Comments on: The Story Of Oxford Marmalade

By: Antony Lucas

Antony Lucas — Mon, 07 Jul 2025 23:11:13 +0000

Thank you both for your comments and agree entirely that Sarah Jane Cooper should be represented on the label. Best Wishes Antony

By: Cynthia Cooper

Cynthia Cooper — Tue, 24 Jun 2025 08:33:21 +0000

Me and David (husband) had discussion about your marmalade over breakfast today. We eat it every day after my own has all been eaten. I,too, make jarfuls in January and used to make enough to last all year. However, when people came to stay and loved it, I started giving it away. Now there are only the two of us, heading towards 90! I still make a few jars but when they’re gone it’s Frank Cooper. David was asking about Frank Cooper, so I promised to look you up. So sad that so many women did not get the recognition they deserved. Well done for providing such a lovely story.
Many thanks and kind regards – Cynthia Cooper (no relation!)

By: Suzy Richter

Suzy Richter — Sat, 21 Jun 2025 01:45:41 +0000

I love the Extra Coarse version of Sarah Jane’s marmalade. Each time I buy a jar, I cross out Frank’s name and write in bold letters: Sarah Jane. It is just my small acknowledgement that it is Sarah Jane who should forever be remembered for creating such a great taste.

By: Antony Lucas

Antony Lucas — Fri, 28 Mar 2025 08:20:04 +0000

My father, Maurice Christopher Lucas was the Joint Managing Director, along with Dennis Cooper of Frank Coopers Oxford Marmalade and was part of the family when his family married a Cooper. He worked there all his life (minus active service during WW2) primarily selling the products to Fortnum and Mason, Harrods and British Rail, to name a few. At 51 years of age the company was sold to CPC ( USA Giant) along with the secrets of the famous recipes from Sarah Jane Cooper. He stayed working with the new company for six years retiring early to take up charitable work for the Life Boat, Governor of Dragon and Witchwood School, Oxford and a staunch advocate of the inland waterways. He passed in September 2003 at the age of 90..

By: Marcia Howard

Marcia Howard — Mon, 10 Feb 2025 17:49:10 +0000

My mother, born 1912, always made her own marmalade, and once married with a home of my own, I did too – and still do to this day. Nothing like a bit of marmalade on my morning toast. Yummy!

By: Carolyn Hooper

Carolyn Hooper — Mon, 06 Jan 2025 01:49:09 +0000

Morning from Queensland Australia

Delightful story about Sarah Jane Gill, later Cooper. Let’s forget Frank and his right of the time, to give that wonderful product his name, not Sarah’s.

I adore marmalade but it must not be a sweet one. Simply beautiful too to learn about the original being made of quince and coming via the Portuguese. I also adore quince jelly and clearly recall when being in Portugal in 2015, the sheer delight of finding quince jelly on the breakfast table!!

What a world! The very best to you, gentle author, as you walk through January 2025.

By: Alexandra Jackson

Alexandra Jackson — Sun, 05 Jan 2025 14:56:09 +0000

What a great blog covering so many aspects of this unique breakfast delight! Thank you! It has inspired me to watch out for those strange misformed citrus fruits. . You’ve obviously have had better fortune than me with getting it to set – to hit the sweet spot between caramel toffee and liquid sticky sugar syrup is a skill indeed . Not wanting to lower the tone of your piece, there is a great moment when Lady Grantham, aka Maggie Smith, lifts the lid on the pot on her breakfast tray served to her in bed at Downton Abbey and is heard to observe “Bought Marmalade? I call that very feeble. “. Clearly in some households even Sarah Jane’s thick cut did not make the grade. And truly shocking she didn’t get the credit at the time.

By: Jenny Bluefields

Jenny Bluefields — Sun, 05 Jan 2025 02:30:53 +0000

Dear Gentle Author – so good to also see you can temper your illegible handwriting when absolutely necessary!

By: Charlie Hubberstey

Charlie Hubberstey — Sat, 04 Jan 2025 08:52:25 +0000

Great to read that this recipe is one that I copy almost exactly every year, I just cut the peel down slightly shorter! Oxford with a touch of Dundee I believe…never have a bad comment, and used to pay rent for my website design, with marmalade!
Our dad worked for Thomas Cook – manager of the ‘Complaints Department’ – as then known. We always remember his story of the complaint he had from a couple touring in India – the hotel had no Frank Cooper’s Marmalade! Shocked, I have tried to do my bit for Marmalade in general ever since.
I live in a village in the New Forest. I love our Village Produce Show and submit entries every year. Last year I entered my Marmalade – and scored nil points! The Times they are a changing – be prepared!
Oh, one other factoid I’ve heard…did you know that three quarters of all home made marmalade in the UK is made by men over 50!!
Right…it’s breakfast time!

By: George Kearse

George Kearse — Fri, 03 Jan 2025 15:55:30 +0000

How I long for the days of a good hearty breakfast sole, haddock, bacon, eggs, porridge, steak, veal cutlets, kidneys and curried meats.
Once has-browns were invented as it were to be the norm on the breakfast plate, all changed it seemed.
Mum started serving puddings of various colours black, white, off-white with sausages ‘n mushrooms ‘n lashings of baked beans alongside the bacon, eggs, veal cutlets and kidneys; before we knew it there’s not a fish in sight there on the plate.
For me, tasty marmalade too was and always will be the thickly cut and chunky variety spread liberally on buttered toast more likely than not the occasional Sunday morning having somehow ‘given-up breakfast for Lent’ or on some such other occasion way back when for it never to return to the table except for perhaps Easter given a ‘Christmas cooked breakfast’ was most definitely ‘out of the question’ never to be uttered in our house should the question be asked ‘what will you be wanting for breakfast’ as one tumbled down the stairs early morning Christmas Day.
A great Oxford tale for sure.
I’m pretty sure Frank Cooper’s Oxford Marmalade was never served our table. I remember a time of Tiptree Wilkin & Sons miniature jars of marmalades and jams set the table otherwise it was some pretend-jar of a thin runny variety that dribbled down one’s chin to be caught and wiped by a sleeve.
Any one for a Tawny Orange Marmalade? as with honey, one must hunt down a quality product these days and be prepared to taste it more often than just once in a blue moon for my wife then to moan at me the waste of money as she throws the two-thirds eaten jar away before the mould inside gets served up by accident to unsuspecting visitors visiting early enough to be served breakfast.