I'm an avid MasterChef fan although I think that the fact that I watch it in bed, laptop-on-chest, until I fall asleep, isn't the only thing that makes me odd. Unlike most Brits, it doesn't inspire me to cook - although I'll confess that have bought several celeriacs (to puree, then swish across the plate with the back of a spoon, before placing the star of the dish on top... but which instead, I left to go off) and even grew in the greenhouse, some samphire and other 'exotic' veg that the aspiring champions use in their dishes.

Why do I say 'unlike most Brits'? Well, according to new research, Britain is experiencing a home cooking boom, after being inspired by TV cooking programmes. E-tailer AppliancesDirect.co.uk is reporting a 117% increase in sales of kitchen gadgets following the recent launch of this year's MasterChef.

A survey by the brand found almost half (49%) of UK adults are inspired to cook more at home when they watch TV programmes such as MasterChef and Great British Bake Off.

Some 47% said they've followed in the famous chefs' footsteps and cooked a new recipe that they'd first seen on TV, while 39% said they have bought a kitchen gadget or cooking appliance after seeing it on a cooking programme.

The data found that Brits are polishing up on their skills thanks to the on-screen inspiration, as 35% say they've learnt something new after watching a TV cooking programme and one in four even discovered a new ingredient, (but did they actually use it, I wonder?).

"Every year, we see a sales spike in the weeks that follow the launch of both MasterChef and GBBO, but this year the surge is particularly high," notes Appliances Direct's Mark Kelly. "We also see an upward sales trend as the seasons draw to a close, suggesting those who have enjoyed watching are ready to try it for themselves."

I wonder though, whether these programmes can have a detrimental effect in as much as they could inspire us to seek out new types of equipment that may not be readily available, which manufacturers then mass produce, expecting a consistently growing demand, only to find that once the equipment is no longer seen being used by the chefs, it goes out of fashion and ends up gathering dust on the shelves?

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Yours,

Jan Hobbs