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Old 11th Nov 2020, 10:55 am   #1
Colourstar
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Default 1960s English Electric Rapide Cooker

I thought I'd share some photos of my latest cooker- an English Electric Rapide 57. It was in fact acquired last year through ebay for a very modest sum and has an interesting back story in that it came from a wonderfully period state-of-the-art house, which was sadly just on the point of being demolished. I believe the cooker had been there since new and by the time I arrived it was looking rather forlorn, standing outside by the back door having had a dose of rainwater. After an awful lot of cleaning and elbow grease, it's now back in service. Unfortunately I did have to disable the clock as it makes a loud buzzing noise, no doubt gummed up after all these years.

I love the design of the cooker and the control panel in particular is a work of art, with the control legends being printed on a glass panel giving a sort of 3D effect. Each control has a red pointer which is hidden when the control is off. It has all the bells and whistles including a ring with a built-in device to prevent pans boiling over, plus a double ring, which is selectable by turning the associated control either clockwise for 'inner' element or anticlockwise for 'outer' element. Turning one of the small controls rotates a drum with a variety of cooking guidelines for various dishes.

Pressing the button marked 'Top oven' does nothing more than add a red neon in series with the oven/grill element so that you have a visual indication of when it's actually heating. With the door shut it's an oven, with the door open and the grill pan inserted it's a.... well you can guess!

Certainly a stylish 60s survivor.

Steve
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Old 11th Nov 2020, 10:56 am   #2
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Default Re: 1960s English Electric Rapide Cooker

And a few more photos..
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Old 11th Nov 2020, 11:45 am   #3
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Default Re: 1960s English Electric Rapide Cooker

Reminds me of the cooker we had at home around 1967-68.
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Old 11th Nov 2020, 1:35 pm   #4
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Default Re: 1960s English Electric Rapide Cooker

They don't make them like that any more! It's a very nice cooker which must have been state of the art and very expensive in its day.
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Old 11th Nov 2020, 2:28 pm   #5
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Default Re: 1960s English Electric Rapide Cooker

That's really nice, evocative of the period, I'd have thought quite an upmarket cooker.
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Old 11th Nov 2020, 4:38 pm   #6
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Default Re: 1960s English Electric Rapide Cooker

I particularly like the knob that displays the cooking tips!

Now i'm not one to brag, but this cooker lacks the rotisserie our Jackson Topline had...
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Old 12th Nov 2020, 1:36 am   #7
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Default Re: 1960s English Electric Rapide Cooker

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Originally Posted by sortedradio View Post
They don't make them like that any more! It's a very nice cooker which must have been state of the art and very expensive in its day.
Being a US observer, I never seen a range with the control panel being that high. I guess it is designed to accommodate large kettles so the controls were easy to use.
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Old 12th Nov 2020, 10:12 am   #8
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Default Re: 1960s English Electric Rapide Cooker

Quote:
never seen a range with the control panel being that high
I'm pretty certain it was something to do with the British Standard, in case someone set their chiffon sleeves alight while turning-down the baked beans.
There was definitely a rule about the maximum allowable temperature of the control panel of electric stoves when the rings were on, so maybe having it this high was the only way to comply.
Small fridges of course are due to our cold climate and relatively small appetites
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Old 12th Nov 2020, 11:27 am   #9
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Default Re: 1960s English Electric Rapide Cooker

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I'm pretty certain it was something to do with the British Standard, in case someone set their chiffon sleeves alight while turning-down the baked beans.
This was the 60s - those sleeves were almost certainly polyester

I like the menu thing, which looks like it rotates like a bus destination blind. For someone as bad at cooking as me, I wonder if it goes around to 'terminus'. And does it lock the user into the culinary tastes of its era? (reaches for the Hamlyn all-colour cookbook; they approached the pictures of dishes in COLOUR in the same spirit as those 'this is STEREO' lps!).
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Old 12th Nov 2020, 4:48 pm   #10
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Default Re: 1960s English Electric Rapide Cooker

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And does it lock the user into the culinary tastes of its era?
I'd say it certainly does. I think 'duchesse potatoes' is as exciting as it gets. Certainly no hints on pizzas, chiilis, curries or pasta bakes.

