A COUPLE have travelled more than 10,000 miles to experience the culinary delights of the North-East after seeing what he region had to offer on a television food show screened down under.

Zana Smith and Bill Griffiths, from Melbourne, Australia, travelled halfway around the world to sample Rockliffe Hall chef Kenny Atkinson’s food after seeing his food on the BBC’s Great British Menu.

The couple organised a road trip from Edinburgh to Oxford to stay and eat at the restaurants of four Michelin starred chefs that inspired them with their food and personalities on the show.

On the list for the intrepid foodies was five star spa, golf and hotel resort Rockliffe Hall, in Hurworth, near Darlington, as well as Tom Kitchin at the The Kitchin in Leith, Edinburgh, and Nigel Haworth and Lisa Allen at Northcote in Lancashire.

Ms Smith, who loves cooking, said: “It was a terrific tour. We had been to the UK previously to Cornwall, Cumbria and Aberdeenshire in search of Britain’s unique stone circles and had eaten at Rick Stein’s restaurant. Watching Great British Menu gave us our next idea for a UK road tour.

“It is a trip we will be recommending to all our friends and family in Australia, as the accommodation was gorgeous and we were thrilled to meet all of the chefs who took time out of their busy schedules to chat to us about their food. Kenny, Tom, Nigel and Lisa were all charming, dedicated and outstanding ambassadors for British cooking and for tourism.”

While at Rockliffe Hall, the couple ate in all three of the resort’s restaurants: Kenny Atkinson at the Orangery, The Brasserie by Atkinson and The Clubhouse.

Mr Atkinson, who is a regular guest on Saturday Morning Kitchen, Drop Down Menu and Perfect, said: “It is amazing that people will travel so far for food and it was great to meet Zana and Bill. The fact that programmes such as Great British Menu air as far as Australia is doing the UK a great service in spreading the word about our offering.

“The UK has a lot of talent and a great pool of high quality, home grown ingredients, so there is no reason why our food cannot be the best in the world.”

Mr Griffiths, who worked in the North-East in the Eighties and is a Newcastle United fan, added: “We travelled over 10,000 miles to eat the best food we have ever experienced.

“We were rewarded with imaginative and beautiful dishes, cooked with passion and skill by chefs who are loved in equal measure by their customers, communities and staff. Britain is lucky to have them.”