Darlington chef cooking Christmas lunch on North Sea ship

Carl Wilson, a former hotel head chef, will be spending the festive season aboard the energy industry supply ship Erda.

The 40-year-old will be responsible for feeding a crew of 51 while the ship carries out decommissioning work on a disused oil platform off the coast of Rotterdam.

He left home earlier this month after celebrating an early Christmas with his wife, Lindsey, 43, and their three children, Brooke, 15, Ollie, 14, and Sienna, 12.

Carl Wilson and his children (Image: Carl Wilson)

He is not due to return until mid-January.

He said: “Being away from home at Christmas isn’t easy for anyone. But we know it’s what we all signed up for.

“Food is such a huge part of general welfare offshore, and at Christmas it’s taken to another level.”

Carl and his team of six have spent months planning the festive menus, with Christmas Day beginning before 5am to provide breakfast for the early shift.

A special brunch will follow at 11am, before two sittings of a multi-choice Christmas dinner later in the afternoon.

Carl Wilson (Image: Carl Wilson)

The chef said food is what “ties us all back to home life.”

He added: “It brings everyone together and gives us a chance to show our flair as chefs. It’s actually the best time of year for us to really shine.

“Someone eating your food, praising you and saying nice things about it, is a big part of why we do this job. It’s about pride and passion for food.”

Carl is one of around 10,000 offshore oil and gas workers spending the festive period at sea, helping to provide the energy needed to heat homes, cook Christmas dinners and power festive lights across the UK.

David Whitehouse, chief executive of Offshore Energies UK, said: “While many of us enjoy Christmas at home, thousands of offshore workers will be working through the holiday to keep the country powered.

“We should never take them for granted.”