After more than three successful decades in Thailand, what prompted the return to the UK? It must have been an incredible wrench, or maybe not?
Bangkok’s air quality drove me to leave Thailand and relocate to the UK after 32 years of living in Krungthep. It was during the thick smog of 2019 and the need to close windows and wear a mask in Bangkok’s city centre that set my plans in motion.
I began the slow process of selling my assets in Thailand to part fund my relocation to the UK. It was time for a move and I was up for an exciting new adventure. My property hunting since 2019 had me bidding at auctions for houses in Pembrokeshire, Bath and Devon. Eventually, Cornwall came up.
After protracted negotiations, I bought a modest 1831 Grade II listed Cornish stone cottage in the Heritage Quarter of Helston, gateway to the Lizard Peninsula. I had bought the property online, unseen in a town I had never visited. I felt pretty confident, as I had researched the area and felt the property would give me a good base to settle back into UK life.
The move was timely because the address I had been using in the UK as my main contact was no longer available. Being away from the UK for so long, I was off the radar. I was not on the electoral register. I had no credit history. No banking inactivity. I’d not been paying rates, utilities or a phone bill. This all meant I was in ghost mode in the UK.
This was the biggest challenge I faced with the move back home. Getting a credit card was not easy as I had no history with credit rating agencies, even though I had substantial funds in my bank account. 

​You have worked with some of the world’s leading musicians and orchestras, but your first musical collaboration in Thailand was with someone rather special. Please elaborate:
Back in 1994 I was producing a record with The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra at the famous Abbey Road Studios in London. A fax was delivered to me during the sessions, asking if I would be interested in recording the music of His Majesty King Bhumipol Adulyadej to celebrate the 50th anniversary of his reign as the Monarch in Thailand.
 
Initially, I thought it might be a prank being played on me by one of my colleagues in the orchestra, as the opportunity seemed so 'incredible'! However, after a few further exchanges it was indeed a sincere and true approach from The Rear Admiral, Mom Luang Usni Pramoj on behalf of The Royal Bangkok Symphony Orchestra, who had heard some of my previous recordings and liked them. They wanted me to engineer and produce an album that was to be called 'Near Dawn', which was, essentially, a collection of His Majesty's 'Greatest Hits', expertly arranged by ML Usni, for symphony orchestra.
 
This recording, which was a joy to work on, was with the Royal Bangkok Symphony Orchestra and became very popular in Thailand and across the globe. It was the start of a relationship that saw me ending up making some eleven recordings of His Majesty's music, arranged for many different combinations of instruments. It was also the start of my love of Thailand, where I now reside and have made my home.

Seasonal ingredients, respect for the products in his dishes,
keeping diners happy and the constant search for perfection are the pillars of Chef Wilfrid Hocquet's menus at Blue by Alain Ducasse, the Michelin-starred restaurant at Iconsiam, located on the banks of the Chao Phraya River in Bangkok Growing up in the Montpellier region in the south of France, Wilfrid's first job aged 20 was with Chefs Jacques and Laurent Pourcel in their three-Michelin star Le Jardin des Sens. Then he headed to Monte Carlo to work for the iconic Louis XV-Alain Ducasse à l'Hôtel de Paris (three Michelin stars) in Monaco. Later he moved to Thailand, staying for two years, first as the Executive Chef of D'Sens and then Quince, both well-known for their French and Mediterranean menus. After several prestigious posts in the US, Wilfrid moved back to Thailand as the Executive Head Chef on the opening team of Blue by Alain Ducasse. In its first year of operation, the restaurant was awarded one Michelin star.
His imaginative, soulful cooking is deeply rooted in French tradition 
and gastronomical know-how. Over the years, he has developed a unique ability to marry premium French products and local delicacies, transforming them into extraordinary works of art on the plate.
With seafood accounting for up to 40% of the items on Blue's menu, Chef Wilfred has to be particularly careful in selecting the quality of its source, supply and sustainability Interestingly, he relies on one supplier not only for every seafood product imported from France but also for the majority of seafood used at Blue-Thammachart Seafood. Building trust between a chef and his most important suppliers is a key factor in a restaurant's success. We have a good working relationship with Thammachart and can rely on them for regular deliveries of quality products, twice a week, which is absolutely vital," says Chef Wilfred. "They have good contacts overseas so can give us very useful advice on the availability of seafood according to seasons and possible price changes, which is so important for a restaurant like Blue as we try to stay close to products' seasonality.
"They are a company that looks after their customers.' Blue enjoys a high approval rating from its guests, sixty percent of whom are Thais while the rest are expats and tourists.
The restaurant retains its Michelin star in the latest edition.

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​When did you arrive in Thailand and what are your impressions so far?
I arrived during the pandemic, and I'm appreciating the country more and more every day, discovering the kindness of its inhabitants, its rich variety and way of life and the cultural treasures of the country.
Please update us on Belgium since the pandemic.
In Europe, and in Belgium in particular, life has returned to normal, and all measures linked to the pandemic have been now lifted. We are now working on the economic recovery in all its aspects. Of course, the aggression of Russia against Ukraine and its impact on Europe and the world complexifies it. It nevertheless creates an opportunity to strengthen European cooperation.
The European Union is also at the forefront of the measures to overcome the climate change challenge. Belgium is a leader in innovation in this regard, having developed technologies ranging from wind power at sea over battery technology to laying the groundwork for the use of green hydrogen in industry and transport.
Bilateral relations between Belgium Thailand began over 150 years ago. How do you see the significance of this relationship?
It would be difficult to summarize our multifaceted relation in a few words. We can highlight a few aspects: the longstanding friendship between our two royal households is of course a cornerstone of our relation. I could also mention the increasing academic cooperation between our universities or the shared trade and investment opportunities. The cultural and personal exchanges in many forms - from student exchanges, families composed of both nationalities, tourists or expatriated citizens - are key elements of this positive relationship