Further Back in Time for Dinner S01E06 - Episode 6

The Robshaw family are experienced time travellers, but this time they are going further back than they have ever been before - to the turn of the 20th century, to discover how the food we ate and the way we ate it helped shape the modern family. An ordinary house in south London is their time machine, transporting them through five decades and two world wars. Guided by presenters Giles Coren and social historian Polly Russell, they trace the incredible changes to Britain's diet and the extraordinary social transformation they reveal.

In the final episode of the series, the family and Debbie reflect on their time travels, discovering that much of what they experienced in the past still lives on around our dinner tables today.

The Robshaws try out some of the latest diets promising to make us healthier today. From fermented food to the paleo diet, they discover that our appetite for the perfect healthy diet is something that hasn't gone away. Then Polly shows the family the delights of a contemporary canned meal. It is a world away from the fish and potatoes of the 20s, with luxury ingredients like smoked mussels and chestnuts proving that it is possible to have delicious and convenient dinner.

After working her way through five decades of food history, Debbie tries her hand in a professional restaurant kitchen finding out how opportunities have opened up for talented female cooks since the experiment ended in 1949.

Brandon and Rochelle sample a Peruvian meal with Giles as they reflect on Britain's longstanding love of foreign food and flavours. And finally the family share a celebratory meal with Giles and Polly as they realise how many of our historical eating habits are still a treasured part of modern family mealtimes.