Father’s sandwich shapes for fussy children become internet sensation
A ather of two who creates "sandwich sculptures" in the shape of animals and musical instruments is at the centre of a publishers' bidding war.
Mark Northeast is in talks with London firms to produce a recipe book of sandwiches aimed at convincing fussy children to eat.
Designs include a grand piano made of cucumber, cheese and ham, a crocodile with celery teeth and a SpongeBob SquarePants with a tomato tie.
Other creations include a carrot-and-rocket Finding Nemo clownfish, ham caterpillar, a bagel Loch Ness monster and a Hello Kitty with chive whiskers.
The 36-year-old web designer, whose wife Lisa encouraged him to post pictures of his inventions on Twitter and Facebook, became an internet sensation overnight.
His website, funkylunch.com, is receiving more than 10,000 hits a day. He came up with the idea when his four-year-old son Oscar refused to eat his lunch. Now he has received three offers for a book deal from publishers. "This is a whole new ball game for me," he said. "I was trying to cure my son's lunchtime boredom but it's snowballed and I'm now looking at the possibility of a Funky Lunch brand.
"I'm already thinking about the possibilities of fruit creations for desserts, pancake castles for breakfast and specially-designed main meals."
Mr Northeast, from Littlehampton, West Sussex, has approached chef Jamie Oliver for help: "I tweeted him for a bit of advice. It would be nice to get a few tips. At the moment the only advice I'm getting is from my kids."
He says Oscar and his daughter Izzy, six, are his "biggest critics". "Kids are always told not to play with their food," he said. "In my house the opposite is true. My two are always helping me cut up bread and ham and build crazy shapes. It is a great way to encourage children to try to eat a varied and healthy lunch."
Mr Northeast aims to have the recipe book in shops next spring.
