• There is cause for celebration at the newly formed Harbour Hotels Group, which owns both The King’s and Christchurch Harbour Hotel and the two Gary Rhodes restaurants in Christchurch, King’s Brasserie and Rhodes South.

After carrying out a total investment in Christchurch of £14 million, the hotel and restaurant group has been awarded 4-star status by the AA and two rosettes for the Christchurch Harbour Hotel and Harbour Restaurant, and two rosettes for Rhodes South. The King’s Hotel and King’s Rhodes Brasserie have secured a 3-star award and two AA rosettes.


• Dorset-based Masterchef winner Mat Follas will be officially opening the second Weymouth and Portland Catering Show, a key trade exhibition for the region’s hospitality and catering industry, at Redlands Community Sports Hub on October 20, at 10am. After the official opening, Mat will join top chefs from throughout the region to show off his talents in the Weymouth College Cookery Theatre. Mat has created a highly personal repertoire of dishes using ingredients that are naturally delicious whether foraged, farmed or hunted.


• Dorset Cereals have launched a Make Your Own Cress Head Film competition to encourage families, friends and groups to get together and get growing, filming and eating their own food. As part of the company’s Edible Playground initiative, Dorset Cereals has produced a full explanation of how to make your own cress heads and how to bring them to life using animation for their film competition. To find out more and to enter, please visit edibleplaygrounds.co.uk

• When it comes to smelly cheese, children aged 11 have the most sensitive sense of smell, with girls performing slightly better than boys on most smell tests, according to consultant ENT surgeon Richard Sims of Dorset County Hospital.