from The Vegetarian October 1992

LIFE AS A VEGETARIAN MBE

"The future for vegetarianism seems better now than ever before. Vegetarians are no longer afraid to point out to people why they are vegetarian and what this means." Looking back on her life's work Isobel Wilson feels positive that vegetarianism will just keep on growing, and glad that she was able to be a part of this growth. This commitment to vegetarian beliefs has played a central role in the way Isobel Wilson has lead her life, whether it be her work for vegetarianism, which resulted in her being voted president of The Vegetarian Society between 1987-1989, or her 17-year long service as a member of the Cumbria County Council. Isobel's work has recently been justifiably rewarded in the inclusion of her name in the Queen's Birthday Honours List. Isobel, who is to receive an MBE in December, describes her initial reaction to the news of her award as, "surprised but thrilled to bits." She will no doubt be just as thrilled at Buckingham Palace where she will be taking three other vegetarians from her family; her husband, daughter and son.

Eileen Murphy spoke to Isobel Wilson about her passion for cooking and life.

Isobel's talent for organisation and her creative cookery skills have made sure that her contribution to vegetarianism has certainly not been a flash in the pan. As she says herself, "the vegetarian movement has been a great part of my life." The daughter of vegetarian parents and a lifelong vegetarian herself, Isobel, now 83, became involved in the vegetarian movement after an Arts Degree at Manchester University and getting married to her first husband. "We bought a house in the Lake District and developed it into a vegetarian guesthouse. I already had a good repertoire of dishes I could cook, just from my mother and grandmothers tuition." This culinary background served her well, winning cookery medals and prizes across the UK. Realising the difficulties facing vegetarians when on holiday and travelling was the main reason behind setting up Rothay Bank Guesthouse, which she ran for 30 years, and resulted in the formation of the Vegetarian Guest House Association in 1953. As the association formed stronger links with The Vegetarian Society it became the Vegetarian Catering Association, showing the organisation's aim of promoting vegetarianism among professional caterers. "What is now the Cordon Vert Cookery School began as a much smaller concept. Initially there were only two of us giving demonstrations to Vegetarian Society members at Annual meetings. We soon began to realise, however, that the appeal of the demonstrations was far wider, even back in those 'Dark Ages' we had calls from people as far away as Swansea who had heard about us." Thus a team of volunteers effectively founded what is now today such a respected cookery school. Isobel's pioneering spirit was not, however, just concerned with vegetarian issues. "I joined the local council in 1968 in order to try and do something to preserve the beauty of the Lake District." Perhaps her most successful and famous local campaign was to ban lorries from the main road through the Lake District National Park. "To try and draw attention to the sheer volume of the traffic through the park we set up an overnight lorry count. After ten years we finally managed to get them banned by proving they were not only harming the environment but keeping everyone awake at night. It was a great success even if some people did think it was a strange way to go about it!" After reaching retirement age Isobel found that she needed a pastime and as a lifelong patron of the arts, serving on the local arts committee for a number of years, she took to painting. "I had always wanted to paint and become more involved in art but to be honest with all my work I didn't get the time to paint a stroke before I retired. I haven't set out to make a living from it. Rather it's just a way of expressing myself and the beauty that surrounds me here." A small hut in the garden of Isobel's house provides the solitude and quiet she needs to paint. Looking to the future Isobel is pleased to see that The Vegetarian Society is going from strength to strength with its campaigning work. "I'm particularly interested in the work that the youth and education team have been doing. The way that they have taken the message of vegetarianism into the schools is really wonderful. They seem to have brought a whole new generation of people to the vegetarian cause." For Isobel the most important point about vegetarianism is that it's the only way to show that you are a real animal lover. "Obviously we must also educate people about the effects of a meat-based diet and supply them with information on vegetarian food and catering. We must always remember the main reason why The Vegetarian Society exists, because, the abuse of other species. There are so many things still to be done but seeing the Society flourish shows that we are getting there. I really saw the extent to which the message has spread when my 11 year old grand-daughter began at a new school. She arrived home from cookery class very happy to tell us that the course they were doing was actually in vegetarian cooking; that's the level of the Society's success." A success in which Isobel herself has played no small part!

Sadly Isobel died two years after the above article was written. The following article appeared in the Spring 1995 issue of The Vegetarian: Obituary: Isobel Wilson MBE A dearly-loved figure in the vegetarian movement, Isobel Wilson (née James), died on Christmas Day. Born into a vegetarian family in Manchester in 1908, she was the daughter of H. Julius Lunt whose firm of solicitors acted for the former Vegetarian Society for many years. A graduate of Manchester University, Isobel worked in London for some time. During a holiday in Somerset in 1936 she met William Stanley James, widely known as Jimmy, who also became a prominent vegetarian. They married in 1937. Interest in vegetarianism was strong and the couple took over a vegetarian guest house in the Lake District, Beck Allans. This was formerly run by Fay Henderson, herself a personality in the vegetarian movement for many decades. A move to Rothay Bank followed: this was a large house which became renowned for its vegetarian catering. Being a guesthouse proprietor led Isobel to becoming a member of the Vegetarian Catering Association and she was soon an active participant, subsequently becoming chairperson in 1969. When the Food and Cookery Section of the Vegetarian Society succeeded the VCA, Isobel became very much involved in the development of the Section's work, giving talks and cookery demonstrations in various parts of the country and becoming its chairperson in 1985. In the early 1950s a vegetarian class was established in the biennial professional Salon Culinaire at Hotelympia. Isobel was an early prizewinner, being awarded Bronze Medals in 1954 and 1956 and the Gold Medal in 1958. She subsequently became a judge in 1964 Isobel was also an enthusiastic and active committee member of the former Vegetarian Society and later of the Vegetarian Society of the United Kingdom, joining the Council when the Vegetarian Society and London Vegetarian Society amalgamated in 1968 and becoming President of the Society from 1987-1989. For her services to the vegetarian cause Isobel was made an Honorary Fellow of The Vegetarian Society. In recent years she adopted a more passive role, although her keen interest in the Society's success ensured both letters and telephone calls whenever she was concerned about any aspect of the Society's affairs. Isobel's interest in vegetarianism extended internationally and she attended a number of world vegetarian congresses, acting for a time as regional secretary for Europe of the International Vegetarian Union. Her culinary skills were reflected in the successful publication of her book Vegetarian Cuisine in 1967, a work remembered by many with appreciation and still a favoured reference source. Isobel was also an dedicated campaigner for the protection of the Lake District, an area for which she had an abiding affection. She served in various capacities on the Westmorland County Council and its successor Cumbria County Council, as well as numerous committees concerned with the protection and management of the Lake District. It was while engaged in campaigning work for Grasmere Village in 1977 that she met her second husband, Andrew Wilson (Jimmy James having sadly passed away some years earlier). Their marriage led to joint efforts promoting the Lake District through the development of a newspaper and the writing of various guides. Isobel's natural artistic talent also resulted in her painting many Lakeland scenes. In 1992 she was awarded an MBE 'for services to the public and to the community'. She is survived by her husband, Andrew, and her two children by her first marriage, Wendy and Brian, as well as two grandchildren, Fiona and Roger. She was a remarkable lady, whose influence on the development of the vegetarian movement in Britain in the period since the Second World War has been considerable. She will be missed by all who knew her and was a fine example to everyone of the vegetarian way of life. Maxwell G Lee (with thanks to members of the former Food and Cookery Section and Isobel's husband, Andrew)
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