We haven’t seen him on TV for a while, but from Thursday Gordon will be backon SBS6 with the culinary program The Cooking Kluns. The presenter now livesin Dubai and travels to the Netherlands for the recordings. If it is up toGordon, he will continue to do so for a long time to come.
The Cooking Kluns was also shown last year, but then once and with RichardGroenendijk as presenter. Because of his theater show, the comedian had toskip this series, so Gordon was asked.
“I had to think about it for a while,” the presenter tells NU.nl. Gordon callsfrom the sunny Maldives, where he is on holiday. “I was a bit skeptical. Ifound it a bit uncomfortable that it was shot in a villa. But the location hasnow moved to a studio. And when I noticed how enthusiastic and motivated theparticipants are, I was completely sold.”
Gordon had to temporarily leave his new residence Dubai for the Netherlandsfor the recordings. The presenter moved to the emirate this year and is havinga great time there. “I now see Dubai as my home. I’m already completelysettled there, happy and happy.”
In The Cooking Kluns teams of three people with little or no cookingexperience have to prepare a three-course meal. Christmas and star worthy.They are supervised by Herman den Blijker or another star chef, but thosechefs are only allowed to give instructions via gestures on a screen andlimited vocal instructions. With interim assignments, the candidates canbriefly gain some extra speaking time for their supervisor.
‘I am mainly the cheerful note and disturbing factor’
Gordon has a lot of culinary experience thanks to his culinary training andhis restaurant Blushing, but he is not behind the stove himself. “OccasionallyI demonstrate some cutting techniques. But I am mainly the cheerful note andthe disturbing factor in the program, haha. I try to stir things up a bit. AndI can also taste the dishes in between.”
That is not without risk, because the participants really have no cheese whenit comes to cooking. “In advance, candidates have to do a small cooking test,such as baking a pancake. There was someone who put milk and flour in a fryingpan and just started stirring, haha. Unbelievable. A few hours later theysuddenly conjure up a star dish. That’s possible you really can’t imagine inthe beginning.”
If it’s up to the presenter, get The Cooking Kluns a sequel. “My contractwith Talpa will run for at least another year, so that would be nice. I say noto many things because it doesn’t suit me. But I am very happy with theprograms I am making now. From Down the Road (in which Gordon makes a roadtrip with young people with Down syndrome, ed.) A new series will be releasedin January. That program is so beautiful to do. I want to keep making it untilthe end of days. And there are two more fun formats coming up that I want todo.”
‘In Dubai I am nice and anonymous’
Gordon’s agenda is therefore quite full, but the presenter can relax well inDubai. “When I’m in the Netherlands, it’s hysteria. You know that people wantto take a picture with you and secretly film you. I enjoyed doing that for 35years, but I want to spend the rest of my life in a different way And thatgoes well for me. In Dubai I’m nice and anonymous, that’s worth so much tome.”
At least Gordon will be in Dubai at Christmas. “I have to tell you that I’mnot that busy with Christmas yet, I don’t know what I’m going to do yet. TheChristmas tree is already in the house, I’m going to put it up this week whenI’m back home. Creating the Christmas feeling in Dubai is fortunately not thatdifficult: there are Christmas trees everywhere and it is nicely decorated.”