Darina Allen: ‘The bank manager said he never lived it down refusing me a loan for my cookery school’

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Darina Allen with some seakale. Picture by Daniel Callen

Darina Allen

​Darina Allen, 75, is one of the founders of Ballymaloe Cookery School. Also an author and a television presenter, she lives in East Cork. Ballymaloe Festival of Food runs from May 17-19, with Darina and Rachel Allen cooking on the main stage on Sunday, May 19 at 4pm. ballymaloegrainstore.com

​​Being the eldest of nine was wonderful. Mummy would arrive back from the nursing home in Dublin with boy after boy after boy.