School Report: Welcome to Our Lady & St John Catholic College's holding page. At the moment we are not based in our usual building, we have moved to a temporary site because our old school is being renovated.
9OL1 editorial team includes:
Seren – editor
Dylan – sub-editor
Swayza – editorial team
Isaac – editorial team
Chef Gennaro Contaldo taught Jamie Oliver all he knows about Italian cooking and is working with him on his new restaurant chain. He has made numerous appearances on television and recently entered the Guinness World Records with his ravioli-making skills! Students Ellie and Sophiah both have an interest in cooking so they posed some questions to the Italian to find out more….
1.Where did you get your inspiration for cooking?
I was born on the Amalfi Coast in southern Italy. When I was small I used to watch my mother collecting wild herbs and mushrooms for cooking, and go with my father out in the woods to catch rabbits. Food and cooking was always an important part of family life. On Sundays everyone would get round the dining table and talk about what had been going on while eating amazing fresh food.
2.What are your future plans?
At the moment I am continuing to work with Jamie Oliver in expanding the chain of restaurants. It's a full time job. We are opening all over the country. It’s amazing but hard work. Maybe at some stage soon I'm looking forward to having a good rest, maybe a holiday!
3.Has your life changed since winning the world record?
Nothing really has changed! It was nice to do it but I'm sure someone will come along at some stage and break my record. I also have the record for making the fastest omelette on BBC1's Saturday Morning Kitchen.
4.How do you feel about training chefs for the restaurant?
It is an amazing privilege working with these young men and women and helping them to train up. They are so skilled and have so much enthusiasm for their work. Fantastic.
5.What did you want to become when you were a child?
When I was a child I wanted to become a sailor. We lived next to the sea and you would sometimes see the sailors walking around their village in their smart uniforms. I wanted to go and explore the world!
6.Do you have a favourite recipe?
I'm not sure I've got a favourite recipe. There are so many good ones. It's always important to use fresh, good quality ingredients. A typical recipe from my village in Italy, Minori, is aubergines in chocolate. Delicious.
7.Was it difficult teaching Jamie Oliver how to cook Italian?
Not at all! Jamie is such a good boy and always picked things up so quickly. When he was young and starting out he used to keep me company in the restaurant kitchen early in the morning - just him and me and he used to watch me making the bread. He is so talented.
8.Who is your favourite chef?
I don't think I have one favourite chef. I work with so many chefs and they are all so amazing and talented. Such commitment and passion. If I'm honest then the best chef was my mum. She used to make amazing dishes for me and my sisters using the simplest of ingredients.
9.You recently won a record for the fastest ravioli making; how did it feel to win?
Fantastic. I didn't know that I had even broken the record until I had finished. There were the Guinness Book of Records people around with their clipboards watching. Jamie broke a record at the same time.
10.Did you write your cookbook independently?
I have 6 or 7 cookbooks in print now. The first one was called 'Passione' and I have also made a couple of 'Two Greedy Italian' books with Antonio Carluccio. I have help from my partner, Liz, and my sister, Adriana, who tests out a lot of the recipes. And of course my grandchildren who also help eat!
11.Are you going to open any new Italian restaurants with Jamie Oliver?
We are opening up all the time. Recently we opened in Glasgow and we have restaurants in Dubai and Australia, and are preparing to open in Russia. I am so pleased at the success they have had.
12.If you could compare yourself to a chef who would it be?
I don't know really. Each chef has their own way of doing things, and it is amazing to see so many young women coming forward to train as chefs as well as men. That is something that has really changed over the past 20 years.
13.What are your connections with Gino De Campo?
I love Gino! He is a lovely boy! He is a good friend and I always see him whenever we do shows and stuff. Another example of why Italian cooking is so popular anywhere you go in the world.
Year 9s work so hard on BBC News School Report that their pen explodes!
Local Sporting Hero Comes to Our Lady & St John On the 15th February 2013 Commonwealth and Olympic Champion Charlotte Hartley came to Our Lady & St John. The visit was part of the Sky Sports Healthy Living initiative. We found out about her early years in school and how she was bullied which inspired her to be the best she could be. Declan, Matti, Ellie and Bilal went along to meet Charlotte and find out more Interview with Charlotte Hartley
OLSJ SCOOP: Daniel O'Donnell Edition Daniel O'Donnell is a well-known and loved Irish singer and performer, whose main genre is country but he also dabbles in rock'n'roll. In my interview with him he divulges a lot about his youth, his school life and his inspirations. He has many accolades including Donegal Man Of the Year and he is the first artist to have a different album in the UK charts for 40 consecutive years. Isaac went along to the Dunkenhalgh Hotel to find out more….
Daniel O'Donnell interview
On our news page we may include stories about our very own National Judo champion and our year 11s and teaching staff having the luxury of iPads for teaching and learning. We may also include updates of our move to a brand new school and our temporary site.
Thank you for visiting OLSJ's holding page, we hope that we have enticed you to visit regularly. In the near future we hope to fulfil your 'need for news'. We will look forward to informing you on news local and worldwide, so don't forget to keep checking back with us!
