown in the new series doesn’t show the mass clouds of midges.
He said: “The midges were abominable, although you wouldn’t know it from the TV.
“The crew didn’t know what to make of it and they were all draped in these veils and nets, but Mary just carried on. She’s an amazing professional and a national treasure.
“We were right up in the Highlands and it was one of those amazing Scottish days where the weather went from light to dark without warning.
Earlier in the episode the Berry visited the harbour village of Ullapool and sampled local delights from The Seafood Shack, newly opened fresh seafood trailer.
The show follows the former British Bake-Off host as she visits family memories, telling stories about her parents and grandparents.
Originally from Bath, Berry trained at the prestigious Cordon Bleu in Paris before becoming the cookery editor for Housewife magazine in the 1960s.
The 2016 midge season was one of the worst for six years with around 180,000 midges per night being record in June in some areas of Argyll.
There are an estimated 152 species of biting midge in Britain – most of which feed on other insects however around 50 feed on warm-blooded animals 37 of which occur in Scotland.
Peak midge season is between June and September they’re more than slightly irritating.
It is estimated that midges cost the Scottish tourist industry up to £268 million a year in lost visits.
