Humans of Fromeby Ciara Nolan- Katy Harris

KATY grew up in the Somerset idyll of Wellow, just on the outer reaches of Bath.

A kid of the 80s – a heady decade famous for its bad hair, dodgy clothes and neon, and further renowned for technological advancements such as the walkman and video recorder, and yet Katy wasn’t a part of that, she rarely watched TV.  Hers was not the typical childhood of the yuppie era, and whilst others sat with their convenient dinners in front of  TV, she was more inclined to enjoy homecooked food made from locally sourced ingredients whilst writing in her ‘journalism’ notebook.

School was tiny, a class of just 5 children meant that the young Katy lived in a sweet microcosm that you might only read of elsewhere in a Enid Blyton novel.  She got lost on her first day in secondary school in Bath; roaming the extensive corridors, she felt all at sea in the midst of 700 other students.

Harbouring the dream of being a journalist when she grew up, Katy’s progress (and confidence) was thwarted by a particularly unpleasant teacher who assured her that nothing of the sort would ever be possible.  Perhaps this negativity fed fuel to the fire of this determined character and against all the odds, Katy went on to study in Gloucester where she achieved  a degree in media, specialising in film and photography.

Emerging triumphant from university, Katy tried and failed to get a journalism job at this stage but as we all know, it’s not easy to just rock up to a job in that world. And so it was that never having left the country before and with just one previous journalistic oeuvre (where she wrote a piece for the Bath Chronicle about a friend who was running a computer business from his bedroom …he is now a millionaire) she took off to Romania to chronicle life in the years following the fall of Communism.   

She describes this time as both utterly terrifying and thrilling in turn.  She speaks of covering stories such as a male stripper troupe’s performance in a candle-lit castle, full to brimming with newly-emancipated and enthusiastic females (much to the chagrin of their men-folk back home) and spending time interviewing people of local importance such as the Mayor.   

It was a fascinating time to be in such a country, she explains the paranoia still amongst the people due to the old regime of Ceausescu’s ‘listeners’ and the general feeling of hatred towards him….she tells me that on the day she visited his grave it was aflame.

Six weeks before Katy had left for Romania, she had met the love of her life, Chris.   The pair wrote to each other every day that she was away and upon her return months later, she moved in with him in his house in Bath.  Life in Bath saw Katy working as a mobile phone saleswoman and a recruitment officer.  Marriage came and then two wonderful kids followed.   

Her first, Chloe now 10 years old, was born following a pregnancy made difficult by undiagnosed glandular fever and eventually Katy was diagnosed with ME.  Work ended then and the important role of motherhood took its place.  Her second child, Alexander followed soon after.  Alexander’s early years were difficult due to health reasons, and Katy became isolated from every day life. Although she struggled, Katy was determined to get out and about as much as possible, and a recent move to Frome and the amazing friends she has made here made all the difference in the world.

Katy slowly re-emerged over the years, a few years working in various cafes and restaurants saw Katy developing her early love of cooking.  Katy was left adrift on a sea of uncertainty when one of the cafes she worked in eventually closed. The children now grown and less demanding, she had no obvious career prospects ahead.  A sudden eureka moment born out of the process of writing her ‘bucket list’ made her realise that she could combine her love of writing and cooking; thus ‘Slummy Mummy’s Kitchen’ Katy’s popular online blog was born.

Since its launch, the blog and its creator have gone from strength to strength. Katy now writes a regular column for The Frome Standard (a tick off the bucket list), she also makes contributions to The Little Things Magazine (launched by fellow Human of Frome, Lisa Merryweather Millard) and has even taken to the  stage as compere and food demonstrator with TV chefs during the latest Frome Cheese Show.   She said that that experience was utterly terrifying, but then it’s not the first time she has thrown herself into challenging situations.   

Now, Katy has left her previous position at Sagebury Cheese and has taken up the apron strings at The Cheese & Grain, where she has already made an impact, and is filled with enthusiasm for the possibilities open to her there, especially with such an excellent team around her.

When I ask Katy what we can expect next from her, she says that she will continue to push herself to do things that she never in a million years thought she would have the nerve to do.  She cannot believe that she is doing the things that she loves; that she finally has the newspaper column that that teacher all those years before told her would never happen, or that she has twice swam 5,000 metres (yes that’s a whole other story), or that she has stood up in front of audiences and TV cameras demonstrating and talking about her love for food.

Katy Harris is a one-woman wonder from where I am sitting, she always has a smile to give and a warm welcome to offer. She’s never afraid to share her bad days on her blog, she knows that like others, she is not perfect, and speaks with a humour that many will identify with, about the challenges of everyday life.  A down-to-earth woman with a big heart, a big dream and a strong determination, I reckon Katy will have to write another bucket list or two, or 10, before she is through.

Check out Katy’s blog at www.face book.com/slummymummyskitchen