Survival expert Ray Mears and his TV accomplice Professor Gordon Hillman, an archaeobotanist, make compelling viewing in Ray Mears' Wild Food.
On BBC 2 at 8pm , Wednesday January 31st, they were on the trail of some fungi.
Hillman explains the effects of consuming poisonous mushrooms complete with a dramatic reconstruction. Meanwhile Ray will be cooking up some acorn paste! The mushroom section should be of interest to all mycophiles out there, whether or not they're fans of the show and the two front men.
Nancy Banks TV review catches the flavour of the programme.
"In Ray Mears' Wild Food (BBC2), our overgrown boy scout has an academic sidekick. Professor Hillman is a paleo-ethno botanist and he had a tale to tell. Having eaten some mushrooms kindly donated by the mycology department of Cardiff University, he went for a pint. In the pub his vision, memory and breathing failed. This is not unheard of in a pub, but Professor Hillman realised he had eaten a deadly fungus. "Before I became unconscious, I wrote 'Psathyrella' on a piece of paper and pinned it to my chest for the doctors." I am full of admiration for anyone who can spell psathyrella at the best of times, let alone as sound and vision fade. "Fade sound and vision" is a television term, which I always felt would look rather good on a tombstone."
