Backstage heroes

Travelling through Europe and cooking for pop stars may sound like an enviable lifestyle but in reality it's hard graft, as Diane Lane found out.

There is nothing glamorous about Wembley Arena at 6am. No dazzling lights, no pounding music, and no heating. Yet chefs Nick Richardson, Paul Thompson and Stuart Jackson are cheerfully going about the business of preparing breakfast for the 40 riggers, sound and lighting engineers who make up the crew for pop group Steps' 2001 Gold tour.

The chefs work for Home Cookin', a catering firm owned by Sandi Grabham, which has been providing the catering on the five-piece band's tours for about five years. Grabham started the company 25 years ago when she began catering for a recording studio in Cookham, Berkshire. Her husband was a musician and knew plenty of people in the music industry, so through word of mouth Grabham was soon booked as tour caterer for a variety of acts in the UK and across Europe.

Cheerful disposition
"At the time there was only one other company in the market for tour catering. Now there are about 15," says Grabham, whose clients have included Ronan Keating, Five, Boyzone, Super Furry Animals, Pink Floyd and Bruce Springsteen. "The trick is to get hold of an act and keep them," she believes. And a cheerful disposition is a prerequisite. "You can't be a miserable person, or you'll be gone," she adds.

Grabham's interest in cooking stems from a flair for domestic science at school, although she has never trained as a chef. Originally from South Shields, she is now based in Cambridge, where she rents a warehouse to store the company's kitchen equipment and dry goods.

The biggest headache for Grabham and her team is the facilities they have to contend with at the tour venues, which are often poor. Some don't even have the most basic catering facilities, making it necessary for Grabham to carry extra equipment, including Calor Gas ranges, fridges and servery equipment, to be able to set up a kitchen anywhere. "We have enough equipment to cater for three tours at a time," says Grabham, whose initial outlay for kit was £200,000.

Transporting equipment for each tour means wear and tear is hefty and maintenance is high. There are also losses caused by china and cutlery going missing.

The 40-seat dining area at Wembley is also far from ideal, with its Formica tables, hard plastic chairs and not a carpet or curtain in sight. But Grabham and team member Georgina Bell try to make the place more homely, with tablecloths, flowers and, at dinner, candles on all the tables.

Bell's role in the team is largely front of house, although she does carry out some prep in the kitchen. As well as setting up the dining area and making sure tea and coffee are available all day, she is responsible for preparing a basket of refreshments including fruit, crisps, chocolates, sweets and soft drinks for each dressing room. And on "load out" days, when the tour is moving on to another venue, she prepares sandwiches for all the staff to eat during the journey.

The first day at any venue always requires an early start to provide breakfast for the crew setting up the stage. A full English breakfast is popular, although anyone requiring something lighter can choose from cereal, yogurt, jam, muffins, croissants and fruit.

Lunch usually takes place between 1pm and 3pm and is set out as a self-service buffet, offering a couple of hot dishes, such as chicken fajitas, soup, meat and fish platters, quiches, salads and cakes. The crew usually eats first, with the band and its entourage of dancers and hairdressers not appearing until late afternoon.

Dinner is a busier affair, especially in London, when management, agents and promoters often turn up for a pre-show meal. It starts at 5.30pm so everyone can eat before the show begins at about 8pm.

Never knowing quite how many people will want food means an extra 10 meals have to be allowed for, and there is always a lot of waste as there is no room to keep unused ingredients. Dishes include fillet steak Rossini with Madeira sauce, and griddled cod with rocket salad and basil oil.

According to Grabham, the acts on tour always come down to the canteen to eat, and she and her team enjoy mixing with their clients. "We like getting direct feedback," she says. Dinner guests help themselves to a plated starter and pudding, but main course is waitress service, provided by Bell and Grabham.

Menus are planned as a team effort a few days in advance and no dishes are repeated throughout the six-week tour. Bands are often careful about what they eat and Steps, which disbanded after the 2001 Gold tour, is no exception, preferring reasonably plain cooking. The 10 dancers accompanying the band on tour also watch their diets. There are five vegetarians on the tour so meat-free options are always available.

"Some acts watch their diets in as far as cutting out fat wherever possible, but they're not as fussy as the past generation of stars, who would request a bottle of rare wine for the dressing room," says Grabham.

Richardson makes a regular morning trip to a local supermarket for supplies, with the exception of dry goods, which are transported in a flight case along with the rest of the equipment, and vacuum-packed meat, which is delivered by Leicestershire-based supplier Alan Holmes & Sons. While this works out as more expensive, it is easier than trying to source suppliers for each venue and arrange delivery.

Apart from bread, which is bought in locally, everything is made from scratch, including the desserts prepared by Paul Thompson, a firm favourite with band member Lisa Scott Lee. A runner is allocated to the caterers, paid for by the production company organising the tour, and is used for such tasks as taking the chefs' whites and linens to a local launderette for a service wash. The company also meets the cost of transporting the catering equipment, and paying for the catering team and their hotel accommodation.

Having submitted a quote for the tour catering, Grabham charges the production company a daily fee that includes supplies and wages. Grabham employs staff on a freelance basis, paying them a daily rate for the duration of the tour, even if they get a day off. Wages are considerably higher than in other areas of the catering industry because of the long hours.

She is unable to take on staff permanently as the work isn't available all year round, although the caterers will be on tour for about 35-40 weeks of the year. At quiet times, Grabham caters for corporate events.

The catering team is an integral part of the tour. Being made to feel a part of the whole team and sharing in the excitement is something that keeps them coming back for more. "The hard work and long hours are worth it, because every day is different and you meet lots of people," says Thompson, who trained at college in his native Newcastle. Jackson also trained in Newcastle and has worked at hotels and restaurants in the area and for contract caterer Sutcliffe.

Richardson trained at Brooklands College in Weybridge, Surrey, and spent two years in London at restaurants including Chapter One and Two. After three years of tour catering, he admits he is tempted to go back to restaurant work, but would miss life on the road with its perks of staying in quality hotels, the socialising and the occasional time off to explore.

Band member H

…says he eats quite healthily but has never been obsessive about food.

…has a carbohydrate meal before a show and a protein shake after.

…is a big fan of Indian food.

…avoids fast food and says: "if you eat a lot of crap, you feel crap."

…is getting better at cooking and recently appeared on Celebrity Ready Steady Cook.

…would like to learn how to cook lobster.

…loves Mezzo and has tried nearly everything on the menu.

…can't live without a Sunday roast.