Wedginald
Wedginald was a 20-kilogram (44 lb) wheel of English cheddar cheese, made famous in 2007 when its producers broadcast its maturation process on the internet The livestream went viral, receiving national and international attention. Following the broadcast, the cheese was auctioned to raise money for Children in Need.
Cheese
[edit]Wedginald, a 20-kilogram (44 lb) wheel of cheddar cheese, was produced by Westcountry Farmhouse Cheesemakers of Westcombe Dairy, Evercreech, near Shepton Mallet in Somerset.[1][2] The company set up a website, Cheddarvision, that livestreamed the cheese's maturation. The cheese's name was chosen after the site hosted a naming contest; it is a portmanteau of wedge and the given name Reginald.[3]
Internet broadcast
[edit]Initially only an internet phenomenon of limited scope, the website soon received attention from major UK media outlets including the BBC, The Times, and The Independent. Wedginald also drew global attention with coverage in Norway and The Tony Kornheiser Radio Show in the United States.[4][5][6]
More than 1.5 million people watched the stream of the 9-month maturation.[4][7] A time-lapse video on YouTube[8] attracted several hundred thousand page views, and a profile for the cheese gained over 1,300 friends on MySpace.[6]
The cheese's creator, Tom Calver, stated that the company never expected Wedginald to go viral.[4] He insisted that broadcasting Wedginald's maturation was to educate on the art of cheesemaking and to highlight the effort that goes into the production of gourmet food at a time when there is increasing detachment between consumers and producers.[5]
Maturation
[edit]On 19 September 2007, nine months into the cheese's maturation, Calver took the first sample to determine its quality and suitability for human consumption.[9] Calver described the cheese as having "a caramel nose, a sweet twiggy greenness and a creamy good length of flavour... lemony, with a certain 'spritziness'".[5]
On 19 November, Wedginald was sold in an online auction on eBay for £1,145, with the proceeds going to Children in Need.[10] The winner was a former resident of the Somerset village of Chew Magna, who had migrated to New Zealand as an architect, and subsequently became involved in the wine industry.[citation needed] Wedginald remained online for viewing on the official website until 19 December 2007, after which it was exported to New Zealand on 22 December 2007.[citation needed]
References
[edit]- ^ Lyall, Sarah (17 April 2007). "Paint Drying? Sorry, Wrong Link. This Is Cheddarvision". The New York Times. Retrieved 29 December 2007.
- ^ Morris, Steven (29 March 2007). "Reality TV not to your taste? Try cheddarvision". The Guardian. Retrieved 29 December 2007.
- ^ "Suggest a name for the Cheese". cheddarvision.tv. Retrieved 16 November 2007.
- ^ a b c "Famous cheese faces website probe". BBC News. 16 September 2007. Retrieved 16 November 2007.
- ^ a b c Emily Dugan (20 September 2007). "Wedginald, the cult cheese, finally gets its big taste test". The Independent. Archived from the original on 1 October 2007. Retrieved 17 November 2007.
- ^ a b Hege Løvdal Gulseth (16 November 2007). "Se en ost modne". Dagbladet (in Norwegian). Retrieved 16 November 2007.
- ^ David Byers (17 September 2007). "1.5 million people log on to pay their respects to Wedginald, the big cheese". The Times. London. Archived from the original on 22 July 2008. Retrieved 16 November 2007.
- ^ "Cheddarvision.tv : time-lapse 0-3 months" (Video). Youtube. CVision2007. 29 March 2007. Retrieved 29 January 2023.
- ^ "Cheddar Cheese". Icons: A Portrait of England. Retrieved 17 November 2007.
- ^ "Wedginald, international star of cheddarvision TV". eBay. Archived from the original on 16 November 2007. Retrieved 16 November 2007.