The award-winning food writer and cook opens the doors to the West Dorset home he shares with his wife, Alice, and their daughters, and explains why the county of his birth still has his heart. By Jessica Jonzen
GILL MELLER IN THE POLYTUNNEL AT HIS HOME NEAR LYME REGIS, WEST DORSET
There are few cooks who embody the comforting pleasures of home quite like Gill Meller. Best known for his beautifully simple, seasonal recipes, Gill began his career working alongside Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall at River Cottage, where his appreciation for sustainable, ingredient-led cooking took root.
Today, that philosophy still underpins everything he does, from recipes that celebrate the changing seasons to dishes inspired by the landscapes of Dorset – often the magnificent backdrop to his photos and videos. Whether it’s bread baked over an open fire, a generous tart filled with vegetables grown in his own garden or a freshly caught fish barbecued on the beach at Lyme Regis, his cooking is rooted in simplicity, flavour and a deep connection to place.
He shares his Home Truths with us…
Where do you live and why?
I live just outside the coastal town of Lyme Regis in Dorset, a little to the west of its beautiful harbour. I’ve always lived in Dorset and I love the county. I love its geography, the variety of landscapes and, above all, being by the sea. I feel happiest when I can see the ocean. I’m not entirely sure why; I just love the way it makes me feel. It gives me a sense of assurance, a feeling of knowing where I am, and a constant reminder of nature’s power and our place within it.
How would you describe your home?
We absolutely love living where we are, which makes it very hard to imagine living anywhere else. We’ve been here for around 15 years. Originally, the building was an old stone bothy, or summer house, belonging to the large manor house that sits on the hill behind us. It enjoys wonderful views across the woodland below and out over Lyme Bay, the stretch of water between Portland Bill and Dartmouth.
Eventually, we were able to turn the little summer house into a family home, and over the years we’ve slowly carried out the work ourselves in stages. It’s quite an unusual building because it’s set into the hillside and has a green roof covered with wildflowers and grasses. It faces south, so in summer it’s a glorious place to be. In winter, when the storms roll in off the sea, it feels wonderfully wild and exhilarating.
THE OPEN PLAN KITCHEN AND SITTING ROOM, WITH VIEWS OVER LYME BAY. IMAGE: MATT AUSTIN
What was the first thing you did to your home when you moved in?
The little summer house was very basic when we first took it on. It had residential planning permission, but no electricity. There was a small open fire which warmed it up a bit, and a set of traditional gas lamps with delicate mantles that seemed to break every time you lit them. We stayed there a few times ourselves, then tidied it up so friends and family could enjoy it during the summer months too.
There was a tiny kitchen, a simple shower heated by gas and very little else. In warm weather, it was idyllic but in winter it could be cold and damp.
If the objects in your home could talk, which would have the best stories to tell?
That’s a lovely question. Without doubt, it would be our dining table. It sits at the heart of our kitchen and was made by my father from ash. At first glance it looks like a simple, well-made table, but thats not the whole story. Every person who’s ever sat around it for a meal has signed the underside and, more often than not, left a little message too. After all these years, there’s not much space left.
In a way, the table doesn’t tell one story, but hundreds of them. If you lie on your back and look underneath, you can read names, dates, little jokes and memories left by family and friends over many years. It’s become a quiet record of all the people who’ve gathered around it; it’s nice to stare up at it from time to time and remember.
GILL’S KITCHEN FEATURE’S AN ESSE STOVE AND OPEN FIRE. IMAGE: MATT AUSTIN
Which part of your home makes you happiest?
Without question, it’s the kitchen. After living with it for over a decade and writing six cookbooks there, I finally decided it deserved a bit of a makeover. We removed a large dividing wall to create one open space, built a proper back kitchen with extra storage, another oven and fridge, and, best of all, a generous walk-in larder filled with spices, flours, ferments, vinegars and all the ingredients I love cooking with.
Sometimes I simply stand in there thinking about what I’d like to cook next.
What’s on your bedside table?
Not very much really. There’s a small reading lamp, whatever book I’m working my way through, and a pile of magazines underneath, most of them about classic wooden boats. I’ve always loved sailing, so I enjoy flicking through those before going to sleep.
My phone usually ends up there too, although I know I should leave it next door. Other than that, I don’t need much. A good night’s sleep is about all I’m after.
What was your childhood home like?
We lived in four different houses while I was growing up, and I remember each of them very fondly. Three were in the countryside and one was in the market town of Bridport. They still find their way into my dreams from time to time, even the first house near Lulworth, which was an old vicarage with the church behind it and, apparently, more than a few ghosts.
The house that means the most to me is where we lived from the age of about seven until I was 16 or 17. Those were my formative years. It’s where I made lifelong friends, had endless adventures and really began to understand the world around me.
The kitchen was always the heart of our home. That’s where everyone gathered, where stories were shared and meals were made. Those memories stayed with me so deeply that I eventually wrote a cookbook inspired by the kitchens of my childhood and the way they become part of who we are. That book was Time.
THE VIEW OF LYME BAY FROM GILL’S HOME. IMAGE: MATT AUSTIN
Do you have a domestic guilty secret or pet hate?
Working in professional kitchens for so many years has definitely left me with a few habits. I like things to be fairly tidy and organised, and I think more clearly when the worktops are tidy and everything is where it should be.
If I have one real pet hate, it’s people using my knives and leaving them lying around afterwards. Most of them have carbon steel blades, so after cutting something acidic like onions or lemons they really need a quick wash and a dry. It rarely happens unless I’m the one using them. It’s hardly the end of the world, but I do wince a little when I see it.
What is the most memorable thing to have happened in your home?
There have been countless memorable moments here, but the one that made all the others possible was receiving planning permission to turn the old summer house into our family home. It was an incredibly complicated application because of where we live, within the grounds of a listed building and close to a conservation area. There were years of uncertainty, endless meetings and plenty of moments when we wondered whether it would ever happen.
We’d really pinned our future as a family on that decision, so when permission finally came through it was one of the greatest feelings of relief I’ve ever experienced. Everything we’ve built since began with that moment.
What makes your house a home?
After nearly 15 years, the house and gardens have really come together so well. There’s my office tucked away in the garden, Alice’s pottery studio where she makes her beautiful work, a kitchen I genuinely love spending time in, and views out to sea that change every time you look out the door. I still have to pinch myself.
We feel incredibly fortunate to live here. It’s not really about the building itself; it’s about the life we’ve built around it. When a place makes you feel settled, inspired and grateful every single day, I think that’s when a house probably becomes a home.
GILL’S HOME WAS ORIGINALLY A STONE BOTHY. IMAGE: MATT AUSTIN
THE ASH DINING TABLE MADE BY GILL’S FATHER, SIGNED UNDERNEATH BY EVERY GUEST WHO HAS SAT AROUND IT. IMAGE: MATT AUSTIN
GILL MELLER, WITH LYME BAY AND THE LYME REGIS HARBOUR FRONT
gillmeller.com; you can access all Gill’s recipes and writing by becoming a member of his community here.
Know someone who would enjoy this interview? You can share it using the buttons at the top of the page. Discover more our our Home Truths interviews here.
