Congratulations to JAGS alumna Sudi Pigottt (Class of '79) whose new book Consider the Anchovy was published on 23 April 2026. 

Travelling from Cantabria to California, in this book you will meet the personalities, families and communities whose livelihood depends on the not-so humble anchovy, participating in traditions celebrating the little fish, visiting bars, festivals and even museums devoted exclusively to anchovies. See the flatbottomed barque boats and tightly packed fishermen's cottages of Collioure that inspired Matisse, Derain and Fauvism.

Alongside delicious recipes to close each chapter, this book is rich in research, stuffed with maverick, rakish characters and full of flavour. Whether you love them or you hate them, Consider the Anchovy is both an entertaining odyssey and an unabashedly passionate manifesto that celebrates anchovies with their pungent, complex, umami allure as leading, albeit sometimes unpredictable, movers in world culinary history.

Sudi says, "My mission is to give anchovies the status and deep respect they deserve and deep recognition of what they can contribute, especially in a time of crisis, to climate, health, and happiness to making the world a better and more deliciously fed place to be. Some people call me ‘the anchovy evangelist’.  Anchovies are stealth culinary shape shifters and I challenge every anchovy sceptic to just try a good anchovy and see how they enliven the palate, even on a crisp!"

Since her time at JAGS, Sudi has enjoyed a successful career as a long established food and travel journalist.  Her work appears regularly in national newspapers including The Telegraph, The i paper and FT.com amongst others along with magazines such as Conde Nast Traveller. 

Congratulations again to Sudi on her new book! 

We love hearing from our alumnae with news of their interests and achievements. Please contact the JAGS Development and Alumnae Relations Team via alumnae@jags.org.uk to share your news.