I've discovered you have to be a bit wary of the top oven as it also doubles as the grill, with the heating element in the roof of the compartment. It's very easy to scorch food on top unless you keep a close eye on it.

Just for Mark here are a few more culinary tips from the good people at English Electric...

Steve
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Old 12th Nov 2020, 5:19 pm   #11
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Default Re: 1960s English Electric Rapide Cooker

Maybe whoever came up with the menu roller owned a CR100....
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Old 12th Nov 2020, 6:11 pm   #12
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Default Re: 1960s English Electric Rapide Cooker

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I think 'duchesse potatoes' is as exciting as it gets.
I had to look that up. Fancy French name, fussy presentation, basically a potato. Sounds a lot like aspirational cooking from the 60s!
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Old 12th Nov 2020, 6:37 pm   #13
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Default Re: 1960s English Electric Rapide Cooker

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Maybe whoever came up with the menu roller owned a CR100....
Or a R1475
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Old 12th Nov 2020, 7:23 pm   #14
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Smile Re: 1960s English Electric Rapide Cooker

Good evening,
I have been reading this thread with interest as I love old cookers ! and I have an inkling that I have a spare NOS clock unit that looks identical to yours, just a different style bezel somewhere up in the loft. You are welcome to it when I go up there next and can find it !! This should put the cherry on the cake!

Christopher Capener
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Old 12th Nov 2020, 7:57 pm   #15
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Default Re: 1960s English Electric Rapide Cooker

Decided to have a look in the loft as I had a pretty good idea where it could be and found it straight away for a change !!
Looks identical to the one in your cooker. The little red plunger that pops out when the oven comes on next to the stop knob was the giveaway. Amazing what peculiarities we have hidden away "just in case!"

Christopher Capener
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Old 12th Nov 2020, 8:34 pm   #16
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Default Re: 1960s English Electric Rapide Cooker

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This should put the cherry on the cake!
Let's just hope I don't burn it!

But seriously, thanks for digging that out Christopher. It does appear to be the same assembly, possibly from a slightly later model. Keep it ticking over (ha!) and we'll sort something out.

Steve
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Old 13th Nov 2020, 1:43 pm   #17
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Default Re: 1960s English Electric Rapide Cooker

Hi Steve, I hope you're well?

That cooker is great, love the way you make your house so period.

Are you sure you can use that clock kindly offered from Christopher? It looks like the start/stop controls are handed the other way around to be on the left or can you use your escutcheon to make it handed the correct way around?

Cheers
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Old 13th Nov 2020, 11:36 pm   #18
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Default Re: 1960s English Electric Rapide Cooker

Hi there Lee

Yes I noticed that the clocks on Christopher's unit are upside-down compared to mine. I was thinking along the same lines as you with regard to fitting the escutcheon the other way up, but I probably should take a look at the back of mine to see if it is indeed the same unit. I daresay my original clock could be persuaded back to life with a bit of tlc.

Steve
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Old 14th Nov 2020, 12:23 am   #19
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Default Re: 1960s English Electric Rapide Cooker

Love the style of these electric cookers. My parents had a Belling Classic double eighty with a fluorescent tube light and the controls up high as in your example. It was more late 60s early 70s in styling. Here it is pictured in the early 80s at home. It was new in 1975.
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Old 14th Nov 2020, 11:09 am   #20
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Default Re: 1960s English Electric Rapide Cooker

We moved into an all electric maisonette when I was 10, I am now 67, so we had to have an electric cooker, we had always had gas and as soon as we could we moved out and went back to gas, but the cooker we had in the maisonette was a brand new Creda Carefree, Looked great, 4 rings on the hob, low level grill inner glass oven door and a drawer at the bottom with a heating element to warm the plates. The only problem was that we kept finding loose screws around it. My mother eventually said that the only Carefree thing about it was the way it was put together
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