Cookery schools for children are to be conducted by celebrity chef Marco Pierre White on board P&O Cruises’ ship Ventura.

 The self-styled godfather of modern British cooking Marco, who has a fine dining restaurant The White Room on the 3,100-passenger ship, will be hosting cookery sessions for groups of up to eight adults and children in the theatre kitchen on board.

 The interactive sessions will involve participants joining Marco as he creates Mediterranean-style dishes, including several fish dishes and sauces.

 Marco will also answer questions about the recipes, techniques and ingredients as well as giving tips of the trade.

 He said: “Cooking is a philosophy, not a recipe, so for me it is all about passing on the knowledge I have and about using good ingredients to create simple and flavoursome dishes which can be easily recreated at home.

 “These sessions have been a great success with the grown ups so we felt it was right and proper for the children to have a chance to shine in the kitchen, learn about the provenance of food and how to create some simple, fun dishes.”

 The Marco Pierre White Heaven’s Kitchen and Kids’ Kitchen sessions cost £75 per adult and £20 per child and are bookable on the following cruises:

 N004 – departing Friday 12 February 2010

N014 – departing Saturday 5 June 2010

N017 – departing Saturday 3 July 2010