A history of curry in Britain episode artwork

EPISODE · Oct 9, 2025 · 36 MIN

A history of curry in Britain

from The English Heritage Podcast · host English Heritage

Try to order a balti in Kashmir and you might get a funny look.  That’s because this ‘classic curry’ was invented in 1970s Birmingham, when a restaurant owner wanted to make a curry-like dish that suited local palates and could be cooked quickly for his customers.   Curry may be one of our nation’s favourite foods, but how did our modern-day cuisine evolve from centuries of trade, exploitation, colonialism and migration? In today’s episode, Christopher Warleigh-Lack, Mallika Basu and Samantha Bilton take Amy through the chequered history of curry.   Christopher begins our journey at Osborne on the Isle of Wight, where we explore Queen Victoria’s passion for India and the influences we can discover in the collection. We also look at British inventions, from balti to tikka masala, coronation chicken and the incendiary sultana, and discuss their place in food culture and tradition today.  Don’t forget to follow this podcast and leave a review if you love the show.   Find out more: https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/a-brief-history-of-curry-in-england/   Join: https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/join/   Podcast listeners can get 20% off the first year of an annual membership. Use code POD20 at checkout. *  Support our work: https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/support-us/   The English Heritage Trust is a charity, no. 1140351, and a limited company, no. 07447221, registered in England and Wales.  *Offer is available through the use of this code and valid for new memberships by annual Direct Debit only. It cannot be used in conjunction with any other promotion, on life memberships or renewals.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Episode metadata supplied by the publisher feed · Published Oct 9, 2025

Embed this episode

NOW PLAYING

A history of curry in Britain

0:00 36:29

No transcript for this episode yet

We transcribe on demand. Request one and we'll notify you when it's ready — usually under 10 minutes.

No similar episodes found.

No similar podcasts found.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long is this episode of The English Heritage Podcast?

This episode is 36 minutes long.

When was this The English Heritage Podcast episode published?

This episode was published on October 9, 2025.

Can I download this The English Heritage Podcast episode?

Yes. Use the download control on the episode player to save the publisher-provided media file.
URL copied to clipboard!