Plans often went awry and, to American audiences, that was part of the charm. Child recalls one show in particular, an episode for British television entitled “Coq au Vin versus Chicken Fricassee: Sisters Under the Sauce.”

Filming got off to a messy start. Two pots of contending poultry were simmering on the stove and, just before the cameras were about to roll, Child unveiled them with a flourish. She took the covers off the pots and swung them up over her shoulders.

“I went like this,” Child recalls, swinging her hands wildly, “forgetting there was condensation. It fell on my blouse. They started and I was brushing off my blouse and giggling. So all the English thought I was drunk and that’s the last show they saw.”

Her on-air persona of informality notwithstanding, Child has long lived in the upper ranks of the serious food world. With a constant stream of events and invitations, her professional contacts have dominated her life in Cambridge—and fellow chefs will undoubtedly continue to surround her after her move to California.

“I’ve been so busy, I haven’t been very social,” Child says. “Most of my friends are in the business. It’s like a big family.”

—Staff writer Andrew S. Holbrook can be reached at holbr@fas.harvard.edu.