Wedginald facts for kids
Wedginald was a special round of cheddar cheese that became famous in 2007. Its makers, Westcountry Farmhouse Cheesemakers in Shepton Mallet, Somerset, England, showed its aging process live on the internet through a website called cheddarvision.tv. This big cheese, weighing 20 kilograms (about 44 pounds), was watched by more than 1.5 million people over nine months!
At first, it was just a fun thing on the internet, but soon, big news channels like the BBC and newspapers around the world started talking about Wedginald. Even radio shows in America and England gave updates on the cheese. A time-lapse video of Wedginald aging on YouTube was viewed hundreds of thousands of times. You could even add the live feed as an app on Facebook, and Wedginald had over 1,300 friends on Myspace.
How Wedginald Aged
On September 19, 2007, an important step happened for Wedginald. Tom Calver, the person who created the cheese, took a small piece to check its quality after nine months of aging. Experts say this step is very important to know if the cheese will taste good and be ready to eat.
Tom Calver described the cheese's smell as "caramel" and its taste as "sweet," "creamy," and "lemony." He said it had a bit of a "spritziness," which means it was a little bubbly or tangy.
The cheesemakers said they never expected Wedginald to become so famous. But they had a serious reason for showing the cheese online: they wanted to teach people about how cheese is made. They wanted to show everyone how much hard work goes into making special foods, especially when many people don't know where their food comes from.
The Name and Auction
The name "Wedginald" was chosen after a contest on the website. It's a funny mix of two words: "wedge" (like a slice of cheese) and the name "Reginald".
Wedginald was later sold in an online auction on eBay. The auction ended on November 19, 2007, and the cheese sold for £1,145! All the money went to the BBC charity Children in Need, which helps children in need. Nearly 200 people watched as the auction closed, and there were 36 bids in total. The person who won the auction used to live in Somerset, England, but had moved to New Zealand.
Wedginald stayed online for people to watch until December 19, 2007. After the cheese arrived in New Zealand on December 22, 2007, a new contest was started to guess where Wedginald was "taking his holiday" on a website called www.whereswedginald.tv. However, that website no longer works today.
