The encyclopaedia of gravy
In 1986 John Davidson of Gainsborough reportedly ate 3 lb of Yorkshire pudding and half a pint of onion gravy in 7 minutes 22 seconds. The claim sits in the Record Holders Republic archive rather than the Guinness database.
In 1986, John Davidson of Gainsborough reportedly ate 3 lb (1.36 kg) of Yorkshire pudding and half a pint of onion gravy in 7 minutes 22 seconds.
Status of the claim¶
This record appears in the Record Holders Republic archive rather than in the current Guinness World Records database. Gravypedia therefore describes it as a historical claimed world record rather than an official one — the same treatment this site gives the other gravy stories that are widely repeated but not firmly documented.
That is a statement about the paperwork, not about Mr Davidson.
The ratio¶
Half a pint is about 284 ml of gravy to 1.36 kg of pudding — proportionally rather less gravy than this site would recommend for eating Yorkshire puddings for pleasure.
The advice in yorkshire pudding gravy is 200 ml a head, on the grounds that a Yorkshire pudding is structurally a bowl and there is no sadder plate than a dry one. At competitive volumes, though, gravy is presumably a lubricant rather than a seasoning, and more of it would only add to the quantity to be swallowed.
A historical note¶
There is a pleasing symmetry here. The Yorkshire pudding was originally served first, on its own, with gravy — a cheap filler to take the edge off appetites before the expensive meat arrived. See history of the roast dinner.
Eating three pounds of it against the clock is that tradition taken to its logical conclusion.
Source¶
- John Davidson — Record Holders Republic